The Hundred 2021: Welsh Fire SWOT Analysis

The Hundred is the newest format of the game with each innings consisting of 100 balls and each over consisting of five or ten balls. The eight-team tournament was suspended in 2019 due to Covid-19, but is all set to begin on 21 July this year.

8⃣ teams across the UK💯 ball game💥 Cricket like you've never seen before#TheHundred is coming to the BBC.#bbccricket

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 16, 2021

Welsh Fire, a team that represents the counties of Glamorgan, Somerset and Gloucestershire, has Cardiff as its home. They have Ollie Pope as their central England-contracted player and Tom Banton as their local icon.

Other big names in the squad include Jonny Bairstow, Liam Plunkett, Kieron Pollard and Jimmy Neesham. Pollard and Neesham will not be available for the full season and Glenn Philips will come in as their replacement. Welsh Fire will play their first game against the Northern Superchargers on July 24.

As we near the start of the Hundred, we take a look at the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the Welsh Fire:

Jonny Bairstow will be the key for Welsh Fire, but he will be a big miss once the India Test series starts

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Welsh Fire Squad

Here's how the Welsh Fire squads look. The women's side can continue to build their squad up until June.How do you rate those line-ups?Live: https://t.co/yudIt5THUK#bbccricket pic.twitter.com/QWJ3EFvUUY

— Test Match Special (@bbctms) February 23, 2021

Ollie Pope, Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Liam Plunkett, Jake Ball, Ben Duckett, David Payne, David Lloyd, Ryan Higgins, Kieron Pollard (first four games: Glenn Phillips), Qais Ahmad, Jimmy Neesham (first three games), Ian Cockbain, Josh Cobb, Matthew Critchley, Leus du Plooy.

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Strengths

The Welsh Fire's first-choice batting unit is one of the most explosive line-ups in the competition. Tom Banton has been a revelation in recent years and Jonny Bairstow is one of England's most valuable white-ball players at present. The Banton-Bairstow pair is inarguably the scariest to bowl against this season.

The middle order will have Kieron Pollard and Jimmy Neesham, with Glenn Phillips coming in once the West Indian leaves. All of them have enough experience and are proven customers.

They will be assisted by domestic batsmen like Ian Cockbain and Ryan Higgins, who are coming into the tournament after a good season in the Vitality T20 Blast.

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Weaknesses

While the first-choice batting lineup looks terrific on paper, there will be some really huge gaps once the big names leave. The backups do not have enough exposure at this stage and will need to perform under pressure.

The Welsh Fire's bowling also does not show much promise. Liam Plunkett will be tasked with bowling the crucial overs alongside Jake Ball, who has been on the expensive side in recent years. Qais Ahmed will be a key figure in the spin department where, once again, the backup options do not inspire much confidence.

Overall, the Welsh Fire will depend a lot on their local talent, who have to play out of their skin in order to make an impact this season.

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Opportunities

While the big names missing out after the first few games is a massive hurdle, it also provides a huge opportunity for the domestic players to prove themselves on the big stage. The bowling unit is expected to remain more or less similar throughout, but the renowned names in the batting unit will miss out.

With that in mind, the likes of Ian Cockbain, Ryan Higgins and Josh Cobb will have to step up and take the onus to deliver runs for the Welsh Fire. All three players are coming off a good season in the Vitality T20 Blast and will be eager to continue their purple patch.

Additionally, Cobb and Higgins have the chance to bolster the balance of the side with their all-round skills. David Payne will also look to continue his good form while Jack Ball will look to use this opportunity to stake his claim for a spot in the national side.

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Threats

The availability or rather the unavailability of some big names and the gaps created by them once they leave will be the biggest threat for the Welsh Fire. Kieron Pollard is one of the most dangerous middle order batsmen at present and replacing him with an equally explosive finisher will be key for the outfit.

Some big English names like Bairstow and Pope will also leave the side to turn out for England's Test side for the series against India. Resultantly, the Welsh Fire's young guns will have their work cut out with the majority of their first-choice players missing after the first few games.

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Welsh Fire Probable Playing XI:

Jonny Bairstow (wk), Tom Banton, Ben Duckett, Kieron Pollard, Ian Cockbain, Ryan Higgins, Jimmy Neesham, David Payne, Liam Plunkett, Qais Ahmad, Jake Ball.