Continental Cup 2021 3rd place play-off: Hungary vs Malta - Preview, predicted XIs, match prediction, weather forecast, pitch report and live-streaming details

Malta Cricket Team (Image Courtesy: ICC)

Hungary and Malta will face each other in the third-place playoffs in the 2021 Continental Cup. Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground in Ilfov County will host this cracking contest.

Both teams lost their semi-final clashes and will be eager to finish in third position. Hungary faced Luxembourg in the first semi-final and it was a thrilling contest.

Hungary suffered heartbreak as they lost the game by two runs. Needing three runs to win off the final ball, Sanjay Kumar got run out as they couldn’t qualify for the final.

They couldn’t chase down 179 despite a positive start from the openers. They will be eager to come out on top against Malta in the third-place match.

Malta, on the other hand, suffered a heavy loss against Romania in their semi-final clash. Romania put a mammoth 202 on the board after being put in to bat.

It was a tough task for the Malta side as they only managed to score 166 for the loss of eight wickets in their 20 overs. They fell short by 36 runs and will face Hungary in the third-place match.

Match Details:

Match: Hungary vs Malta, 3rd place Play-Off, Continental Cup 2021

Date and Time: September 5, 2021 Sunday, 11:30 PM IST

Venue: Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground, Ilfov County

Weather report:

Temperatures in Ilfov County on Sunday are expected to be on the lower side. It will range from 12 to 25 degrees Celsius. There is no chance of rain and we can expect a full game’s play on Sunday.

Pitch Report:

The pitch at the Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground is a belter of a track. It is very good for batting as the ball comes nicely onto the bat. We have seen high scoring games recently on this ground and expect another one on Sunday.

Predicted Playing XIs

Hungary

Hungary lost against Luxembourg off the last ball in the semi-final. It was an all-round performance from them but they just couldn’t get across the line.

They will be eager to turn the tables around in the third-place game against Malta. Expect them to field the same XI for this clash.

Playing XI: Zeeshan Kukikhel, Abhijeet Ahuja (c), Harshvardhan Mandhyan, Abishek Kheterpal, Zahir Mohammed, Asanka Weligamage, Khaibar Deldar, Satyadeep Aswathnarayana (wk), Ali Yalmaz, Sanjay Kumar, Sandeep Mohandas

Malta

Malta suffered a loss in their semi-final clash against Romania. They have been good so far in the competition but looked off-color against Romania.

A vital clash is ahead of them and we expect them to back their players and field the same XI that featured against Romania.

Playing XI: Basil George, Bikram Arora (c), Niraj Khanna, Varun Thamotharam, Amar Sharma, Zeeshan Khan, Haroon Mughal, Bilal Muhammad, Samuel Stanislaus, Waseem Abbas, Samuel Aquilina (wk)

Match prediction:

Both sides have looked good in the competition so far. Both sides suffered a loss in their semi-final games but will be eager to bounce back and finish the competition on a high.

Hungary look solid on paper and expect them to come out on top against Malta.