Royal London One Day Cup 2021 1st semi-final: Glamorgan vs Essex - Preview, predicted XIs, match prediction, weather forecast and pitch report

Glamorgan will lock horns with Essex in the first semi-final of the Royal London One-Day Cup at the Sophia Gardens in Cardiff. Essex secured their semi-final berth by defeating Yorkshire, while Glamorgan qualified after topping their group.

Glamorgan won four out of their eight games to finish with 10 points, pipping Yorkshire and Surrey to top spot via net run rate. But they enter the semi-final contest against Essex on the back of a loss to Yorkshire.

Glamorgan openers Nicholas Selman and Hamish Rutherford have been in fine form in the competition, providing good starts at the top of the order. Michael Hogan and Joe Cooke have been good with the ball, picking up 14 and 13 wickets respectively.

Essex, meanwhile, enter this contest high on confidence having defeated Yorkshire by 129 runs in the quarter-finals.

Essex posted 317 on the board, thanks to a brilliant century from Josh Rymell. The bowlers then stepped up and knocked Yorkshire over for 188. Jack Plom and skipper Tom Westley picked up three wickets each, while Simon Harmer and Aron Nijjar chipped in with two apiece.

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Match Details:

Match: Glamorgan vs Essex, Semi-Final 1, Royal London One-Day Cup

Date and Time: August 16, 2021 Monday, 3:30 PM IST

Venue: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff

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Weather report:

Temperatures in Cardiff are expected to be on the lower side, ranging from 14 to 19 degrees Celsius. There is no chance of rain.

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Pitch Report:

The pitch at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff is two paced due to which the batsmen often struggle to score freely. There will be enough movement off the surface for the pacers, who will have a major role to play in the semi-final.

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Predicted Playing XIs

Glamorgan

Glamorgan were defeated by Yorkshire in their previous game. In a closely fought contest, Glamorgan fell six runs short of the target of 231. But they are expected to field the same XI for the semi-final clash against Essex.

Playing XI: Hamish Rutherford, Nicholas, Steven Reingold, Kiran Carlson (c), Billy Root, Tom Cullen (wk), Joe Cooke, Andrew Salter, James Weighell, Lukas Carey, Michael Hogan

Essex

Essex have been on a roll in the past few matches and will be high on confidence. They are unlikely to tinker with the side that beat Yorkshire so convincingly.

Playing XI: Josh Rymell, Sir Alastair Cook, Tom Westley (c), Feroze Khushi, Paul Walter, Ryan ten Doeschate, Adam Wheater (wk), Simon Harmer, Aron Nijjar, Jack Plom, Ben Allison

Match prediction:

Both teams look strong and well-balanced on paper. Essex are riding a wave of momentum having defeated Yorkshire in the quarter-finals, and they should be able to come out on top.

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TV and live streaming details:

TV: N/A

Live Streaming: YouTube