Betting Blog

England backed to bounce back from Barbados. But will they?

After breezing into their tour of the Caribbean, England hit the buffers in spectacular fashion

29-Jan-2019

Well, that's put the cat among the pigeons. After breezing into their tour of the Caribbean with a run of five consecutive Test wins under their belt, England hit the buffers in no uncertain terms in the first Test in Barbados. Their 381-run drubbing has transformed the narrative of the tour, and put West Indies on course to defend a very proud home record against England.

In the course of 51 years dating back to 1968, England have won just one series in the Caribbean, in 2004, and despite that battering, they remain 5/4 to buck that history and win the remaining contests in Antigua and St Lucia for a 2-1 series victory. The trouble is, West Indies are 11/10 favourites - a recognition both of their dominance in Bridgetown and of the resilience they have previously shown when England come to town.

In terms of the Antigua Test alone, however, England are improbably strong favourites to bounce back and square the series. They are 8/15 compared to West Indies' 13/5, a reflection of how stung they were by defeat in Barbados, of the likelihood that they will rectify the team selection that let them down on that occasion, and also the fact that they are now more battle-hardened, having skipped a proper warm-up prior to the first Test in favour of a glorified four-day net.

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England travel to the Caribbean with expectation, but history is against them

To judge by England's continued struggles in the West Indies, there's some reason to be cautious

ESPNcricinfo staff

10-Jan-2019

West Indies' reputation has taken a battering in recent years, and it's rather old hat to make the point that a tour of the Caribbean is not the challenge it might have been in the 1980s or 1990s.

And yet, to judge by England's continued struggles to make headway over there, there's some reason to be cautious of Bet365's pre-series assertion that they are overwhelming favourites for the three-match Test series which gets underway on January 23.

After all, England have won just one (yes, one) Test series in the Caribbean since 1968 - and even that 3-0 triumph was perhaps most memorable for Brian Lara's world-record 400 not out in the dead-rubber in Antigua.

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Can Virat Kohli cement India's favourites status?

India have taken a massive leap towards their first series win in Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff

12-Dec-2018

India's thrilling victory in the first Test against Australia at Adelaide has thrown the cat among the pigeons. Virat Kohli's men had been quietly touted as favourites in the build-up to the tour, but they've now taken a massive leap towards their first series win in Australia.

According to Bet365, India are 4/7 to build on their 1-0 lead and close out the four-match series, with Australia already looking up against it at 9/2. The draw, at 11/4, splits the difference between the two sides.

And yet, the tables seem fractionally turned for the second Test, starting at Perth on Friday. On what is expected to be a pacey drop-in wicket at the Optus Stadium, which is hosting its maiden Test after the decommissioning of the WACA, Australia are 23/20 to bounce back with a victory, compared to India's 6/5. There's really nothing more than a splinter of willow between the two.

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Can New Zealand stop Yasir Shah in his tracks?

New Zealand won the first Test in Abu Dhabi in thrilling circumstances, before Pakistan bit back in emphatic style in Dubai

ESPNcricinfo staff

30-Nov-2018

It's been an unexpectedly lively series in the UAE. New Zealand won the first Test in Abu Dhabi in thrilling circumstances, by an excruciating margin of four runs, before Pakistan bit back in emphatic style in Dubai, where Yasir Shah claimed a remarkable 14 wickets in the match, including 10 in a single match-seizing third day.

And so it all boils down to the decider in Abu Dhabi on Monday. Pakistan enter the contest with a major setback, after their star seamer, Mohammad Abbas, went lame with a shoulder injury, but they remain strong favourites in the two-horse race, at 8/13 versus 13/5.

The most significant question, in light of Yasir's startling return last week, is can anyone prevent a repeat rout? The odds would appear to be against it, with Yasir leading the market at 6/1 to be Man of the Match - just ahead of Abbas, in fact, so caveat emptor with that one …

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India sneak the favourites tag for Australia Tests

Australia are about to embark on a marquee Test series with a sense of the underdog about them.

ESPNcricinfo staff

21-Nov-2018

Australia are not used to being anything less than outright favourites going into a home Test summer. But, despite the fillip of a rare T20I win over India at the Gabba on Wednesday, they are about to embark on a marquee Test series with a sense of the underdog about them.

Shane Warne, for one, reckons India are favourites for the four-match Test series that begins at Adelaide on December 6, and the odds-setters at Bet365 don't think that assessment is far off the mark.

Currently Australia are 7/5 to win the series, with India breathing down their necks on 5/4 and the draw a slightly more distant 7/2.

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Australia remain in World Cup reckoning despite desperate ODI form

Never write off the Australians? That's the message from the Bet365 long-range forecasters

ESPNcricinfo staff

05-Nov-2018

Never write off the Australians? That's the message from the Bet365 long-range forecasters. As the focus begins to narrow on next year's World Cup in England, the reigning champions remain a miserly 5/1 bet to make it an unprecedented six titles, including five wins out of six dating back to 1999.

Nothing could feel further from becoming reality right at this moment, however. Australia slumped to an unprecedented seventh ODI defeat in a row against South Africa in Perth at the weekend, despite having plastered their walls with placards proclaiming their "elite honesty" - a curious attempt to galvanise team spirit in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal.

On the plus side, Australia will once again have the services of David Warner and Steven Smith come the World Cup, which may contribute to a raising of their overall standards.

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Joe Root backed to be the point of difference in Sri Lanka Tests

England's triumphs in the limited-overs leg of their winter tour have heightened expectations that they may be able to win a rare Test series in Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff

29-Oct-2018

England's rain-interrupted triumphs in the limited-overs leg of their winter tour have heightened expectations that they may be able to achieve a feat that they've not managed since Nasser Hussain's tour in 2000-01, and win a rare Test series in Sri Lanka.

According to the odds-setters at Bet365, England and Sri Lanka are both equally priced at 13/8 to win the first Test at Galle, which gets underway on November 6.

The draw is 12/5, which might conceivably be attractive given how much rain has been around the tour in recent weeks. Then again, it has been 21 matches and nearly four and a half years since the last drawn Test on Sri Lanka's spin-friendly decks.

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Can Australia back up their Dubai rearguard?

The pride of the Baggy Green was restored in uplifting scenes on the final day of the first Test against Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff

15-Oct-2018

The pride of the Baggy Green was restored in uplifting scenes on the final day of the first Test against Pakistan, where Usman Khawaja's century and a dogged final act of defiance from captain Tim Paine helped secure a fighting draw in Dubai.

That said, there's not an awful lot of optimism among the odds-setters at Bet365 that Australia have turned a corner - they did, after all, lose all ten first-innings wickets for 60 to leave themselves scrambling for a miracle finish. Currently, Pakistan are 5/6 favourites to win the second Test in Abu Dhabi, with Australia 12/5 outsiders, with the draw at 7/2.

As for the individual honours, there's no doubt who the bookies back to boss the contest this week. Yasir Shah, the legspinner, is back in harness after injury and is 13/2 favourite to be named Man of the Match at a venue where he has taken 27 wickets at 22.62 in four previous appearances.

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Spinners to the fore as England and Sri Lanka prepare to do battle

With the first ODI of their five-match series looming on Wednesday, England's credentials as a white-ball force are about to face a tricky test

ESPNcricinfo staff

08-Oct-2018

It's been damp in Dambulla since England's arrival in Sri Lanka. But with the first ODI of their five-match series looming on Wednesday, their credentials as a white-ball force are about to face a tricky test, against a team who have been in the doldrums of late, but who still know how to perform in their own conditions.

And with just a solitary (and rain-shortened) match in Colombo with which to get their preparations fine-tuned, England risk going into the series undercooked. Not least Mark Wood, who has been experimenting with a new longer run-up to ease the pressure on his dicky left ankle.

Wood is 15/4 to be England's leading wicket-taker in the series, but after conceding that the roles will be reversed for the seamers and spinners on this trip, he is some way behind the fore-most of those spinning options, Adil Rashid (3/1).

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England slight favourites to prevail in Sri Lanka ODIs

England's attention switches back to the one-day format as they name their squad for the ODI leg of their tour of Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff

17-Sep-2018

After an emotional six weeks of Test action against India, England's attention switches back to the one-day format this week, as they name their squad for the ODI leg of their tour of Sri Lanka in October.

And for all that winning in Asian conditions is a formidable challenge at the best of times, there's an expectation among the odds-setters at Bet365 that Eoin Morgan's men will have the measure of their hosts in the course of their five-match series.

England are 4/7 to win the series by any margin, compared to Sri Lanka's 11/8. And when it comes to the correct series score, the differences are even more stark.

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