Welsh Fire vs Manchester Originals Prediction: Back Bairstow to go Boom, Boom, Boom

Welsh Fire are hunting for their first win of the campaign but face a tough challenge against a Manchester Originals side buoyant after breaking their duck on Monday. 

Dan Thomas is here with a look at the players to watch and best bets for Wednesday's match, live on Sky Sports from 18:30, as he brings us his Welsh Fire v Manchester Originals predictions… 

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

Fire still searching for a spark 

Despite Jonny Bairstow starting off the tournament in blistering form, the Fire have yet to ignite this campaign, falling to their second defeat in row against London Spirit last time out.  

Bairstow's unbeaten 86 from 50 balls lit up Sophia Gardens, but a lack of support - only two other batters made double figures - meant Fire could only muster 155 for 6 in response to Spirit's 163 for 5. 

The bowling unit showed patches of penetration, with Josh Hull picking up the big wickets of Kane Williamson and Jamie Smith, but they were unable to stem the Spirit flow.  

Originals off the mark 

Originals broke their duck with a tense 10-run win over London Spirit, defending 163 for 6 in front of a boisterous Old Trafford faithful on Monday.  

All the top four made starts, with Jos Buttler's mature 46 anchoring the innings after a rollicking Ben McKinney cameo up top.  

The real story, though, was their bowling: Sonny Baker's searing pace set the tone, while Josh Tongue closed out the pursuit with 3 for 29, dismissing the dangerous David Warner at a crucial moment. The selection of Tongue in place of Jimmy Anderson, who has been expensive, certainly paid off.  

Pitch & conditions 

Sophia Gardens generally offers excellent pace and carry for seamers, especially early on, but can slow as the evening wears on. It has tended to be one of the lower scoring grounds in the men's Hundred, with an average first innings score of 131, but both sides broke 150 last time out so we could be looking at more runs this campaign.  

Key odds 

Winless Fire are the 11/10 outsiders here, with Originals as short as 8/11 to pile on the misery for the hosts. This price suggests the visitors have shaken off their early season inconsistency - but we're not sure about that just yet.  

Despite Bairstow's dominant start, Steve Smith still heads the top batter market for the Fire at 14/5, with the Yorkshire man a 10/3 shot. Jos Buttler made it seven top bat wins from 11 starts in white-ball cricket this season last time out and is 13/5 to repeat for the Originals with Salt at 10/3. McKinney will have his backers at 9/2 after that bright innings against Spirit.  

Riley Meredith is 11/4 to pick up the most wickets for the Fire, with Hull a 7/2 chance, while Noor Ahmed (11/4) and Tongue (3/1) head the market for Originals. Baker may be the value shout at 4/1 here - he deserved more wickets against Spirit.  

*You can check out all the latest and live Welsh Fire vs Manchester Originals Odds over on betfred.com

Best Bets  

With Bairstow in such hot form, I want to find a way of staying on his coat tails, but Smith is due to turn up to the party at some point, so, I'm swerving the top batter market. Instead, I'm heading to the #PickYourPunt specials, where Bairstow is 3/1 to be clear top six hitter for the Fire - he smashed six maximums last time out and looks to have the bit between his teeth.  

Dan Thomas 2025 Cricket P/L:

• Staked: 16pts 
• Returned: 9.89pts 
• P/L: -6.11pts