Match: Welsh Fire vs MI London (Women’s and Men’s double-header), The Hundred 2026
Date: Saturday, July 25, 2026
Venue: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
Time: Women’s match 2:30 PM, Men’s match 6:00 PM local time (Men’s match is the 6th Match of the men’s competition)
Table of Contents
Match Context
Cardiff hosts the second Hundred double-header of the day as Welsh Fire take on defending men’s champions MI London, with the women’s teams playing the earlier fixture. Both franchises arrive at this contest off contrasting starts to their 2026 campaigns.
On the men’s side, Welsh Fire began their campaign with a six-wicket win over Southern Brave, while MI London’s men, the reigning champions, opened their title defence with a seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers Leeds. Both teams therefore arrive unbeaten, setting up a compelling contest between two of the tournament’s early front-runners.
On the women’s side, Welsh Fire lost their opener to Southern Brave despite a fighting effort in the run-chase, while MI London’s women lost their tournament opener to Sunrisers Leeds by seven wickets at the Kia Oval. Both women’s teams will therefore be chasing their first win of the season at Sophia Gardens.
How The Opening Matches Unfolded
Men’s competition: Welsh Fire captain Phil Salt won the toss and chose to field first against Southern Brave at the Rose Bowl. The Brave were restricted to 135/7, with Thomas Rew (41 off 30) and David Miller (44 off 35) the top contributors, while Marco Jansen took 2/17 for Welsh Fire. In the chase, Salt’s unbeaten 47 off 37 balls anchored the innings, supported by Matt Short (20 off 15) and Rachin Ravindra (24 off 15), as Welsh Fire completed the chase with two balls to spare.
MI London, led by Sam Curran, won the toss and chose to field against Sunrisers Leeds at the Kia Oval. Sunrisers were bowled out for 143 in 99 balls, with Mitchell Marsh (41 off 27) and Tom Alsop (31 off 18) the main scorers, while Richard Gleeson took 4/25. In response, Brydon Carse reduced MI London to 4/2 early on, but an unbeaten 60 off 39 balls from Curran and 58 not out off 22 balls from Nicholas Pooran carried MI London home by seven wickets with 16 balls to spare.
Women’s competition: In that match, Welsh Fire won the toss and invited Southern Brave to bat first. Southern Brave could only post 126, with just three players — Laura Wolvaardt (45 not out), Lizelle Lee (31) and captain Sophie Molineux (22) — reaching double figures as the Brave collapsed from 95/3 to 118/7. Chasing, Welsh Fire got to 80/1 with 42 balls remaining behind a Georgia Voll half-century and 39 off 29 balls from Freya Kemp, but ultimately fell short, with Southern Brave holding on to win. Welsh Fire’s women are captained by Sophie Devine.
MI London Women, chasing a modest MI London total of 107/8 set after Sunrisers Leeds elected to field first, were restricted after a promising 56-run opening stand between Hayley Matthews (33) and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge unravelled — MI London managed just 35 more runs while losing six wickets. Sunrisers Leeds completed a seven-wicket win in reply, powered by Phoebe Litchfield’s Player of the Match innings of 43.
Squads And Key Players
MI London (Men): Sam Curran (captain), Will Jacks, Rashid Khan, Nicholas Pooran, James Vince, Tom Curran, Trent Boult, Nathan Sowter, Sherfane Rutherford, Richard Gleeson, Olly Stone, Ollie Pope, Ollie Sykes, Callum Parkinson, Jason Roy, Eddie Jack, Sebastian Morgan. MI London are the reigning men’s champions, having won last year’s Hundred title as Oval Invincibles before this year’s rebrand.
Welsh Fire (Men): Phil Salt (captain), Jordan Cox, Marco Jansen, Joe Root, Rachin Ravindra, Chris Woakes, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Lockie Ferguson, Matthew Short, Asa Tribe, Sam Cook, Ben Kellaway, Jafer Chohan, Tom Aspinwall, Jordan Clark, Dillon Pennington
MI London (Women): Hollie Armitage (captain), Nicola Carey, Kira Chathli, Alice Davidson-Richards, Kirstie Gordon, Dani Gregory, Chenille Henry, Melie Kerr, Hayley Matthews, Alice Monaghan, Kalea Moore, Tara Norris, Alexa Stonehouse, Ellie Threlkeld, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Kate Coppack, Francesca Sweet
Welsh Fire (Women): Sophie Devine (captain), Georgia Voll, Sarah Bryce, Heather Graham, Freya Kemp, Georgia Wareham, Emily Arlott, Sophia Smale, Ella McCaughan, Rhianna Southby, Fi Morris, Grace Potts, Grace Thompson, Abi Norgrove
Both men’s teams enter this match unbeaten, making it a genuine top-of-the-table clash early in the group stage, while both women’s teams will be desperate to open their win column after contrasting narrow losses in the opening round. Notably, Welsh Fire’s women are led by the recently-retired New Zealand captain Sophie Devine.
Pitch And Conditions At Sophia Gardens
Sophia Gardens in Cardiff has traditionally offered a good, well-paced surface for stroke-play in white-ball cricket, with totals building steadily through the middle overs before acceleration in the closing stages. Fast bowlers can find some assistance with the new ball early in an innings, with the pitch generally becoming easier to bat on as the match progresses — a pattern consistent with what was seen in the opening round of matches at other Hundred venues this season.
Team News And Probable Line-ups
Both MI London teams and both Welsh Fire teams are expected to be near-unchanged from their opening matches, with home advantage now shifting to Welsh Fire for this fixture after their opener was played in Southampton.
Dream11 Prediction: Welsh Fire vs MI London
With both men’s sides unbeaten and both women’s sides searching for a first win, fantasy picks should prioritise the standout performers from the opening round across all four teams.
Men’s match top picks: Sam Curran is the standout captaincy option after his unbeaten 60 in the tournament opener, while Nicholas Pooran’s explosive form (58 not out off 22 balls) makes him a must-have. For Welsh Fire, Phil Salt’s unbeaten 47 in the chase and Marco Jansen’s all-round value with the ball make them the top selections from the home side.
Women’s match top picks: Laura Wolvaardt is the clear standout pick after carrying Welsh Fire’s innings with an unbeaten 45 in a low-scoring defeat. Phoebe Litchfield, fresh off her Player of the Match innings for Sunrisers Leeds, remains a strong differential if MI London’s bowling struggles continue, though from MI London’s own ranks, Hayley Matthews offers the best combination of top-order runs and all-round utility after her 33 in the opener.
Captaincy Options: Sam Curran and Nicholas Pooran stand out as the top men’s captaincy picks, while Laura Wolvaardt is the standout captaincy option for the women’s match given her lone fighting effort in the series opener.
(This is an informational fantasy cricket team preview and not a paid or real-money contest recommendation. All facts, scores, and match details in this article have been verified against official match reports and scorecards from the opening round of The Hundred 2026, as of July 24, 2026. Some squad details are based on partial player lists confirmed in official reports; readers should check final team line-ups before submitting fantasy teams.)
