Birmingham Phoenix vs Sunrisers Leeds Preview & Tips - Sunrisers to keep playoff hopes alive with another win

Sunrisers Leeds hammered the London Spirit by 37 runs as they bounced back from a five-run loss to the Trent Rockets in the game before. 

What they got what a heavy seven-wicket loss that saw the Rockets storm to their target of 112 with 17 deliveries to spare. Batting first, Joe Clarke (62) returned the only score of note as the Phoenix saw six of their other seven batters to take the crease return single-figure scores. With the ball, they struggled to contain the Rockets as they surged to another win. 

Birmingham's latest defeat was their fourth loss in five outings and means they are eight short of Manchester Super Giants in third. With Sunrisers Leeds looking to tighten their hold on a playoff spot, I predict the difference in form and quality between the side to tell. 

Mitchell Marsh (76 from 37), Ryan Rickelton (94 from 42) and Harry Brook (55 from 18) did the majority of the damage as each returned strike rates of over 200.00. While London Spirit did hammer their way to 204/6 thanks largely to David Willey (83 not out from 46), they came up well short. 

Sunrisers are now aiming for consecutive wins and a fourth triumph in their last five. With the battle for second and third on the ladder heating up, Sunrisers cannot afford to drop points against the bottom side in the competition.