While the opening matches of the Cricket World Cup were not as close as we hoped, they did feature incredible batting efforts from New Zealand and Australia. The matches highlighted the new norm of ODI totals; 250+ scores won’t cut the mustard this year, 320+ will.
The Three Big Questions
Which performance on day 1 was more dominant?
Probably New Zealand. New Zealand came out from ball one and attacked. While they wobbled slightly in the middle overs, Corey Anderson’s finish ensured an unassailable total. The attacking intent shows an approach very un-New Zealand like. Rather than nervous deal with the expectation, they thrived on it and look to be comfortable leading from the front. Their bowling did, however, look a bit ragged – they’ll want to improve.
Australia, were expected to win, they had beaten England easily and were at home in conditions perfect for their batsman. They laid down a marker but you wouldn’t expect anything less from the group of players they have at their disposal. Bring on the 28th of February.
Can any of the so-called minnows get up and sneak a win against a test playing nation?
If we were to base our answer on warm up matches, then yes. Scotland ran in some big totals in the warm up matches, Ireland have played in plenty of tournaments now and even Afghanistan showed some promise in their two warm up games against thought opposition. Of the test playing nations, the West Indies look disinterested; Bangladesh look dreadfully underdone. Therefore, absolutely, there will be an upset in this Cricket World Cup.
Amla or de Villiers to score the most tournament runs?
The South Africans possess the top two international ODI batsman. Both are quality players on all surfaces, against all types of bowlers. Amla will get more opportunities being at the top of the order and this could aid his chances of cashing in against the associate nations. The only area he gives up points to de Villiers is in scoring rate. de Villiers can bat through all gears, and even if he faces 30 balls at the end of the innings has shown he can score hundreds in that time. We’re picking de Villiers.
Today’s Matchups
1. South Africa v Zimbabwe, Seddon Park (Hamilton – sunny and hot), starts 2:00pm local time.
South Africa– $1.02
Zimbabwe – $13.00
After New Zealand and Australia got off to impressive starts, South Africa now need to send a similar message when they open their tournament in Hamilton. Nothing short of a dominant display will be needed to make sure punters don’t write them off. South Africa are expected to be far too strong for Zimbabwe, but Zimbabwe’s warm-up form has been impressive. They had New Zealand in trouble before rain and then beat Sri Lanka by 7 wickets. South Africa on the other hand lost to NZ, but we don’t expect that to change the team’s fortunes today.
2. India v Pakistan, Adelaide Oval (Adelaide – partly cloudy but humid), starts 2:00pm local time
India – $1.50
Pakistan – $2.55
The defending Cricket World Cup champions have not enjoyed their time in Australia thus far. After a winless test series and ODI trip-series, they finally mustered a win against Afghanistan. Fractured form aside, the Indians still have an abundance of class in Kohli, Dhoni, Sharma and Rahane and will back their batsman to chase anything their bowlers concede. Pakistan have warmed up by losing to New Zealand but beating England and Bangladesh in warm up matches. They rely too heavily on Misbah to justify low odds. But if Mohammad Irfan can generate step bounce on the Adelaide Oval pitch they could surprise.
Today’s Multi
The Beard and Bounce Multi
Pakistan (Win) + Hashim Amla and Sean Williams (Top Score Combo) = $43.35
*Odds from Sportsbet Australia.
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
