Birmingham Phoenix v Trent Rockets Prediction: 9/1 Willey to lead by example with the bat

It's the Midlands Derby, of sorts, in The Hundred up next at Edgbaston on Friday afternoon, start time 18:30, live on Sky Sports Cricket.  

Jamie Pacheco talks us through the team news, pitch, conditions and the latest odds, picking a big 9/1 shot for top bat and favouring the Phoenix's opening partnership to score the most runs as he takes us through his Birmingham Phoenix vs Trent Rocket Predictions...  

*You can check out all of our Cricket Odds over at betfred.com

Birmingham Phoenix  

Having topped the Group Stage but eliminated in the Playoffs back in 2021, they were back in the Playoffs last year after finishing second in the Group Stages but on the wrong end of a Super Over against the Southern Brave. Jofra Archer went into World Cup 2019 mode in that Super Over, limiting the Phoenix to just eight, which they chased with two balls to spare.  

It's a slightly odd-looking squad, though. Ben Duckett, Aneurin Donald, Jacob Bethell and skipper Liam Livingstone provide plenty of domestic top-order power, but the middle-order has been somewhat neglected. That's partly because they've put their overseas resources and a large chunk of their budget into…Kiwi fast bowlers. It's one thing signing one or two of them…but three?  

Adam Milne, Tim Southee and Trent Boult are all excellent players with hundreds of caps between them, and they may well cut open batting line-ups with their pace, guile and experience. But it does look a slightly one-dimensional approach to things. At least the unique bag of tricks that is Benny Howell will offer something a bit different with his slower balls and cutters.  

Ben Duckett and Jocob Bethell may well play here after having had some days' rest after the Indian Test Series.  

Trent Rockets  

After making the Playoffs in the first season and winning it in the second, they've now failed to get out of the Group Stages for the last two campaigns, ending a disappointing 5th in both of them.  

They've since lost the services of Rashid Khan, who has moved on to the Oval Invincibles and that's a big blow, but it also allowed them to re-assess and build a more balanced squad given Khan's price tag.  

Joe Root was excellent in the SA20 at the start of the year and could replicate his efforts here, also as a useful spin bowler, just like he was in South Africa.  

Marcus Stoinis is as reliable an all-rounder as you'll get in this format while Lockie Ferguson's pace will be too much for some of the County players in this competition to handle.  

David Willey was always underrated by England but has a big role to play batting in the middle order, bowling his full quota and leading the side. He's arguably their key man.  

Pitch and conditions. 

We're at Edgbaston for this one. These were the first innings totals last campaign, in the only three matches to be played here where the full number of balls were played: 169/2, 83/10, 118/10 in Birmingham. There was also a 30-ball slog that doesn't count towards our numbers. For the record, that's an average of 123 but it's such a small sample (of three) that it's virtually meaningless, as is the fact that two of those three were won by the chaser.  

The home side have performed better in The Hundred over the years but it's the Phoenix who have the far-better head-to-head record with five wins to Trent's two.   

As has been the theme for much of this opening week, a lot may depend on which of the England stars feature here with news a little thin on the ground.  

You could just about make a case for the Rockets as outsiders given their excellent middle-order, but that head-to-head record can't be ignored. Better bets lie elsewhere.  

Trent Rockets Top Batsman

David Willey was at the Welsh Fire last year and batted in all sorts of positions so it's hard to know where he's planning on batting for his new team. You'd think that as skipper, it will be where he wants to bat, and Willey isn't a man to shy away from the action and added responsibility.  

It could well be as high as four and is unlikely to be lower than five. This is a man with 21 T20 fifties and two centuries to his name- albeit from a huge 345 T20 matches to his name – so he's a lot more than an all-rounder who just swings for the hilltops.  

He's priced up at a big 9/1 and while the likes of Root and Banton (7/2) are huge threats, they're also almost a third of the price. That 9/1 won't be available anytime soon if he wins here or even if he bats in the Top five going forward, so we need to strike while the iron is hot.  

Highest Opening Partnership  

I have a feeling Ben Duckett may play in this one. The ECB are keen for their centrally contracted players to feature in this competition whenever possible and he may have had enough rest to play here, especially with no imminent England fixtures. He's a hell of a player in all formats and should open with Donald for the Phoenix, who has a strong record in T20s and The Hundred. 

They could well out-score Banton and Holden as an opening partnership with the added bonus that the Phoenix's opening bowler Trent Boult, has a rare talent for picking up wickets in his first over/first five balls.  

Jamie Pacheco Hundred P/L 2025:

• Points Staked: 3
• Points Returned: 2.75
• Current P/L: -0.25

Jamie Pacheco predominantly covers Cricket and European Football for us at Betfred Insights. You can check out his Cricket Betting Tips, along with those from the rest of the team, at our Cricket hub page...