Preview: Steelbacks v Bears, Vitality Blast

North Group leaders Birmingham Bears will now switch their targets after securing a home quarter-final.

matc

2024-07-17T16:58:17.000Z

North Group leaders Birmingham Bears will now switch their targets after securing a home quarter-final.

Following Sunday’s win over the Falcons, Mark Robinson’s side are guaranteed to play in front of their partisan home crowd for a third time in a row.

But with two games still to play, starting with Thursday at Steelbacks, the Bears are eager to finish strong and top the group come the conclusion.

“We’re top so far and we’d like to finish that way,” said the First Team Coach. “We’ve done it the previous two years and it would nice to mirror it again.

“In terms of recruitment we had Glees for that first half, plus Hass, as we looked to improve our death bowling. Our playing of spin at the halfway point was statistically the best in the country, so they were things we worked on.

“We’re still playing against Mother Cricket, so we need a bit of luck and to overcome doubt, but we’ve done those things. We know we’ve not won anything, but we’ve reached the first objective.”

Therefore it should come as no surprise to see an unchanged squad. The Bears are in the groove with nine wins notched from 12 games.

“We just want to win games as that’s what we’re about all the time,” added Robinson. “It’s a big game for Northants and we need to make sure we match their desperation to win.

“The Worcester game was disappointing, they got too many runs, but it’s T20 and every one can win a game. On Sunday, we managed the innings really well, it didn’t skid on as much as it does at night, but we posted a big score and put scoreboard pressure on them. We always felt we were in control of the game.

“It’s important for us to keep that momentum going, not just as a team, but individually too.”

Squad

Moeen AliAlex Davies (C & WK)Ed BarnardChris BenjaminJacob BethellMichael BoothDanny BriggsZak FoulkesGeorge GartonSam HainJake LintottCraig MilesDan MousleyRob Yates

How to follow

Members and supporters can follow the match live in our Match Centre at edgbaston.com, which will include a free-to-watch Live Stream and a live text commentary. You can also see a ball-by-ball feed and watch highlights of all the action.

Supporters can get involved by sending their match-day comments and thoughts on Twitter via @WarwickshireCCC and we’ll publish the best ones on our live text commentary in the Match Centre.

Supporters can also watch the Live Stream and get instant push notifications of all wickets, innings and match results via the Edgbaston app, which is free to download on iOS and Android.

Match updates will also be available across the Club’s social media accounts, simply search for @WarwickshireCCC.