Manchester Originals were the beaten finalists in The Hundred last season and will be looking to go one better and get their hands on the title for the first time in this campaign. The Old Trafford based side were a surprise package to make it through to the final but showed real quality at the key moments and will need all of that character if they are going to go around again but this time fare one better.
Stats
Last Season: Finalists
Captain: Jos Buttler
Key Players: Phil Salt & Fazalhaq Farooqi
Best Odds: 13/2 Unibet
Fixtures
Jul 25: Welsh Fire (h)
Jul 29: Trent Rockets (h)
Aug 1: Southern Brave (a)
Aug 4: Northern Superchargers (a)
Aug 6: Oval Invincibles (h)
Aug 9: London Spirit (a)
Aug 11: Northern Superchargers (h)
Aug 15: Birmingham Phoenix (a)
Squad
Jos Buttler, Jamie Overton, Phil Salt, Sikandar Raza, Paul Walter, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Tom Hartley, Usama Mir, Wayne Madsen, Max Holden, Josh Hull, Mitchell Stanley, Sonny Baker, Matthew Hurst, Tom Aspinwall, Scott Currie
Preview
The Manchester Originals have probably been underachievers in this competition although England coming and going for Jos Buttler, by far their standout player on paper, in the opening three seasons has certainly not helped their cause. Just when he is finally not going to get called away though he has picked up an injury which looks to rule him out of the entire season. That leaves a light looking batting unit needing to pick up the pieces and deliver without their talismanic run scorer which won’t be easy.
It wouldn’t be so bad if the Originals looked like a top quality side with the ball and if the pitches, certainly at Old Trafford but pretty much everywhere, don’t really turn then the beaten finalists of a year ago could be in a lot of trouble this term. They will need their better players on paper who aren’t in form to find their best stuff rather quickly or else this could be the longest campaign of the lot so far for Manchester Originals.
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Betting
I was going to look for some value in the top Manchester Originals batting market but with the uncertainty around Jos Buttler and his availability in the tournament it looks like the bookmakers are taking no chances and at the time of writing they have pulled the plug on that market. Were one to go back up it could be worth looking at someone down their order such as Sikandar Raza but until that happens we are left with just the bowling option.
I don’t mind that though because this looks to be a pretty competitive bowling market where Fazalhaq Farooqi is the favourite to land the spoils. He played for Nottinghamshire in the Vitality Blast so he’ll know conditions well and it wasn’t too long ago that he was being the leading wicket taker at the T20 World Cup so he sets a decent standard. Outside of that though you are looking at spinners and while I wouldn’t put anyone off Josh Hull at 5/1, it remains to be seen whether three left arm seamers will play with Paul Walter definitely going to feature because of what he offers with the bat. Walter was actually only a wicket short of being the leading wicket taker for Manchester last season and having taken two wickets in three of his last five Blast matches for Essex, he is coming in here in decent nick. He has this ability to take all the pace off the ball at the death which the Originals seem to like and with no Josh Little, join leading wicket taker for the Old Trafford side last year, or Josh Tongue who was one away a year ago, there are voids which Walter could fill and he might be worthy of a value alternative bet to Farooqi at more than five times the price.
Tips
Back P.Walter Top Manchester Originals Bowler for a 1/10 stake at 17.00 with Betway
