Tag: ICC

Cricket: Teams face off in final hit out before World Cup

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The pre-cup bilaterals are almost at an end.  The endless warm up matches will soon be replaced by the real deal, the main event.  Accordingly, game two between Pakistan and New Zealand at McClean Park is one of the final opportunities to fine tune games and plans before the pressure gets crippling.

Pakistan need the game more than New Zealand.  The home side are well settled, in form and winning.  The World Cup couldn’t come sooner for them.  Pakistan on the other hand still need time to acclimatise.  They need to experience a win (after losing game on and losing to a mediocre invitational side).

Napier’s game two day-nighter presents the perfect opportunity.

The Last Time These Two Met

Game one featured plenty of rust.  Not the kind coming from the empty seat at the Cake Tin either.  Mainly it was the evident rust of the paisan line-up that will be better for the blow out.  Batting first Pakistan limped to just 210.  That was only possible because of Shahid Afridi who struck 67 off just 29 balls.  His strike rate was 231, the rest of the line-up’s was just 53.

New Zealand chased it comfortably.  Ross Taylor and Grant Elliott guiding the chase with a pair of unbeaten half centuries.  The only real interest in the second innings was who would top score between the two, a bet that came down to the last run.

The Teams

New Zealand (likely): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Brendon McCullum (capt), 3 Kane Williamson/Tom Latham, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Luke Ronchi (wk) , 7 Corey Anderson, 8 Nathan McCullum/Daniel Vettori, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Trent Boult

Kane Williamson’s shoulder is still not 100%, so it’s probable he’ll sit this one out again.

Pakistan (likely): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Haris Sohail, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt.), 6 Umar Akmal, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Shahid Afridi, 9 Bilawal Bhatti, 10 Mohammad Irfan, 11 Sohail Khan/Ehsan Adil

The fifth seamer is the troubling aspect of Pakistan’s squad with Haris Sohail expected to make up the bulk of the overs with the injuries to Wahab, Junaid – who has toady been ruled out of the World Cup.

The Key Players

Ross Taylor –  We don’t generally like focusing on the same player over an over again, but Taylor’s record in Napier is simply too good to ignore.  The Central Districts prospect played lots of his first class cricket at McLean Park and has subsequently carved out an amazing record on the batsman friendly ground.  In 11 ODI’s at the ground, Taylor has scored 584 runs with 2 hundreds at an average of 73.  Look for him to cash in again.  Although, one anomaly, the only time he’s failed at the ground was against Pakistan in 2011.

Shahid Afridi – Afridi is building a handy little record against New Zealand of late.  In the Abu Dhabi series Afridi played much more like a composed batsman and had an excellent series.  He didn’t quite play in the same way on Saturday, reverting back to his old school Boom Boom approach, yet he still scored big runs.  The small McClean Park could be ideal for his destructive game.

The Match Odds*

New Zealand – $1.40

Pakistan – $3.00

*Courtesy of Ladbrokes Australia.

The Prediction

Pakistan were predictably blown away by New Zealand’s seamers in game one, and while Napier isn’t expected to swing and seam as much New Zealand will still be too strong.  Remember a pitch that assists Southee and Boult also assists Irfan – and thus Napier could nullify the threat of the giant quick.

The Longshot

Hard to go past Ross Taylor to top score.  Even despite the Napier record, without Kane Williamson playing, Taylor’s a strong chance.  He’s at $5.

Cricket: Carlton Mid Tri Series Final Preview

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Australia’s summer ODI tri-series traditionally features a three game final series and a much longer round robin format that gives a much better indication of form for the big final(s).  This year though, in the absence of a protracted series on account of the Cricket World Cup, the final is a little harder to predict.

On the face of it, Australia have the upper hand after going through the tournament unbeaten until now.  However, if Friday night’s match at the WACA was any indication, the pitch might have a few uneven demons that could even out the fixture.  England’s familiarity with the surface could prove the only advantage they hold, that, or the weird phenomenon that sees Australia struggle after most Alan Border Medal ceremonies.

The Last Time These Two Met

Australia won both the round robin games against England.  In the first match-up of the series in Sydney, England couldn’t recover from two wickets in the opening over and eventually lost by three wickets while trying to defend just 234.  Seven days later in Hobart Ian Bell led England to 303 but once again they couldn’t stop Steven Smith (102*) and Australia running over them.  England scored 303 against a much different bowling attack and given their top order stutters in other games it’s hard to see them getting near 300 again today.

The Teams

Australia (likely): 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Steven Smith, 4 George Bailey (capt), 5 Mitchell Marsh, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Mitchell Starc, 11 Josh Hazlewood.

Despite trialling a few different combinations in the series thus far, the Australian number one line-up is relatively settled.  The side expected to play today is likely to be the side that contests the bulk of the World Cup games, save for Michael Clarke.  Mitchell Johnson returns to action for the first time in the series.

England (likely): 1 Ian Bell, 2 Moeen Ali, 3 James Taylor, 4 Joe Root, 5 Eoin Morgan (capt), 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Jos Buttler (wk), 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 James Anderson, 11 Steven Finn.

England will not make any changes to the side that has remained unchanged in their last three games.

The Key Players

Mitchell Johnson – Mitchell Starc’s success in the series – he has 12 wickets to top the wicket takers chart – shows just how lethal Australia could be with two genuinely quick left armers who swing it.  Therefore, Mitchell Johnson’s inclusion is important to see how Australia’s game plan develops. i.e. is there room for another left armer in Faulkner? Will they play a spinner at all during the World Cup?

England’s Bowlers – Rather than single out one English bowler who has performed well in the series up to this point, and one that will take wickets again, we have chosen to earmark the pace quartet as being crucial to this match up.  Finn has ten wickets for the series; Woakes eight; Anderson five; all averaging less than 23.  Even Stuart Broad hinted at a return to form with two against India a few days ago for his first wickets in the series.  On an uneven WACA wicket, these four could be crucial.

The Match Odds*

Australia – $1.37

England – $3.11

*Courtesy of Sportsbet Australia.

The Prediction

We’re giving England a chance only if they bowl first and take 3 or 4 early wickets.  Otherwise, Australia have too much depth and should be too strong.  Australia by 60 runs or 4 wickets.

The Sportsbet Australia Special

Place a Top Runscorer Team A or Team B bet on the Australia v England Final to be played on Sunday February 1st.  If your bet loses but your selection hits a 6, we’ll refund your bet up to $100!

Your first bet for each team’s Top Runscorer is eligible, so you can take advantage of this special twice per match!

 

Cricket: NZ welcome Pakistan for 2 match World Cup warm-up

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

There were rumours of a ghost haunting the Pakistan’s team hotel in Christchurch early this week.  Harris Sohail was supposedly on the receiving end of a particularly nasty spiritual presence.  Whether the ghost was simply a figment of Sohail’s imagination or whether it was the ghost of series past between the two remains to be seen.

If it was a soul from the series the two recently completed in Abu Dhabi then it will hold memories of a closely fought series, and some strong individual performances from Sohail.  Perhaps that’s why he was awoken in the middle of the night.

Ghosts aside, the short turnaround to the Pakistan series will provide New Zealand with a sterner test than the one they have just encountered.  With concerns lingering over Guptill and Taylor, the Black Caps will welcome the chance to fine tune.

Fine tuning is also important for a Pakistan outfit that have traditionally struggled away from home.  After batting for days against New Zealand and Australia on flat pitches in Dubai, the move to New Zealand will no doubt come with trickier batting assignments against the moving ball.

Wellington is expecting a little rain.  Duckworth-Lewis may be a factor.

The Last Time These Two Met

Was recently actually.  In Dubai in November the teams endured a tense series which was eventually won by New Zealand in the final match.  After a see-saw five match series the Black Caps secure a 3-2 series win  thanks to a 68 run win.  In that series, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor topped the bating charts for New Zealand; Haris Sohail and Shahid Afridi for Pakistan.  With the ball Matt Henry was the best followed by Mohammad Irfan.

The Teams

New Zealand (likely): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Brendon McCullum (capt.), 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Luke Ronchi (wk) , 7 Corey Anderson, 8 Nathan McCullum/ Daniel Vettori, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Trent Boult

The New Zealand set-up have not given any indication as to how serious Adam Milne’s injury is, but we suspect he’s still unfit for the Pakistan series.  Nathan McCulum may get some more match practice at Vettori’s expense.

Pakistan (likely): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt.), 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Bilawal Bhatti, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Mohammad Irfan, 11 Sohail Khan/ Ehsan Adil

Plenty of options for the tourists in this series makes the predictions tough.  Only Misbah and Umar Akmal in the middle order seem sho0-ins after convincing knocks in the warm-up matches.

The Key Players

Corey Anderson – During the week Graeme Smith and Rahul Dravid pointed out the three players they thought were crucial to New Zealand’s World Cup chances.  One of them was Corey Anderson.  So well suited to thrashing the ball over the boundary, and now playing an increasing important role with the ball, Anderson’s form (which was decent against Sri Lanka) is likely to match New Zealand’s.

Umar Akmal – Scores of 77 and 68 in the two warm-up games point to Akmal being in quality form at the moment.  Pakistan hope so, as do the New Zealand sporting public who’ll be after a more fiercely competitive series.  Akmal’s form in Australia and New Zealand over the years has been excellent, this series may be another example of that and a springboard to World Cup success.

The Match Odds*

New Zealand – $1.50

Pakistan – $2.63

*Courtesy of Betstar.

The Prediction

Pakistan against the swinging and bouncing ball worries us.  That’s why we’re tipping New Zealand even though they’re coming off a loss only a few days ago.

The Longshot

Great money on Umar Akmal to top score for Pakistan.  $6.50 at Betstar.

Cricket: New Zealand desperate for sterner test

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The majority of New Zealand cricket fans are cautiously optimistic about their teams chances at the impending Cricket World Cup, however, their also probably quite uncomfortable with the noise that the Black Caps are attracting.  Especially due to the ease at which they’ve taken the series against Sri Lanka.

The Black Caps have not been tested in a couple of crucial areas that will make or break their World Cup campaign.  Heading the list of important work ons is their death bowling at the end of a tense chase.  Unfortunately, aside from game two, Sri Lanka have not got close to one of targets and the New Zealand death bowlers are underdone.

Sri Lanka on the other hand need to develop a bowling attack that can tame sides better than they have been doing.  Without Malinga the tourists have struggled to bowl New Zealand out or contain some of their more destructive hitters.  Plenty to practice then in Wellington, which is expected to be cloudy but dry.

The Last Time These Two Met

New Zealand are craving a close game to test their game under pressure before the World Cup.  They didn’t get one in the 6th ODI in Dunedin on Sunday.  Instead the Black Caps eased to a 120 run win on the back of 90’s from Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor.  Rather than have their bowlers tested in the final stages of the innings, the Black Caps rolled Sri Lanka for 195.  Kumar Sangakkara’s 81 stood out like a sore thumb in a feeble effort.

The Teams

New Zealand (likely): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tom Latham, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Luke Ronchi (wk) , 7 Corey Anderson, 8 Nathan McCullum, 9 Daniel Vettori, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Mitchell McClenaghan

Brendon McCullum is due a rest, so Tom Latham will replace him at the top of the order.  His combination with Guptill may be a slow one and could heap some pressure on the finishers below them.  Kyle Mills will also get some more cricket.

Sri Lanka (likely):  1 Lahiru Thirimanne, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Angelo Mathews (capt.)/ Dimuth Karunaratne, 6 Dinesh Chandimal, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Dhammika Prasad/ Dushmantha Chameera 10 Sachithra Senanayake, 11 Suranga Lakmal

Sri Lanka are starting to resemble the working wounded.  In addition to the problems with Angelo Matthews, and Herath’s departure, Dhammika Prasad and Jeevan Mendis are also carrying niggles.  As a result we could see a debut for Dushmantha Chameera.

The Key Players

Grant Elliott – How well has he slotted back in to international cricket?  Coming into the series he was competing with Latham for a World Cup spot and, after a woeful start and family emergency, he looked uncertain.  No more though.  Elliott has settled the number five debate once and for all and will play an important part in NZ’s World Cup.

Dinesh Chandimal – After an encouraging start to the tour in the Wellington test match, Chandimal has failed to kick on and has contributed just 9 runs in two ODI games.  If he is to

The Match Odds*

New Zealand – $1.57

Sri Lanka – $2.40

*Courtesy of Tom Waterhouse.

The Prediction

Momentum is a hell of a difficult thing to stop in cricket, and in our view Sri Lanka don’t quite have the resources at the moment in which to curtail New Zealand’s.  We’re predicting a NZ win at the Cake Tin.

The Longshot

Grant Elliott to continue his great run of form and top score for New Zealand. $8 at Tom Waterhouse.

Cricket: South Africa welcome back de Kock for final ODI

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The South African cricketing summer ends tonight with the final ODI between the hosts and the West Indies.  SuperSport Park is expected to be packed as locals take up the final chance to see their side off before they fly off to Australia and New Zealand to try and win the Cricket World Cup.

Centurion’s day nighter is the also the final chance for teams to tinker with their line-ups ahead of the warm-up games.  West Indies probably won’t tinker after their dramatic win in game four, but South Africa have already hinted at some changes.  Therefore it should be an exciting finale.

The Last Time These Two Met

The West Indies enjoyed an unlikely first win of the series in Port Elizabeth.  The win was brought about by a fantastic chase of 263 that for the most part looked unlikely.  Andre Russell (64*) and Darren Sammy (51) combined to wrestle the initiative away from a South African side who themselves had fallen behind early and needed a rescue effort of their own.  Their rescue was led by David Miller who made a tremendous 130.  His knock didn’t really deserve to be on the losing side, but neither did Russell’s. Although the win doesn’t affect the series it will add some respectability to the series scoreline.

The Teams

South Africa (likely): 1 Hashim Amla (capt), 2 Quinton de Kock (wk), 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 Rilee Rossouw, 5 JP Duminy, 6 Farhaan Behardien, 7 David Miller, 8 Wayne Parnell, 9 Kyle Abbott 10 Vernon Philander, 11 Aaron Phangiso

The glorious sight of Quentin de Kock at the top of the order will put smiles on a lot of South African fans’ faces as they build towards the Cricket World Cup.  He’ll open with Amla, with Rossouw dropping down to 4 to fill the void left by AB de Villiers’ rest.  Dale Steyn is still resting too, meaning another chance for Abbott, while Phangiso may get another chance instead of Imran Tahir.

West Indies (likely):  1 Chris Gayle, 2 Dwayne Smith, 3 Leon Johnson, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 6 Jonathan Carter, 7 Darren Sammy, 8 Andre Russell, 9 Jason Holder (capt), 10 Carlos Brathwaite , 11 Sheldon Cottrell

Injury concerns for Lendl Simmons and Sulieman Benn could mean the West Indies field the same side that won game 4 at Port Elizabeth.

The Key Players

Quinton de Kock – The 22-year-old enters the series for the first time after a long ankle enforced injury layoff, and will come under immediate scrutiny from opposition bowlers and the South African selectors.  When fit de Kock is definitely a part of the best team on account of his batting prowess and his keeping that eases the burden on de Villiers.  However, he doesn’t have much time to prove he’s fit and in form.  Especially given how well Russouw and van Wyk have done in his absence.

Darren Sammy – Andre Russell got most of the plaudits for guiding his side to a first victory in the series the last time the teams played, but Sammy deserves some too.  The former captain was instrumental in the chase – without his contribution it would have been too much for Russell to do.  He’s a true professional that has rolled with a number of WICB punches over the years, and we love the fact he still gives his all every time.  We’re expecting another explosive performance from Sammy.

The Odds*

South Africa – $1.34

West Indies – $3.25

*Courtesy of BetEasy.

The Prediction

No de Villiers, no Steyn.  Ama returning, de Kock returning.  The personnel changes tend to balance themselves out a bit, and Amla never really fails.  Even still, take a punt on West Indies again.  Worth it at that money and Gayle is due.

Cricket: South Africa seek whitewash with shuffled side

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Much like the test series the ODI series has been one-sided, which in itself is disappointing especially as the T20 games were so even.  It’s been worse though because of the manner of the defeats.  Sure there was some entertainment along the way, but the wallopings are doing nothing for the crowds or for South Africa’s World Cup preparations.

We’re all hoping for something a bit more even in Port Elizabeth where South Africa have rescheduled in a move that could achieve the levelling effect.

The Last Time These Two Met

The West Indies were feeble in defeat in game three.  Already 2-0 down the West Indies failed to build on winning the toss and crumbled for just 122.  Marlon Samuels top scored with just 26, in an inept display of batting that is sure to worry West Indies fans.  Vernon Philander and Imran Tahir took four wickets and three wickets apiece to easily seal the series in South Africa’s favour.  Philander was man of the match after removing Dwayne Smith and Chris Gaye within the first four overs.  The burst set the tone for a East London walkover that was finished by Hashim Amla (61*) and Faf du Plessis (51*).

The Teams

South Africa (likely): 1 Rilee Rossouw, 2 Morne van Wyk (wk), 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 AB de Villiers (capt), 5 David Miller, 6 JP Duminy, 7 Farhaan Behardien, 8 Wayne Parnell, 9 Kyle Abbott, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Imran Tahir

South Africa have already determined that Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn will rest in Port Elizabeth.  There exclusions open up opportunities for Morne van Wye and Kyle Abbott.  Regardless of the changes South Africa are still heavy favourites.

West Indies (likely):  1 Dwayne Smith, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Leon Johnson, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 6 Jonathan Carter, 7 Andre Russell, 8 Carlos Brathwaite, 9 Jason Holder (capt), 10 Jerome Taylor, 11 Sulieman Benn

Many teams ask players who have performed badly in any given match to fix it at the next opportunity.  We suspect the West Indies will allow their demoralised players to atone.

The Key Players

AB de Villiers – He’s had fun in the series but he hasn’t really been tested when under the pump.  40 balls is not necessarily a guide as to how well he’s playing, so it will be interesting to see how he responds if his side loses early wickets.  That might happen too without the rock Amla to see off the new ball.

Leon Johnson – Has only had a small amount of time to familiarise himself with a new role at number three in a sinking ship, but we’re hoping Johnson can rise tot the challenge.  The series need it.  The series needs the runs he scored in the third test.

The Odds*

South Africa – $1.26

West Indies – $3.85

*Courtesy of Unibet.

The Prediction

All good things must come to an end.  How about putting $5 on West Indies to triumph at Port Elizabeth. de Villiers for another hundred too.