Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series

[kevshat]

After the excellent Ashes series, attention in Australia turns to the limited overs scene. Australia host England in 2 twenty20 internationals and then a 7 match ODI series which is all live on sky. I've included the warm up match in the schedule as that too is live on Sky tonight. Schedule:

Mon Jan 10 22:45 GMT (prev day) | 09:45 local 22:45 GMT -1d	Prime Minister's XI v England XI Manuka Oval, Canberra	N/A
Wed Jan 12 08:35 GMT | 19:05 local 08:35 GMT	1st T20I - Australia v England Adelaide Oval	17 - 30° C Forecast Mostly Sunny Click here for 10-day-Forecast
Fri Jan 14 08:35 GMT | 19:35 local 08:35 GMT	2nd T20I - Australia v England Melbourne Cricket Ground	17 - 23° C Forecast Showers Click here for 10-day-Forecast
Sun Jan 16 03:20 GMT | 14:20 local 03:20 GMT	1st ODI - Australia v England Melbourne Cricket Ground	N/A
Fri Jan 21 03:20 GMT | 14:20 local 03:20 GMT	2nd ODI - Australia v England Bellerive Oval, Hobart	N/A
Sun Jan 23 03:20 GMT | 14:20 local 03:20 GMT	3rd ODI - Australia v England Sydney Cricket Ground	N/A
Wed Jan 26 03:20 GMT | 13:50 local 03:20 GMT	4th ODI - Australia v England Adelaide Oval	N/A
Sun Jan 30 03:20 GMT | 13:20 local 03:20 GMT	5th ODI - Australia v England Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, Brisbane	N/A
Wed Feb 2 03:20 GMT | 14:20 local 03:20 GMT	6th ODI - Australia v England Sydney Cricket Ground	N/A
Sun Feb 6 03:20 GMT | 11:20 local 03:20 GMT	7th ODI - Australia v England Western Australia Cricket Association Ground, Perth	N/A

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Technically you shouldn't bet on warm up matches. But I'm going to :lol :$. 3pts England Most 6's vs PM's XI 10/11 Skybet England aren't going to be at full strength tonight but those who will be playing will be itching to go well to force a place in the 1st team. The players coming in will include the likes of Steven Davies and Eoin Morgan who have both been sitting on their arse watching the England procession for the last 7 weeks so they'll be desperate to get a bat. There will be no KP for England tonight but the likes of Michael Lumb, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood and Luke Wright look like playing and that's plenty of firepower. I look down this PM XI lineup and I can't really see a natural 6 hitter. It may be that Brett Lee is the most natural one there. There's some good batsmen in the side - the likes of Paine, Ferguson and Khawaja but none of them are naturally big hitters. England will look to squeeze with Yardy and Tredwell and I would imagine the seam attack will include Woakes - a big hitter himself, and Shahzad, neither of which are easy to get away for 6's. England's aggressive style means we look to score 6's now rather than wait until the end and then slog. The likes of Collingwood and Morgan bring an expansive game to England's middle order and I think England will hit the most 6's in this match.

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series I have been scouring around for something to interest me in this first T20i but am really struggling to come up with anything other than the following: Total Match 6's - Under 8.5 @ 5/6 via William Hill This match is being played at the Adelaide Oval which is notorious for its fairly odd boundary sizes. The straight boundary is around 80m long with the square boundaries being somewhat shorter at around 60. This obviously means sixes square of the wicket will be considerably easier but when you look at the respective bowling attacks of each team, you'd probably agree sixes might be hard to come by. Australia are expected to line up with Brett Lee, Shaun Tait & Mitchell Johnson whilst England will probably start with Shahzad and Tremlett pace-wise. At least four of those five will send those white Kookaburra balls down the patch at 90mph or above which makes six-hitting very tricky. Michael Yardy proved that picking him is very difficult in the warm-up match the other day proving to be very economical. I generally don't like to back Unders in 6's markets but I'm fairly confident of this coming in. Extrabet have this line at 10/11 so if anyone would like to follow this, they have better odds over there but I have an account with Willhill so shall stick with this line here. I think England will pull together for Collingwood and win this one. Odds of EVS are attractive too but I do not like betting when I do not know what the opposition is capable of. For that reason I shall stay away for precautionary reasons of any outright markets. Best of luck to any other tippers :hope

[liveforever31]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series 2pts - England Win 1st T20 @ 21/20 Betfred Purely a value bet, but I don't feel that we should be this long. T20 is very topsy turvy, so I'm keeping stakes low as all it needs is a bad half hour and bets are out the window. But England will be very strong (Bell, Trott, Tremlett in fine form from the Ashes, Yardy showing excellent control in the PMXI game, Morgan returning, Swann etc...) and lets not forget are the reigning T20 champions and demolished the Aussies in the World Cup. I appreciate we are on the Aussies turf, they are wounded and will be looking for a reply, but if England turn up then we should be able to come out on top. There is a lot of inexperience in this Aussie side, and whereas they may not be as bad as their Test side, they still aren't unbeatable here. 1pt - Top Aussie Bat - Cameron White @ 13/2 Boylesports 1pt - Top England Bat - Eoin Morgan @ 13/2 PaddyPower I'm going to do a write up for both of these at once, as I feel similar reasoning goes for both. With T20, there is always that chance that an opening bowler will rip through a top order; Australia have that capability with Tait and Lee, England with Tremlett and Shazahd. Many a time the scores in T20 come from the middle order, with the license to either tee off, or the time to build an innings due to higher order failures. White and Morgan are both high scoring batsmen, both with the ability to score quickly and dig their teams out of trouble. They are both proven in this format too. I think they are both overpriced at 13/2, and represents better value in a tricky market due to the swings of T20 cricket.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series One series outright for me. Not going mad on series bets as it's twenty20 and it's only 2 matches. 2pts D.Warner Top Australia Series Batsman 3/1 Stan James Everyone who's read or followed me over the last couple of years will know I love this guy in this format. We've won some solid cash on the big hitting left handed opener and I see no reason why that needs to change here. There's an outside chance that with 7 ODI's coming up that the likes of Watson and Hussey won't play both matches and with Finch who's expected to bat 3 on debut I think Warner's in a good position in terms of top scoring. I like Finch but I'm not sure he's the one to bash the spinners around. Warner comes into this series in pretty good nick. He's played two twenty20 matches for NSW in the last week or so and he's hit 50's in both matches. Both different 50's too. A hold it together, carry your bat and ensure your team have something to defend 50 and an all out attacking 50. Even at the MCG and here at Adelaide where the boundaries straight aren't small, they ain't big enough for Warner if he connects properly. With the main dangers - David Hussey and Cameron White, batting probably 5 and 6 I think 3/1 is a very good price on Warner who now has bagfuls of experience in this format and at international level.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series And one in the opening match. 3pts England to win 1st Twenty20 21/20 Betfred I agree with Liveforever in terms of the outcome of this match. Australia have suddenly found a bowling attack which looks a bit dangerous but for me it's still not enough. England, while not at full strength, as a whole are massively confident right now. They beat the Aussies in the world twenty20 final back in May and have won 7 straight in this format. Australia have lost their last 4. Australia have made plenty of changes from their test side. Unsurprisingly. Only Shane Watson and Mitchell Johnson are retained and how Mitchell Johnson keeps getting picked I'm at a loss to explain. In come big hitting Dave Warner at the top of the order, Aaron Finch, Dave Hussey and Cameron White in the middle order and Tim Paine at 6 or 7. With the ball Brett Lee and Shaun Tait will provide some real pace but neither are anything new to the English batsmen. Cameron White takes over the twenty20 captaincy with Michael Clarke realising he ain't good enough. England will chop and change a bit too. Steven Davies looks set to open as keeper with Craig Kieswetter injured. Ian Bell could get the other opening slot after his ton on Monday but Michael Lumb could get it too. Eoin Morgan will come into the middle order with Luke Wright and Michael Yardy backing him up. Jimmy Anderson has been given a couple of weeks off so Ajmal Shahzad could take his place although Steve Finn is another option. Tremlett and Bresnan's test bowling looks to have secured them places in this side. Even with all the changes I still think England hold all the aces. I think we're a better twenty20 side. Australia have never really got to grips with this format. That sounds daft considering they made the world twenty20 final but it's worth remembering they would have lost the semi final but for a once in a lifetime knock from Michael Hussey. England know what they are doing in this format and everyone performs their roles well. We're full of confidence as opposed to the Aussies who have copped it from all angles. England will take great pleasure in rubbing it in a bit more and at odds against I'll take them to do just that.

[Crouch Potato]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Personally I think Australia are pretty over valued. They have a much more explosive side and the many problems that plagued them in the test series quite simply don't exist in this shortened format. The ability to bat patiently and with technical proficiency doesn't factor into this, which really makes it surprising that Phil Hughes isn't a guru at it :tongue2 Warner is explosive, the Husseys both finish an innings well and White is also a big hitter. The other big weaknesses in the test series were Ponting, Clarke and their captaincy. Thankfully they aren't a factor here. White has much more nous than both of them combined. I see people name Bell as a strength, but in the T20 format I'm not sure he is one. This isn't to say England wont win, but I think Australia actually match up much better than England in this format (they wont in the ODIs though). Anyway, three for me for this one: England Hi Bat - Kevin Pietersen @ 4.50 Sportsbet Kevin Pietersen has a superb record at Adelaide in all formats of the game and his onside hitting will match up favourably with the short square boundaries. He's made something like 250 runs in his last 4 T20I innings and for me has much more explosiveness than others around him. David Warner MOTM @ 10 Sportingbet Oz As Kev touched on, Warner has 2x 50's in his 2 recent T20 outings. One of them was at Adelaide as well, so he'd have got a good sighter as to how to approach this one. He really is explosive, and with O'Brien at 3 and Watson less dynamic than Warner this really is Warner's batting innings to dominate. Of course, there is one big danger, so I've taken that too. Australia 1st Wicket Dismissal Method - Runout @ 13 Sportsbet Two words: Shane Watson.

[Spooner]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Barmy Army, Barmy Army :nana:nana

[CzechPunter]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series What a cracking match :cheers Well done all England backers, that was as tight as it gets.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Never in doubt :dude. Good day in this thread overall. I've managed to wipe out the warm up loss and sit +0.15 going into the 2nd T20. Excellent call on the unders bigmac but the stage is free for Liveforever with his England and Morgan top bat calls :clap:clap.

[Crouch Potato]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Feck me, had Watson MOTM for every Test Match and the Test Series. Now he finally does something :wall

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Up there with one of the most entertaining matches I've ever seen. That flippin' sixes bet had be shitting large bricks towards the end but I'm very happy it has come in. Leaves me +3.32 for the match and the series so far. Once again, another cricket thread proves to be very profitable with some top tips. Well done to all England backers but: Liveforever :notworthy

[liveforever31]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series :) Cheers folks, nice to see one drop in now and then! If bookies are going to continue to take on Eoin Morgan, then I'm more than happy to keep backing him at value prices, he is a one-day/T20 wizard! Well done to everyone so far, see if we can continue the success Friday. Sadly I might not have access to a computer before the game (graduation tomorrow, then mammoth ale-up), so after having a look now, can only see one to tempt me. 1 pt - Michael Yardy Top England Bowler (2nd T20) - 9/2 @ Will Hill The commentators noted it numerous times, but many people struggle to play Yardy as they play him like a left-arm spinner, which he is far from with his pace and angles. You try to cut him at your peril, and his changes of pace certainly means he ties batsmen down, which also helps to build the pressure. He was the best bowler for us today I thought, and seems to ask the most questions of a sometimes puzzled Australian batting line up, so I will take a little risk on him to repeat his feat of today and take the most wickets for us on Friday.

[liveforever31]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Correction, the above Yardy price is 5/1 @ Will Hill. Good luck all.

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series 4pts England to win the 2nd T20i @ EVS Bet365 Not quite sure why Australia are still favourites. As far as I'm concerned, England are still the better and most complete team of the two. I actually think that they'll take this one after the win two days ago. Confidence is high in the England camp, they're playing without fear and it seems that none of the 11 are really fighting for their place hence, not adding any pressure. England have batting through to #9 and the bowling attack is maybe just behind but not that far off the quality of the Aussies. Not really a whole lot I can add to this, Australia are still a team in transition and I don't think everything has been sorted in the 48 hours since the previous match. Happily take EVS in this line too. 4pts Shane Watson Player Performance (42 & Over) 5/6 Bet365 Watson cleared this with the bat alone and with the ball alone on Wednesday without too much fuss. He is easily Australias most in-form player and he proved the other day that he is very effective in both forms of the game coming out with something ridiculous with 139 points. I think he will ocver hald with the bat. THe massive boundary at the 'G is well within his reach and I think he will score enough runs to leave him with just needing one wicket. His fast/medium pacers usually come towards the end of the innings when the opposing team usually look to push on and he is often subject to big hitting and hence players wholling out to fielders around the boundary. Expect this to continue tomorow. 3pts S Davies Player Performance (Under 35) Bet365 I dont particularly rate Davies as a fantastic T20 opener. He has 74 runs in 4 T20i innings with 33 of those coming in one match. I dont think he will get a big score tomorow either and after doing a bit of research into T20i's I have found that catches by wicket-keepers are quite few and far between. A lot of the time, players are caught out in the deep or are bowled towards the death when they look to chase runs. Wicket-keeper catches don't come that often. Infact in 54 Twenty career matches, Davies has taken only 30 catches. I'm effectively hoping that there is no catch tomorow as I don't think he'll score 35 with the bat. Infact, I don't think he'll score 25 so that leaves me with 1 catch as cover. This line is a risk but I think it's calculated. The MCG is a huge ground and the test there showed how difficult is what to hit boundaries there. I am therefore staying away from all boundary markets. Good luck to all.

[Otter4]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Australia Women v England Women - 2nd Twenty20 - Match Betting England Women @ 10/11 14 Jan 2011 - Australia v England - 2nd Twenty20 - Match Betting England @ EVS 3 point double @ about 2.8/1 Both teams won on Wednesday, both teams are settled and in form. Admittedly I don't know so much about the australian womens team, but I know ours is bloody good even with a few absentees. I agree with you bigmac and am surprised England are priced at evens so will have a bet on a tasty double on teams I would perceive to be fave's.

[Otter4]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series sorry - wil hills for above odds

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series 2 for me tomorrow. 3pts England to win 2nd Twenty20 Evs Bet365 England edged the opening match but we did everything we could to throw it away. I didn't think Australia batted well and I didn't think they bowled all that well either. 157 was never going to be enough on that wicket and but for the Swann over they wouldn't have got anywhere close to 157 either. England's bowlers bowled excellent lines, especially to Warner and at the death were impossible to get away. With the bat I thought England were loose. It was like we wanted to embarass Australia and win in 10 overs when normal batting would've got the job done anyway. Conditions in Melbourne will suit England's bowlers as we've seen already and also our batsmen. I think we're the better side. We've won 8 twenty20 games on the bounce and we're at the point now where we've got the roles defined and whoever comes in fills the role perfectly. Australia have lost 5 straight twenty20 matches and look like they've forgotten to win in this format. That'd perfect for England. England win for me. 5pts Under 8.5 6's 5/6 Stan James This line looks high to me. There's been 3 twenty20 internationals on this ground and only one has gone over this line. That needed Dave Warner to hit 6 6's on his own and if he does that again here well good luck to him. There were only 7 6's in Adelaide which is a smaller ground than this. The MCG is a huge ground and hitting 6's won't be easy in good conditions. However we're not going to get good conditions. There has been heavy rain around in Melbourne leading up to this game and there is rain due on the morning and afternoon of this game too. So conditions are going to be very heavy and the wicket is going to be a bit tacky with moisture in it which isn't at all ideal for 6 hitting. Even if the predicted rain doesn't arrive before the match there's a womens international due to be played on this wicket first which will make the wicket roughed up a bit, again not helping 6 hitting. Both attacks are pretty hard to get away as well and all that combined with the big boundaries says to me the under looks a pretty safe call in this 2nd twenty20.

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series I was very tempted to follow you on the unders Kev but I don't have a Stan James account and the Unders on Sportingbet starts at 7 which just isn't going to happen. I have been thinking about this all day and I am going to go with one more. 1pt England Top Batsman: Kevin Pietersen @ 7/2 Bet365 I generally don't really like calling Top Batsmen because there are just so many possibilities for it to come in. However, the pace attack from Australia, the ground we're playing at, the threat of rain and the format of the game suit Pietersen down to the ground so I think its worth a punt. We'll start with the former. Given the fairly reasonable likelihood of an early wicket tomorow (which I hope will be Davies, see above), Pietersen will come in probably facing either Tait or Lee. These two send balls down at well over 90mph and we all know KP loves pace onto the bat. He is one of the few English batsmen who could clear this massive boundary with relative ease and I think he will relish taking on, one of, if not both of the Aussie pacemen. The threat of rain too also increases the possibility of a reduced-over match, effectively nullifying the lower orders of both teams taking the Top Batsmen market again, playing right into Pietersens hands at #3. If he is around when the medium pacers come into play, we all know he can manouvre those guys around with his eyes closed & at 7/2, I am willing to back it with small stakes of course.

[slizorn]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series 8pts Under 8.5 sixes @ 1.83 Stan James I got to agree with Kevshat's reasoning on this one and will be following him with a slightly larger stake. I was on the under 8.5 sixes for the 1st match, though I never got round to posting it up on time. In the 1st T20 there were 7 sixes. This line should come through pretty safely considering that the 2nd T20 is being played in a bigger ground. Really nothing else to add to Kev's reasoning, I feel I would just be repeating. :$ GL all :hope

[Spooner]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series England @ EVS Bet365 I just don't see how the Australian team can be favs for this match, England are on a hot run in T20 matches and although they done their best to throw the game away the other day I don't think will see the same mistakes here. England looked better with both bat and ball for me and their recent T20 record makes the EVS look generous. D.Hussey 39 & Over 5/6 Bet365 David Hussey chipped in with 2 overs and picked up a wicket in the 1st T20 but also he didn't rush when at the crease, I'd imagine the team are happy for him to knock the ball around whilst the likes of White come in and smash the ball out the park so I think this is a total he'll clear.

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series England to Win @ EVS - :@ When tait bowled that horrible wide and then Woakes hit that six I was like 'no way!'... Unfortunately there really was now way :cry Watson: 42 & Over - :D 17 runs and 2 wickets. Easy peasy. Davies: Under 35 :D - As expected, no catches. 29 runs. Pietersen Top Batsman :@ - Scored the lowest amount of runs of any England batsmen. +0.81 for the match. Can't complain I suppose. Congrats on all the sixes unders. Turns out the Unders on Sportingbet would've come in!

[slizorn]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Hate Stan James soooo much!!!!!!! Stupid confirm button, I did not click it. Damn my stupid luck. Always forget that site has a gay confirm button after one clicks the place bet button :sad:sad:sad

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Small +1.15pt profit for the match for me but -2 with Warner getting out 16 short of Watson's score so -0.70 in this thread going into the ODI's which begin on Sunday.

[Otter4]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Kev do you know if you get a refund on top bowler markets if the bowler plays but doesnt bowl? I'm guessing no, just like a batsman but thought i'd ask - after watching Swann and Yardy in the Aussie innings I put a few bets on Smith, Hussey and O'Keefe to be top wicket takers - for a 2 point profit if one came in.....1 over for O'Keefe, 3 for Hussey and none for Smith:@

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Depends who you bet with I guess mate. Most are settled as losers if they play though even if they don't bowl.

[Otter4]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Cheers; it looks like Hills have settled it as a loser - which i agree with, but was just wishful thinking.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Ok a few outrights for this series which begins in the morning. 3pts England (-1.5 matches) to win series 9/4 Paddy Power 1.5pts England to win 6-1 14/1 Totesport 0.5pts England to win 7-0 66/1 Totesport I think England are very focused going into this series and just like the test series I expect them to come out winners once the seven matches have been played. England now have Andrew Strauss leading them again and he's been very clever with his captaincy since he took over the ODI side again. England's batsmen have all got runs under their belt over the last few weeks with the exception of Luke Wright but he's been playing enough cricket that runs will come when we need them from him. With the ball we look to have Jimmy's absence well covered and we'll be even better for having him in the last 4 matches too. Australia still keep persisting with Smith despite the fact it alters the balance of their side. If he isn't going to bowl then they should play a specialist batsman, of which he is not. Whether or not both Lee and Tait can play 7 matches on the run I'm not sure either. England are still full of confidence and I think are the better side and I think we'll win this series by at least 2 if any are rained off and 3 if they are all played. We saw in England in 2009 that at the end of a long series once the series has been settled games can get away from the losing side and it's perfectly possible if England have this won after game 4 or 5 that we can win the final two matches and claim a big series win. The world cup is very much a focus so there will be no let up from England and at 14/1 and 66/1 I'll take the big wins for a small stake. 2pts I.Bell Top England Series Batsman 4/1 Boylesports Ian Bell looks in sensational form at the minute and I think batting at number 3 is perfect for him. Sure he'll be in occasionally against the new ball but more often than not he'll be in against the ball when it's losing it's shine and facing the weaker bowlers and spinners. Bell's a very good player of spin which is good. Andrew Strauss is a real danger at the top of the innings and with KP maybe still smarting from being dropped against Pakistan he might too. Eoin Morgan's a massive talent but batting at 6 or 5 at best it's hard for him to feature prominently in 7 matches. Ian Bell just looks in the form of his life. Some say he isn't a good 3 in limited overs cricket but you won't see a better knock than his for Warwickshire in the CB40 final last summer. He paces his innings to perfection and at 4/1 I think he'll go very close to topping England's run charts in this series. 1pt B.Haddin Top Australia Series Batsman 5/1 Stan James Brad Haddin is another who might be out to prove a point. For some reason he was dropped in the twenty20 matches, something he made sure the selectors knew he wanted an explanation over. With Shaun Marsh left out of the squad for the 1st match Haddin looks set to open for Australia. We saw in the test series he was one of very few Aussies who knew what the bat was for and assuming he carries that form into this series then he's going to be tough to beat over 7 matches. Shane Watson is the obvious danger but we know he'll be out when he gets to 50 unlike Haddin who has 3 figures in him. Michael Hussey looks like he'll bat at 5 in this series which I think is too low to figure over 7 matches. Cameron White has a good record against England and is a danger but I think Haddin's form in the test series warrants us backing him at 5/1 in this series on the proviso that he's opening and has a good record at doing so. 1pt S.Watson Top Australia Series Bowler 10/1 Sportingbet This looks like a real big price to me. Shane Watson was chief destroyer with the ball in the twenty20's, a result which will surely mean Michael Clarke leans to the all rounder more with the ball in this series. Steve Smith looks like he's going to be in the side at 7 which means that Australia are only going in with 4 main bowlers so D Hussey, Watson and maybe Clarke and Smith will make up the other 10 overs, more if one of the main 4 goes around the park. I think Watson's massively underrated with the ball. He's one of those who seems to pick up wickets whenever he bowls. This 10/1 is big for a guy we know is likely to play all 7 matches unlike say a Brett Lee or a Shaun Tait who may well not play all 7 matches. I'll have a small punt at 10's here.

[Spooner]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series 1st ODI 4pts England to win 1st ODI @ EVS Bet365 I'd make England favourites here, they come here on the back of an excellent test series and will be wanting to prove themselves in this format too. Australia have problems in all formats of the game at the moment, I just don't think their bowling attack is that strong and there are so many English batsmen in form at present so we should see some strong totals posted by England in this series. England bowl well too and I fancy them to take the opener.

[Tyler]

Re: Cricket: Australia vs England - 2xT20s & ODI series Two outrights for me. 7pts England to win the Series @ 4/5 I'm all over England in this series. They're the better team, they're in better form, they have batsmen that are all in good touch and they have a far better captain. On top of this, England have won their last 5 ODI series on the bounce and come off the back of a crushing Ashes win. I still think Australia are a team in transition and they lack any kind of form and confidence at the moment. Yes England are without Jimmy and Stuart Broad but as Kev alluded to earlier they still dumfound me with selections like Steven Smith and in Xavier Doherty, they have a spinner who can't really be classified as a spinner. I expect England to perform strongly over the seven matches and a confident series win here shall put them in perfect stead ahead of the World Cup. 5pts Shane Watson (Player Performance) - 350 & Over @ 8/11 This line is probably a touch inflated due to his recent amazing performances in the Twenty20 games but I still think it's a good one nonetheless. Shane Watson is Australia's best player at the moment by a mile and half. He is solid with both the bat and the ball and I think he can clear 350 over the seven games in this series. Australia need him, so he should play all seven matches meaning the only worry here is whether any matches are rained off. The chances of that are slim though, its Australian summertime so this should be okay. He has a batting average of 39.57 in ODI's and in 100 matches where he has bowled he has taken 121 wickets. He is an opener, so he will bat in every match he plays and as we saw in the Test series, he is a handy slip fielder too so catches could potentially be a third scoring method for the Aussie. I'm happy to take this, I reckon there will be at least one match where he will score big and I also reckon there'll be at least one match where he takes 3 or 4 wickets. Confident of this one.