Continental Cup 2021: 1st Semi-Final, Luxembourg vs Hungary - Preview, predicted XIs, match prediction, weather forecast, pitch report and live-streaming details

Luxembourg and Hungary will face off in the first semi-final of the Continental Cup 2021 at the Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground in Ilfov County, Bucharest, on Saturday.

Luxembourg topped the Group A table, winning both their games and claiming four points. They won their opening game against Bulgaria by 62 runs. Batting first, they posted a huge total of 187.

In their next game against Malta, they comfortably chased down 129 with four wickets in hand. Timothy Barker has been their leading run-scorer with 114 runs at an average of 57 and a fifty to his name. M Dixit, A Nanda, and V Vijh have been amongst the wickets. Joost Mees and his side have had a wonderful campaign in the Continental Cup so far.

Meanwhile, Hungary finished second with a win and a loss in Group B. They won their first group game of this year’s Continental Cup against the Czech Republic. Defending 165, Hungary restricted the Czech Republic to 160, winning by five runs in a close encounter.

However, they lost to Romania in their next game. In pursuit of a big target of 196, they fell eight runs short. Hungary have played good cricket so far in the Continental Cup 2021, and will take confidence into the semi-finals.

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Match Details

Match: Luxembourg vs Hungary, 1st Semi-Final, Continental Cup 2021.

Date: September 4, 2021 (Saturday).

Time: 3:00 PM (IST).

Venue: Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground, Ilfov County, Bucharest, Romania

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Weather Report

The skies are expected to be clear with bright sunshine and no prediction of rain. The temperature will hover around 22 to 25 degrees Celsius.

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Pitch Report

The wicket has played out well, and we have seen quite a few high-scoring games throughout this year’s Continental Cup. Chasing high scores has been difficult, though. So the team side batting first could look to post a total above 170.

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Predicted Playing XIs

Luxembourg

Vikram Vijh picked up four wickets against Malta. Ankush Nanda, Pankaj Malav, Marcus Cope and Amit Dhingra were amongst the wickets as well.

Timothy Barker scored 36, while Tony Whiteman remained unbeaten on 55 to help them chase 129 against Malta. Barker has been their leading run-scorer. M Dixit (3), A Nanda (3), M Cope (3) have been amongst wickets, and the bowling unit has fared well collectively.

Predicted XI: Timothy Barker, Amit Halbhavi, Joost Mees (c), Vikram Vijh, Tony Whiteman, William Cope, Advyth Manepalli (wk), Marcus Cope, Ankush Nanda, Pankaj Malav, Amit Dhingra.

Hungary

Zeeshan Khan top-scored in a valiant effort with a 76-run knock against Romania. The rest of the top and middle order failed to perform, though in a tall chase. Khan has been their top scorer in the tournament with 151 runs and two fifties. However, Hungary have been too dependent on him.

Harshvardhan Mandhayn has been their leading wicket-taker with four scalps. Like their batting, their bowling has been inconsistent in the tournament.

Predicted XI: Marc Ahuja(c), Abhishek Kheterpal, Ali Yalmaz, Asanka Weligamage, Harsh Mandhyan, Khaibar Deldar, Mark Fontaine, Sanjay Kumar, Satyadeep Ashwathnarayana(wk), Safi Zahir, Zeeshan Khan.

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Match Prediction

Luxembourg are unbeaten in the ongoing Continental Cup 2021. Their batting has been largely dependent on Timothy Barker. Similarly, Hungary’s batting has revolved around Zeeshan Khan. However, Luxembourg have done well with the ball too. Coming into the semi-final undefeated gives them an edge over Hungary.

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TV and live streaming details

TV: N/A.

Live Streaming: N/A.