Tag: West Indies

Cricket World Cup: Day 14 Recap

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Followers of Betcirca were rewarded with only the third winning bet of the Cricket World Cup as AB de Villiers registered a half century against the West Indies overnight.  He didn’t just score a half century mind you, he scored a hundred, and a hundred and fifty in all the same go as he powered to a miraculous 162* from just 66 balls.

Read more about the action below:

Day 14 Results

South Africa v West Indies

South Africa were in desperate need of some form after plummeting to a loss against India and being written off as potential winners, and they duly delivered with an exclamation mark performance worthy of joining the pack of favourites again.

A complete batting performance saw the first 400+ total of the tournament, with the undoubted star of the show being de Villiers.  The old adage of doubling your score after 30 overs was ridiculed by de Villiers and the gang who near on tripled their 30 over score to post a massive 408 in the allotted fifty overs.  Kicking on from a solid platform laid by Hashim Amla (65) and Faf du Plessis (62), first Rilee Rossouw and then AB dominated the West Indies attack in a breathtaking display.  AB de Villiers’ knock was eerily similar to his fastest ever ODI hundred against the same opposition only a matter of weeks ago.  He was slightly circumspect to begin with, taking some time as Rossouw provided the early power play impetus, then he exploded.

AB de Villiers now has the fastest fifty, hundred and 150 in ODI cricket – all against West Indies.

The West Indies were never up for the task of chasing the 400 down.  They were eventually bundled out for less than de Villers.  Their disappointing performance returns them from possible semi-finalists to World Cup also-rans in form that is impossible to keep up with.  So much of their play relies on Gayle, and when he was dismissed for just 3 in the second over, it was all over.  West Indies captain Jason Holder was the best of their batsman, he made 56 and offset a portion of the 104 runs he gave away when bowling, but without support it was always going to be a big loss.

Imran Tahir took five wickets.  He now has 9 in the tournament and is behind just Tim Southee in the top wicket taker charts.

South Africa 408 for 5 (AB de Villiers 162*, Amla 65, du Plessis 62, Rossouw 61, Holder 1-104) beat West Indies 151 (Holder 56, Tahir 5-45) by 257 runs

Cricket World Cup: Day 14 Preview

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The Three Big Questions

What’s the go on four day test and 40 over one-dayers? 

Details have emerged of an ECB discussion paper that presents ideas on how to forward the game of cricket    that include reducing ODI games to 40 overs, and reducing test matches to 4 days.  The paper aimed predominantly towards the English County Cricket model (thus included a franchise focused domestic Twenty20 league) determined that the 30 year tradition of five day tests could be done away with to, presumably, reduce the costs of hosting each game and prevent fifth day attendance fatigue; create more room in the cricketing calendar for the Twenty20 league; make both formats more commercially attractive.  The changes make sense to us, but it will be interesting to see if they’re supported by other nations.  Any changes are likely to be a long way off though.

What’s happening between Shane Warne and Darren Lehman?

The Australian press have been jumping at any chance of a story this week.  David Warner’s “brain explosion” comments, and Josh Hazelwood’s genius comment that “we need to get McCullum out” have both been given too many pixels.  But, we understand, they need to be paid and there’s been no on field action for Australia for two weeks.  That’s why the so-called rift’s been blown out of proportion.  There are unlikely to be any deep issues running through the squad, and it won’t impact their play.  Don’t read anything into the comments.  All is well.

Will the real South Africa show up today?

Put simply, they have to.  South Africa are in real danger of butchering their World Cup chances.  They do not want to have to meet New Zealand or Australia any earlier than the semi-finals, but because of their poor effort against India they can’t afford to drop any more games.  They need leadership.  They need runs from Amla and de Villers.  They need Steyn.  In those three players they have the experience to get out of the mini-slump they are in, the ability to inspire the rest of their team and beat the West Indies comfortably.

Today’s Matchup

South Africa v West Indies, Sydney Cricket Ground (Sydney – fine weather predicted), starts 2:30pm local time

South Africa – $1.30

West Indies – $3.50

Enigmatic West Indies vs Failing Favourites South Africa – This one could be tough to predict.  South Africa desperately need to rediscover some form and avoid another loss.  The West Indies on the other hand are in form, they should be confident and depending on what Gayle turns up could be Cricket World Cup contenders.

An indication on how this one might go could come from when the two teams met very recently in South Africa prior to the World Cup.  South Africa won the ODI series comfortably – many people forget that because AB de Villers’ 31 ball hundred stole most of the headlines – and that’s probably the same way this match will pan out.

Darren Bravo, Suliaman Benn and Vernon Philander are all expected to miss the match through injuries.

Today’s Bet

AB de Villiers to Score 50 – $2.35.

This is great money for de Villers who scores 50’s for fun.  Take advantage off his early Cricket World Cup woes and lump on this one.  Won’t need too much crease time to deliver 50.

Odds courtesy of Tom Waterhouse.

Cricket World Cup: Day 11 Recap

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Chris Gayle survived a close LBW call first ball and then went on a six hitting rampage; breaking numerous records on the way to a massive 215 that set his side up for a big win against Zimbabwe in Canberra in Day 11 of the Cricket World Cup.

Read more about Gayle (and the game) below:

Day 11 Results

West Indies v Zimbabwe

A wicket second ball of the innings for the Zimbabweans did not give any indication to the brutality that was to follow.  From the joy of Dwayne Smith’s opening wicket (which was literally celebrated with dancing), the game quickly went pear shaped for the African side as Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels combined in world record partnership of 372.  Former South African quick turned commentator Shaun Pollock put it best when he pointed out that the game got to the stage where “the fielders were becoming the spectators, and the spectators were becoming the fielders”.

Gayle hit 16 sixes on his way to becoming the first Cricket World Cup double centurion, and in the process became the first batsman to score a T20 100, an ODI 200, and a Test 300.  His record breaking blitzkrieg was even more remarkable given the pressure place on him by the public and the president of the WICB who had earlier given Gayle an underhanded slap via Twitter.

This was Gayle’s first ODI hundred since 2013, and despite being predicted by us,  still shocked plenty in the manner it was achieved.  Gayle set the record for number of 6’s in an ODI innings and broke the record for fastest ODI double hundred.  Mention should go to Marlon Samuels too.  He grafted (in comparison to Gayle) an unbeaten 133 to share in the fireworks from the best seat in the house.  Samuels was slower in comparison; a point that remained largely irrelevant on account of the unlikeliness of Zimbabwe chasing 373.

Zimbabwe did play well however.  Sean Willians and Criag Ervine compiled accomplished half centuries, but the chase lacked a big hundred to be able to compete.  They finished well short on 289, however in each of their games thus far they have managed to cross 270 which indicates their ability with the willow.  Jerome Taylor picked up 3 wickets to add to his 6 previous tournament records to be the best West Indies bowler.

West Indies back on course then.  Chris Gayle back in form.  Every team in the competition now hoping to avoid them in the quarter-finals.

West Indies 372 for 2 (Gayle 215, Samuels 133*) beat Zimbabwe 289 (Williams 76, Ervine 52, Taylor 3-38) by 73 runs

Cricket World Cup: Day 11 Preview

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The Three Big Questions 

Have India returned to form, are they a chance now?

Bowling woes aside, India have been in some okay form during the majority of their Australian tour.  Their batsman were competent in the test series, they scored some runs in the Carlton Mid Series, and have now scored 300+ against two top tier nations in their opening match of the Cricket World Cup.  Therefore, they haven’t returned to form, they have just had one of their top six score big runs as they have done all summer, and now their bowlers are looking much more comfortable when defending scores of over 300.  We’re convinced they’ll make the semi-finals, but to go further they need a big hundred (which we’ve seen from Sharma, Dhawan, Rahane, Kohli so far this tour), and their bowlers to bowl to a new simple dot ball pressure blowing plan.

What about England?

Less of a chance for India that is for sure.  Too many similar players in both the batting and bowling departments.  In Root, Ballance, Bell and Taylor (even Morgan in current form) you have smaller players who rely on gaps, timing and deflections rather than power.  That’s fine on the bigger grounds and, crucially, when the players are in form, but that’s not the case at the moment.  Joe Buttler is their only MS Dhoni, whereas New Zealand have McCullum, Taylor, Anderson and Ronchi.  Australia have Marsh, Warner, Finch, Maxwell, Faulkner.  They can’t compete.  Their bowlers too won’t offer enough to worry the best in the world.  Finn, Woakes and Broad hit the pitch hard, they rarely swing it down under.  That presents a problem, as Brendon McCullum pointed out.

And South Africa?

South Africa looked surprisingly, but completely, off the mark against India.  Bereft of ideas, and lacking individual accountability.  We mentioned after their first up effort against Zimbabwe that the top four wouldn’t fail cumulatively again in the tournament.  But they did.  du Plessis got a few but the form of Amla, de Kock and de Villiers is now reaching concerning levels.  They need a quick spark to prevent the dreaded c-word surfacing.

Today’s Matchup

West Indies v Zimbabwe, Manuka Oval (Canberra – scattered thunderstorms expected), starts 2:30pm local time

West Indies – $1.20

Zimbabwe – $4.50

The West Indies may have turned a corner with their strong win against Pakistan over the weekend.  After splitting their games in New Zealand, they now travel to Australia to get the better of Zimbabwe, who themselves had one win and one loss in New Zealand.  West Indies shouldn’t be short of runs.  Most of their batsman have enjoyed sufficient time in the middle to again be profitable in this match, while Jerome Taylor and the bowlers have also begun to show more mettle.

Zimbabwe have also been more than useful in their two showings.  Giving South Africa a run before chasing down 285 to win against UAE.  The Zimbabweans will need to improve their fielding and catching if they are to go toe to toe with their unpredictable opponents in this one.  We’re picking a West Indies win.

Today’s Bet

Chris Gayle has not started the tournament well, but we’re thinking today will be his day.  He’s at his best when he’s bullying opponents from the outset, and Zimbabwe could be on the receiving end.  He’s at $4 to top score, a West Indies win with him top scoring is paying $5, and Gayle’s at $7 to be named man of the match.

Odds from Sportsbet Australia.

Cricket World Cup: Weekend Recap

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A bumper weekend of quality cricket has seen a number of teams rip up the form book and reemerge as genuine World Cup threats.  India and the West Indies both scored unexpected wins to again confuse punters as to who will make up the crucial semi-final spots of the lucrative tournament.

Although Cyclone Marcia prevented the favourites Australia from playing, New Zealand and Melbourne stayed dry to allow some cricket.  Check out the weekend results below:

Day 8 Results

1. West Indies v Pakistan

The enigma that is West Indies cricket got the better the woefulness that is Pakistan cricket in a one-sided encounter in Christchurch.  Fans wanting a more interesting World Cup will hope that the win will prompt a change in fortune for the men from the Caribbean, whereas fans supporting Pakistan will be drastically worried.  The West Indies posted 300 batting first for the second game in succession.  Handy contributions from most of their men precluded a dazzling Andre Russell finish who slammed 42 from just 13 balls.  Earlier, Dinesh Ramdin and Lendl Simmons both scored fifties in a crucial middle over partnership that solidified a precious position of 152/3, which could have initiated a wobble.

A middle order wobble may not have mattered anyway as Pakistan crumbled to just 160 in reply.  Jerome Taylor’s fast start reduced Pakistan to a remarkable 1/4.  Just to be clear, that is, 4 wickets down for a solitary run.  There was no way back.  Pakistan did get to 160 – Umar Akmal scored an overdue half centre as did Maqsood, but there was never a contest.  Andre Russell also picked up three wickets to take man of the match honours.

The West Indies will be satisfied with their day’s work but await anxiously news on Darren Bravo’s injured hamstring.

West Indies 310 for 6 (Ramdin 51, Simmons 50, Russell 42) beat Pakistan 160 (Akmal 59, Maqsood 50, Taylor 3-15, Russell 3-33) by 150 runs

2. Australia v Bangladesh

Day 9 Results

1. Afghanistan v Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka overcame another minnow led scare in the Cricket World Cup on Sunday.  Not for the first time, an associate nation looked to be getting the better of test playing nation before class, luck and composure got the Sri Lankans (in this case) home.

Afghanistan were at one stage 128/2 and looking good for a handsome first innings total.  But before they could build any real momentum, Matthews, Malinga and Lakmal removed their key men before they could make the big scores that win games.  Mohammad Stanikzai was Afghanistan’s best with a well made 54, but his wicket was the catalyst of the slide.

Sri Lanka made very hard work of the gettable total.  At 18/3, with Dilshan, Thirimanne and Sangakkara all back in the pavilion, an upset looked possible.  It looked likely even when Karunaratne also fell, in a wicket that had the Afghan’s doing cartwheels (literally).  The fairytale wasn’t forthcoming mind you.  The guile of Mahlea Jayawardene and the power of Thisara Perera steering Sri Lanka home to win by 4 wickets.  Jayawardene scored an even hundred, while Perara made a brutal unbeaten 47 to wrap things up with 10 balls to spare.

Sri Lanka 236 for 6 (Jayawardene 100, Perera 47*, Hamid 3-45) beat Afghanistan 232 (Stanikzai 54) by four wickets

2. India v South Africa

Wow! We didn’t see this one coming.  India gave a huge MCG crowd every reason to cheer by knocking over a strong South Africa in emphatic fashion.  Cast aside at the start of the tournament after a disappointing tour down under, the Indians are now emerging as genuine title contenders after a pair of excellent wins.  Led by Shikhar Dhawan, who scored a well-paced 137, full of hooks and pulls, India cruised along to 307.  Virat Kohli contributed too, he scored 46, but Ajinkya Rahane’s 60 ball 79 was the real supporting act gem at the tail the innings.

South Africa struggled; they’ll be talk of the dreaded ‘choke’ term entering their minds / becoming a possibility.  The case never really got going, and surprisingly, none of their big game players Amla, du Plessis or de Villiers have managed to score the expected big runs.  Certainly not on the Dhawan scale.  The scale that put bowlers under pressures and becomes the difference between 200 scores and 300 scores.  Dhawan was the difference, and South Africa need confidence.  (They’ll also monitor an injury to Vernon Philander.)

South Africa have gone out to $5.00 to win the World Cup at Bet365.

India 307 for 7 (Dhawan 137, Rahane 79) beat South Africa 177 (Du Plessis 55, Ashwin 3-41) by 130 runs

Cricket World Cup: Day 3 Recap

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The first upset of the 2015 Cricket World Cup took just 3 days, and has left a West Indies team on the verge of crisis.  Ireland eased their way to a resounding victory over the West Indies in Nelson with 4 wickets in hand and 25 balls remaining.  The win is yet another example of Ireland’s giant killing prowess, but equally highlights the Windies uninterested approach.

Day 3 Results

West Indies v Ireland

Game three of the Cricket World Cup was an excellent example of the old sporting cliche – a see-sawing battle.  Initially, all the cards were being held by the Irish as they reduced their opponents to 87/5 on the back of accurate bowling and George Dockrell’s individual brilliance.  The stat that best proves the Irish were at their stifling best was Chris Gayle’s party strike rate of just 55.  However, the West Indies did recover.  An excellent partnership between Darren Sammy and Lendl Simmons restored some competitiveness to the West Indies total and eventually propelled them to a potentially winning total of 304/7.  Sammy made a hard hitting 89 and Simmons became the fifth centurion of the tournament in making 102.

Ireland set about the target with confidence and intent.  A strong start was carried all the way through and only the slightest wobble at the end of the chase gave the West Indies a chance.  The victory was never really in doubt as Peter Stirling, Ed Joyce and Niall O’Brien controlled the scoring rate beautifully; all posting half centuries on the way to another famous Irish Cricket World Cup win.

Ireland 307 for 6 (Stirling 92, Joyce 84, N O’Brien 79*) beat West Indies 304 for 7 (Simmons 102, Sammy 89, Dockrell 3-50) by 4 wickets