Sussex vs Middlesex: August 12, Royal London One-Day Cup 2021 Prediction

Match: Sussex vs Middlesex

Date: 12 August 2021

Place (venue): County Ground, Hove

Tournament: Royal London One-Day Cup

Format: Limited overs cricket (50 overs)

Caption

It’s a must-win game for Middlesex against Sussex, at County Ground, Hove.

Key Stats

• Head to head, from the last five encounters, Middlesex and Sussex both won two matches while 1 game was abandoned.
• Sussex won just 1 game in this tournament so far, while 3 of their matches were washed out, as they are in seventh place with just 4 points.
• Middlesex won two games as yet in this tournament, and they are at 7^th place with 5 points thanks to an abandoned match.

Match Preview

Sussex finally registered their first win in the Royal London Cup as their young guns – bowlers James Coles, Archie Lenham and the centurion Ali Orr played significant roles in their close win by two wickets over Worcestershire Rapids. Middlesex’s team and the management are disappointed as they had to settle for just 1 point after Gloucestershire were forced to cancel their visit to Middlesex because of the Covid-19 outbreak in the squad. It badly impacted Middlesex’s hope to qualify for the knockout stages, as they are at the seventh position in the points table, one below Gloucestershire, but one place above the 8^th ranked Sussex.

Sussex Preview

Sussex performed well in the initial matches in the series, but they failed to cross the finishing line to hold the nerves in crunch moments. In the very first game, it was a tough fight against Lancashire as they scored a very good total of 270 runs, thanks to half-centuries from Travis Head and Oliver Carter. But despite the legbreaker Archie Lenham’s four wickets they ultimately lost the game by just two wickets and six balls remaining. They had to settle for 1-1 points in the rain-affected matches against Durham, and Kent. Against Hampshire, they lost by 98 runs while chasing the target of 328. It was a fortunate loss against Gloucestershire as just 3 runs parted the sides when the D/L method was applied.

They broke the jinx at Worcester as they chased down the target of 234 runs out by the hosts Worcestershire. Archie Lenham’s 3 for 53, James Coles’s 3 for 27 helped the side to get the target under 235. Ali Orr’s century right at the top gave Sussex a good chance to win. The skipper Tom Haines (46 runs) and Travis Head (38 runs) supported well.

Here are the top batsmen and bowlers for Sussex.

Key players for Sussex:

Sussex Probable Playing XI:

Tom Haines (c), Harrison Ward, Tom Clark, Travis Head, James Coles, Oliver Carter (wk), Danial Ibrahim, Archie Lenham, Henry Crocombe, Joseph Sarro, Will Beer

Middlesex Preview

Middlesex couldn’t open their accounts for the initial three matches, as they were defeated by Essex and Durham, and the match against Hampshire was washed out. They finally got their first win of the tournament against Worcestershire after scoring 302 runs thanks to Stephen Eskinazi’s 130 runs off 101 balls. Against Lancashire, they scored 257 runs thanks to Sam Robson (76 runs) and Martin Andersson (42 runs). Thilan Walallawita too played a cameo there and made quick 29 runs with 2 fours and 2 sixes. Lancashire came close, but eventually, Middlesex won the game by six runs thanks to Luke Hollman’s 4 wickets and Ethan Bamber’s 3 wickets. Bamber again bagged 3 wickets in the next game against Kent, but Middlesex batters collapsed against lethal bowling of Nathan Gilchrist and Hamidullah Qadri.

Middlesex’s previous game against Gloucestershire was abandoned due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the latter’s squad, and it jolted Middlesex’s chance of entering the knockout round. They must win their remaining two games and then reply on the outcome of the other games now.

Here are the top batsmen and bowlers for Middlesex.

Top players for Middlesex

Middlesex Probable Playing XI

Peter Handscomb (c), Robbie White (wk), Stephen Eskinazi, Varun Chopra, Luke Hollman, James Harris, Thilan Walallawita, Ethan Bamber, Tim Murtagh, Sam Robson, Max Holden

Venue

The venue for this match is County Ground, Hove. The ground slopes and the sea fret makes the ball swing and dip, which can bring early thrills on a green wicket. It becomes very placid to bat later on.

Toss Info

Only one ODI and two T20Is are played here so far. In the previous game between Sussex and Gloucestershire which was played on this ground, Gloucestershire won the game.  After watchful early overs, it becomes a good track to bat on. Hence, The team winning the toss should bat first and put a good score on the board.

Pitch and Weather Report

On the match day, the maximum and minimum temperatures would be 20°C and 16 °C respectively, with a wind speed of 13 to 20 kmph. Intermittent clouds and shining sunlight can be expected.

Our Prediction

It is indeed difficult to predict the outcome of this game. Sussex have an advantage in head-to-head games in the limited over games and the host conditions might suit them. However, the visitors are not far behind. Overall, Middlesex performed better in this tournament compared to Sussex. In the points table too, they are ahead, and they have a better chance to enter into the top-six. Also, the purpose to reach the next stage might drive Middlesex to perform even better in this must-win game.

We predict Middlesex will defeat Sussex.

Disclaimer: Our match previews are fully researched but as per the nature of the game, anything is possible on the match day. You are advised to decide for yourself when betting on a team. Thanks.