Canterbury Kings vs Northern Districts, SST20, Today Match Prediction 09 January 2024

CANT vs ND Match Prediction & Analysis

Northern Knights will be eager to end their losing streak as they come to Christchurch. The hosts lost their recent game at this venue against Auckland and will need to regroup and strategize to quickly bounceback.

Canterbury Kings have won two away matches. They were exceptional with both bat and ball in those wins. And soon after that, they were on top of the game bowling first against Central Districts at home before the match was abandoned by rain.

Northern Knights should be looking to put some pressure on the hosts with the ball. Batting first seems quite difficult on this pitch and both sides would consider bowling first.

Tim Southee and Mitchell Santner are both back in the side for the Knights. They didn’t have a lot to defend in the last game but bowling first here would give them a chance to put Northern Knights back on track.

RECENT PERFORMANCE

CANT

L W W L L

CANT

140/5 in 20.0 7

SST20

Auckland Aces beat Canterbury Kings by 8 wickets 07 Jan 2024

AUCK

141/2 in 15.2 9.2

OV

171/5 in 20.0 8.55

SST20

Canterbury won by 4 wkts 03 Jan 2024

CANT

175/6 in 18.5 9.29

CD

142/8 in 19.0 7.47

SST20

Canterbury Kings beat Central Stags by 33 runs (D/L) method 30 Dec 2023

CANT

185/4 in 20.0 9.25

AUCK

185/5 in 20.0 9.25

SST20

Auckland Aces beat Canterbury Kings by 27 runs 19 Dec 2023

CANT

158/10 in 17.5 8.86

WELL

247/8 in 50.0 4.94

FT

Wellington Firebirds beat Canterbury Kings by 55 runs 07 Dec 2023

CANT

192/10 in 44.0 4.36

ND

L L L W W

ND

128/10 in 18.3 6.92

SST20

Otago Volts beat Northern Districts by 8 wickets 06 Jan 2024

OV

132/2 in 17.0 7.76

ND

154/8 in 20.0 7.7

SST20

Wellington Firebirds beat Northern Districts by 23 runs 02 Jan 2024

WELL

177/8 in 20.0 8.85

CD

206/5 in 20.0 10.3

SST20

Central Stags beat Northern Districts by 56 runs 27 Dec 2023

ND

150/10 in 19.2 7.76

ND

196/9 in 20.0 9.8

SST20

Northern Districts beat Central Stags by 55 runs 22 Dec 2023

CD

141/10 in 19.5 7.11

ND

189/6 in 42.1 4.48

FT

Northern Districts beat Central Stags by 4 wickets 12 Dec 2023

CD

185/10 in 49.4 3.72

HEAD TO HEAD

TEAMS PREVIEW

Canterbury Kings Preview

Kings were enjoying a good run before Auckland Aces spoiled the party. And that too, in their backyard. Though the previous two home games were washed out and had no result, the Kings had the upper hand in the last abandoned game.

They had picked 4 wickets for 21 runs bowling first against Central Stags. This was the second time they dominated the Stags’ batting lineup. And this was right after their successful run-chase against Otago in the previous outing.

Kings looked in great touch in both departments coming into the Auckland game but were completely outplayed. Cole McConchie will be expecting the batters to quickly turn things around before it gets worse.

They’ve got a solid-looking batting lineup with Chad Bowes and Tom Latham opening the innings followed by Henry Nicholls and Daryl Mitchell in the middle order.

3 of the top 4 batters have international experience and are supremely talented. Skipper Cole McConchie at 5 and Michael Rippon lower down the other can also hit the long ball and make crucial contributions.

The two played fine knocks in their first win as they helped the Kings to a 185-run total batting first. Kings have Matt Henry in their bowling attack who will be the key bowler to watch out for.

He was very economical in the last game and if they had a bigger total to defend, his spell would have made a bigger impact. Zakary Foulkes is another high-impact bowler in this side who’s been consistent with breakthroughs.

It is a strong overall squad with promising players in every department. They should make most of the home conditions and we reckon they would likely bounce back in this game.

Canterbury Kings Predicted Playing XI:

Chad Bowes, Tom Latham (wk), Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Cole McConchie (c), Michael Rippon, Zakary Foulkes, Ish Sodhi, Matt Henry, Michael Rae, William ORourke

Canterbury Kings Actual Playing XI:

Bevon Jacobs, Chad Bowes, Henry Nicholls, Cole McConchie, Michael Rippon, Zakary Foulkes, Mitchell Hay, Tom Latham, Angus McKenzie, Michael Rae, William O'Rourke

Northern Districts Preview

After a winning start to the season, the Knights have gone on to lose 3 matches in a row. And in these three games, their batting performance has gone from bad to worse.

They were completely outplayed in each of these games and were nowhere close to victory. There have been many single-digit scores in their innings. Only a few batters have managed to score in double digits for the Knights.

Tim Seifert got a start in the last match but lacked any from others around him and couldn’t make it big. After scoring a fifty in a losing cause, Jeet Raval stepped up in the batting order to come in at number 3 against Otago in the last match.

He was out for a duck this time around. Mitchell Santner’s 49 off 34 balls helped the Knights reach 128 runs. Many reliable names in this batting lineup can help turn things around. However, they are currently out of form and that will be a major concern going ahead.

Joe Carter, Henry Cooper, and Brett Hampton can all score big and help finish the innings on a high. The number of all-rounders in this lineup was supposed to be a plus point for the Knights.

However, it hasn’t helped much and it seems that the lack of specialist batters may have hurt Northern Knights. Raval needs to figure out a way to turn things around with the bat. 

He’s got a strong bowling attack with Southee, Santner, and Neil Wagner. They need the right from the batters to lead the Knights to a win.

Northern Districts Predicted Playing XI:

Katene Clarke, Tim Seifert (wk), Jeet Raval (c), Joe Carter, Mitchell Santner, Henry Cooper, Brett Hampton, Scott Kuggeleijn, Tim Southee, Tim Pringle, Neil Wagner

Northern Districts Actual Playing XI:

Henry Cooper, Jeet Raval, Joe Carter, Katene Clarke, Kristian Clarke, Tim Seifert, Matthew Fisher, Tim Pringle, Brett Hampton, Scott Kuggeleijn, Frederick Walker

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

It is a good wicket that offers consistent bounce and pace and though it has been a batting-friendly wicket in the past, the recent matches saw bowlers get the most out of the pitch in the 1st innings. The weather will be cloudy with a high of 22 degrees Celsius. In such conditions, the new-ball bowlers might find some movement through the air and get early wickets.

CANT vs ND Pitch Report

Hagley Oval in Christchurch home to Canterbury Kings will be the venue for the 18th match of Super Smash 2023-24. The average 1st innings score here is 159 runs in domestic T20s and 162 in international matches. A match-winning total in this match would be something over 175-180 runs.

Toss: To Bowl

Considering the teams’ recent performances with the bat and the help on offer for the bowlers early in the game, we reckon bowling first should be the preferred option.