Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Level for the night last night. Was delighted with how Hampshire played though. I was getting a bit worried that I'd only have one real outright runner but Hampshire convinced me last night that we are bang in there with a chance although we might need the weather to help us tomorrow night as a win against Sussex tomorrow looks imperative unless they beat Middlesex tonight. As for tonight, can't find any match betting I like so I'm going for a 6's bet and a top bat in the TV game. 10pts Somerset to hit most 6's Evs Skybet I'm not a huge fan of this Somerset side, especially in this competition but they do have a lot of big hitters in their side. Obviously most look at Trescothick and Langer but they stick Pete Trego in at 3 and he's arguably their biggest hitter. Ian Blackwell can also wallop a ball as can the keeper Kieswetter. Suppiah, Hildreth and Durston can clear what are generally short boundaries at New Road. Worcestershire have a couple of big hitters themselves but nowhere near the depth that Somerset have. Hick and Solanki can go mental at the top of the innings but Charl Willoughby is a pretty tidy bowler which could negate that. Down the order, other than Moeen Ali who's really hit and miss, the only other out and out big hitter is Kabir Ali and with Gareth Batty likely to return tonight Kabir probably won't bat higher than 7. Somerset have so much 6 hitting strength that I think Evs is a fair price that they'll score more maximums. 5pts ew B.Smith Top Worcestershire Batsman 11/2 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) As I said in the Gloucestershire match where I backed Smith but he didn't bat, and have maintained since, this Worcestershire side aren't batting well. Ben Smith is though. He top scored for Worcestershire last Friday at Northants with 46 and he was unbeaten on 36 when Worcester ran out of overs on Tuesday against Warwickshire. That's a pretty decent form guide and with Smith coming in at 4 and Moeen Ali above him in no form at all, Smith looks a decent ew bet.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Decent enough night tonight. Somerset hit 5 6's to Worcestershire's 4 and Smith was 2nd highest top score which gave me a +10.50pt night which brings the overall loss down to -58.02pts. Things have gone a lot better since Sunday when I reassessed a few things which I'm happy with and hopefully the corner has been turned :hope. Full fixture list tomorrow night but there's also a bit of weather around but I'll see what there is and try and dodge the weather in the morning.

[TheRat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Well done Kev I listened to the game on BBC Hereford and Worcester (a task in itself), and I listened to the Warwickshire game too. We sound awful, average in the field, good work bowling undone with a few sloppy balls or extras, and there is no urgency in our batting by the sounds of things......sigh

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008

Well done Kev I listened to the game on BBC Hereford and Worcester (a task in itself), and I listened to the Warwickshire game too. We sound awful, average in the field, good work bowling undone with a few sloppy balls or extras, and there is no urgency in our batting by the sounds of things......sigh

Cheers mate, never listened to BBC H&W but I've listened to most county radios and some are very bad. We're lucky really, Radio Solent isn't that bad and living miles away from Southampton it's quite handy to be able to listen to big matches I can't get to. To be fair Warwickshire are going along great guns but tonight you never really got any momentum with the bat. Steven Davies is a quality cricketer but he's not a number 3 in a twenty20 match. Think that's the problem, just no strength to your batting.

[mdivenuto]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I have sure I have found an absolutely blinding top bat bet for Lancs v Yorks live Friday night Sky game ANTHONY McGRATH, 9/2 with Coral (e/w 1/5 odds 1.2.3.) top Yorkshire bat. Yorkshire have played 5 20:20 matches so far this season, and unless I am mistaken McGrath has topped scored in all 5! Some firms have him as the jolly, but betfred and Coral are still going 9/2 (a few other firms have cut him to 4s). 3 factors to consider before putting the mortage on: a) the Manchester weather and the possibility of a reduced overs game. However, forecast seems decent for Old Trafford for once, so confident of a full 20 overs b) If Lancs bat first and collapse for not a lot he may not get chance to bat. Pretty unlikely to happen as Yorkshire have not got the greatest bowlers in the world. c) Yorkshire openers play a blinder and McGrath does not get in until late on. Again, not overly likely but probably the biggest risk to the bet (and Im sure the reason odds as generous are still available) Even though he will probably only bat at 4, you cant argue with the form of 1-1-1-1-1 for the last five matches. Brophy, Gale and Vaughan will definitely bat above him but are not in much 2020 form, and maybe Rudolph as well who I rate the biggest danger. It's got to be an absolutely knocking each-way bet though, it would be very unfortunate for him not to get at least a place the form he is in, so I advise a maximum stakes each way wager at Coral's 9/2

[mdivenuto]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I will also take odds of 1/4 that Kevshat puts up this bet as well, the man knows a good thing when he sees one. 10 pts e/w and you can wipe out your competition loss big man!

[wolves27]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 stake 10/10 warwickshire bears to beat worcester royals 8/11 bears beat the royals in the encounter earlier this week at worcester bears had cracking performance last night whilst the royals slipped to medicore performance in which they didnt really excel in batting nor bowling since much different starts the bears are now pushing for next round place whilst this is really a win out for royals to qualify looks good odds as well to me

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008

I will also take odds of 1/4 that Kevshat puts up this bet as well' date=' the man knows a good thing when he sees one. 10 pts e/w and you can wipe out your competition loss big man![/quote'] 1/4 could just be a spot of value mate :lol. Just off to look at a few things for a few bets and even though I don't like backing top bats ew when a place doesn't get us all our money back I agree with you, McGrath is tremendous value. I'll be back with my actual bets shortly :ok.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Ok I'm going with 4 tonight. I did consider 3 others but although they are a big price Leicestershire haven't won a match yet. Northants were battered last night and Glamorgan look a decent price but I expect Northants to bounce back and I would've backed Hampshire at 4/5 or 5/6 but not 4/6. Going with 4 then. 2 in the TV match which I'll cover 1st. mdivenuto is spot on, I am going with McGrath too. 10pts Lancashire to beat Yorkshire 4/5 Coral The 2nd Roses battle in three days is a huge match in the North Group. Yorkshire and Lancashire come into this match in 3rd and 4th and both only a point behind Durham and Notts are the top of the group. Having lost to Yorkshire at Headingley on Wednesday, Lancashire will know they need to win here with head to heads being the 1st seperator if teams are tied on points at the end of the group stage. Lancashire are hoping to have Andrew Flintoff and maybe even Glen Chapple available for this game. Flintoff would play as a batsman only but he'd be a huge gain for Lancashire as they still look a batsman light. Dominic Cork and Saj Mahmood have bowled pretty well on the whole with the new ball while Keedy and Marshall are decent spin options. Yorkshire will have Michael Vaughan in their side. He'll open with Andrew Gale with Jacques Rudolph and the form man Anthony McGrath coming in at 3 and 4. That's pretty much it as far as the batting goes with Gerard Brophy likely to bat number 5. With the ball, Matthew Hoggard could sit up to be hit on the pacy Old Trafford wicket. Tim Bresnan is in good form as is Darren Gough. Anthony McGrath and Richard Pyrah make up the bowling. Old Trafford is nearly sold out tonight so the crowd will be pretty raucous. When the Sky cameras were here on Tuesday I didn't see another pitch being prepared so I imagine they'll play on the same wicket which will have been glued. That should bring spin into play and with Keedy and Marshall in their ranks that gives Lancashire the edge for me. 5pts ew A.McGrath Top Yorkshire Batsman 9/2 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Anthony McGrath has been in superb form with the bat in the twenty20 this year. Yorkshire have played 5 matches and he's top scored in each and every one. This is a pretty weak out and out batting lineup for Yorkshire with only 4 genuine batsmen unless Craig White would play and even though McGrath will come in at 4 he still looks a decent ew bet. He top scored against Lancashire on Wednesday so he can play against this lineup and 9/2 is a great price for him to do so again. He looks an ew bet to nothing with us recouping most of our stake should he place. 10pts Middlesex to beat Kent 11/10 Bet365 Middlesex are the only unbeaten side in the twenty20 cup this season and they travel to Beckenham to take on the defending champions Kent this evening. This is the 1st meeting between these two this season but Kent know that a defeat tonight would make qualifying very difficult while Middlesex know a win will pretty much put them through with 4 matches to spare. Kent look like they'll name the same side which lost to Essex on Wednesday. That means Robbie Joseph will be the 12th man. Joe Denly finally ended his run of half centuries in the competition against Essex so he'll look for runs tonight. Rob Key is also going fairly well in twenty20 but not many others are in the Kent lineup. Yasir Arafat is in form with the ball as is Ryan McLaren. James Tredwell provides a spin option. Middlesex may well be without Andrew Strauss tonight. He keeps switching between Middlesex and England and I can't find out a definite answer as to whether he plays tonight. If he doesn't then Joyce and Godleman will open with Morgan and Malan the other batsman although Tyron Henderson, the ex-Kent man is likely to bat 3. Dirk Nannes is in great form with the ball as is Henderson while Udal and Kartik continue to prove difficult to get away. I can't quite understand how a side with 5 wins from 5 can be odds against here but they are. They just don't concede runs and that's crucial in this game so I'll take the Crusaders to make it 6 from 6 here. 10pts Essex to beat Surrey 8/11 Boylesports Surrey are pretty much in last chance saloon here. They come into the game with only one win from their 5 matches so they need to win all 5 to qualify. Essex have a 3/2 record thanks to their win over Kent on Wednesday and a win here sticks them right in the qualification shake up. Essex welcome Mark Pettini back into their side tonight. Neil Dexter also returns having had to miss out against Kent on Wednesday. Pettini will take over as skipper and is likely to replace Jason Gallian. James Foster is in decent form with the bat as is Dexter. With the ball, Masters and Napier are bowling well up front and setting the game up for Kaneria in the middle overs. Surrey are a shambles at the minute. I saw them against Hampshire on Wednesday and their bowling attack is non existant other than Saqlain Mushtaq. Pedro Collins went for plenty as did Chris Jordan while Chris Schofield didn't do much either. With the bat there's no James Benning or Mark Butcher this evening so Ali Brown is likely to open. Ramprakash came back to form on Wednesday and Abdul Razzaq batted beautifully but they've got problems with the ball. Essex have already thrashed Surrey at The Oval and with their captain back tonight they look a good bet to beat Surrey who with Ramprakash captaining tend to follow the ball in the field. Chemsford is sold out tonight so the crowd will be loud and I think the Eagles will finish Surrey's twenty20 hopes off here.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Weather didn't help me today. Neither did an awful batting performance from Lancashire. Essex won but Middlesex lost an 8 over farce. -13.23pts for the day and back to -71.25pts for the tournament. Twenty20 has a rest day tomorrow but there's a full fixture list for Sunday. Northants vs Glamorgan is the TV game and I'm off to watch that so I'll probably have some bets for that but I'll come back with those tomorrow night/sunday morning.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 4 for me today. 2 match bets and a couple of top bats in the TV game. Off to Northampton for that match shortly so no time for huge writeups but I'll give brief thoughts. 10pts Nottinghamshire to beat Lancashire Evs Stan James Nottinghamshire are a decent twenty20 side and now they've got their batting lineup sorted out I'm prepared to back them. They have lots of bowling options too. Lancashire are still a batsman light and probably a bowler too. 2 defeats to Yorkshire have effectively put them out of the competition and with home advantage too I expect Notts to win this despite Flintoff's presence for Lancashire. 10pts Sussex to beat Surrey 10/11 Boylesports Surrey are a shambles at the minute. Confidence looks to have all gone. They can't stop runs and bar the odd batsman they can't score any either. Sussex are no better and miss Luke Wright massively but they will be buoyed a bit by their thrashing of Hampshire. They are usually good on their own patch and I'll take them to beat a woefully out of form Brown Caps. 5pts ew D.Sales Top Northamptonshire Batsman 4/1 Boylesports (1/4 1,2,3) David Sales is without a doubt the best out and out batsman in this Northamptonshire lineup. He's struggled a bit in the last couple of matches and it's no surprise that Northants lost those matches. Jumble has already top scored against Somerset in this competition when he made an unbeaten 71 and he's also been in the top 3 on a couple of other occasions. Sales has a habit of going well in front of the cameras and given we get our money back if Sales makes the top 3 I'll take him ew. 5pts ew R.Croft Top Glamorgan Batsman 9/2 Boylesports (1/4 1,2,3) Not the biggest price of Crofty here but it's short because he opens the innings for the Dragons in twenty20. He top scored for Glamorgan against Northants on Friday night having smacked van der Wath around Cardiff and he should go well today. Northants are one of those strange sides who don't bowl their best bowlers up front so Crofty can get going and potentially be away and gone before the dangermen come in. Gibbs leads the dangermen but this isn't a particularly strong batting lineup in depth.

[wolves27]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 just go with my tactic kevshat lay worcestershire royals every match in 20/20 do that each year amd you be +profit at worst with worcester you can trade out if v.close encounter

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 That dropped catch by Ryan Watkins yesterday cost me a top bat so it meant another loss on the day. Superb match though where I was privileged to see 3 top draw twenty20 knocks, especially Gibbs who was amazing. Hopefully I'll see more of the same tonight. I'll sort out the P/L tomorrow because I'm off to Southampton for tonight's TV match shortly. There is another match - Lancashire vs Derbyshire but all my bets are going to be at the Rose Bowl. Going with 4 tonight. I went to the reverse fixture so hopefully I've gained a bit of an edge. 10pts Hampshire to beat Surrey 4/6 Stan James This is a massive game for Hampshire. If they are to qualify for the quarter finals this really is a must win match with 2 matches against Essex all they have left. Surrey are out and seem to be going down without a fight too. Hampshire have Chris Tremlett and Dimitri Mascarenhas available tonight after England released them for this match. Dimi played yesterday but Tremlett will replace Billy Taylor. Surrey have started resting players and putting youngsters in. They were already without Mark Butcher and James Benning but they've not left Jon Batty out too to play a few youngsters. Hampshire won the reverse fixture on Wednesday night pretty comfortably and I expect them to do the same on their own patch tonight. 10pts Hampshire Highest 1st 6 Overs Evs Bet365 On Wednesday night Hampshire beat Surrey through 6 overs by well over 20 runs. That night there was no Mascarenhas or Tremlett and Ian Harvey was out for just 1. Tonight both Mascarenhas and Tremlett play. Surrey's opening combo be it Dernbach and Collins, Collins and Jordan or Jordan and Dernbach have all gone round the park in this tournament and I can't see why it'll be any different tonight. Michael Lumb is in decent touch and I think Hampshire will be ahead through 6 overs. 5pts ew M.Lumb Top Hampshire Batsman 6/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Only 7 men have scored more runs than Michael Lumb in this tournament. Admittedly Michael Carberry is one of them but Lumb opens the innings for Hampshire and the speed he's scored at in this tournament so far (strike rate of 158.66) means he can be away and gone before the rest come in. He smashed a 21 ball 45 at The Oval on Wednesday and is hitting the ball the best I've ever seen him hit it. Hit 32 against Sussex on Friday night was a top scoring effort. Lumb hasn't been out of the top 3 since the opening night of twenty20 and looks a really good ew bet tonight. 5pts ew A.Razzaq Top Surrey Batsman 6/1 Boylesports (1/4 1,2,3) Abdul Razzaq played a superb innings against Hampshire on Wednesday night. Even though I'm a Hampshire fan I really enjoyed his innings as he hit 3 of the straight and best 6's I've ever seen, 2 of them off Nantie Hayward which isn't easy. He top scored that night and I think he could top score again tonight. Hampshire's strength with the ball is undoubtedly the new ball with Tremlett, Mascarenhas and Hayward and with Razzaq batting at 5 he should be able to avoid that. The pitch at the Rose Bowl is good these days but the boundaries are still long. While most of his colleagues will have trouble clearing them he won't as he's a huge hitter and if he gets himself in he can do some real damage towards the end of the innings and he's another excellent price to top score.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Much better last night for me. Hampshire won and were 17 ahead after 6 overs. Michael Lumb was quality for us and easily top scored and only an amazing catch from Michael Carberry denied me the clean sweep. +42.67 for last night though which makes significant impact into the loss and puts me -39.49pts for the tournament now which is much more manageable. I'm going with 4 bets tonight too. 3 match bets which includes the TV match - Essex vs Sussex and a top bat in that game too. As the TV match is floodlit and starts later than the others I'll leave that until last. 10pts Glamorgan to beat Gloucestershire 5/6 Stan James Odds on Glamorgan here are actually quite big and can only be so big because of reputations because the way the two sides have played in this tournament Glamorgan should be much shorter. In fact Gloucestershire are still looking for their 1st win of the tournament while Glamorgan, who've been unlucky with the weather need to win here to stay in the qualification mix. Gloucestershire are decimated by injuries. Tonight they'll be without captain Jon Lewis, vice captain Alex Gidman and hard hitting opener Craig Spearman. Marcus North will captain the side. Andrew Harris has been taken on loan from Nottinghamshire and he'll replace Lewis in the side. Will Porterfield has taken over the opening role from Craig Spearman. Kadeer Ali and David Brown are still injured. Steve Kirby and Will Rudge will back Harris up with the ball. Glamorgan were beaten by Northants on TV last time out but they certainly weren't disgraced. Their bowling was a bit expensive but there was a huge wind that day so bowling wasn't easy. There aren't many David Sales and Andrew Hall's in this Gloucester side. Herschelle Gibbs has been excellent in twenty20 for the Dragons while Croft has done well more often than not when opening. The spin trio of Croft, Cosker and Dalrymple have been vital with the ball. Gloucestershire must be starting to turn their focus to the Championship and Pro40 now while Glamorgan are very much still in the hunt. They're playing good cricket and have all the tools in place to win this one. 10pts Somerset to beat Warwickshire Evs Ladbrokes This should be a good game at Edgbaston tonight as the only unbeaten side left in the competition, Warwickshire Bears host Somerset who are unbeaten in their last 4 matches. Should Warwickshire win this they'll be assured of a quarter final spot while Somerset would be out. A Somerset win keeps them very much alive. Warwickshire will be without their stand-in captain for the tournament Ian Westwood this evening as he broke a finger on Sunday. Ant Botha takes the reins and that could prove a difference as Westwood offered a solid option in the middle order as well as his experience. Youngster Luke Parker will replace Westwood in the team. Jon Trott and Jim Troughton will need to keep scoring runs. Chris Martin, Chris Woakes and Neil Carter are bowling well as are spin duo Ant Botha and Ian Salisbury. Marcus Trescothick comes into this match off the back of a brilliant century against Worcester on Sunday. He'll carry on opening with Langer with Trego and Blackwell at 3 and 4. Kieswetter will float up and down the order. With the ball, the various spin options are key but Charl Willoughby and especially ex-Bear Alfonso Thomas are very economical. Warwickshire have been a huge surprise in this competition but it remains to be seen how they'll play under a new captain. Somerset started awfully in this but have started to fly home and that momentum can carry them to victory tonight. Now the TV game. 10pts Sussex to beat Essex 11/10 Blue Square Normally I try not to bet on a side who are out when they're playing a side who aren't but I'll make an exception tonight. Sussex started this competition very badly but they've picked up 2 wins in their last 2 and are getting some momentum. Essex got battered on Sunday and with Hampshire's win last night the pressure is on them to win tonight. Essex will be without Alastair Cook who's returned to the England squad. Neil Dexter is likely to replace him after he couldn't play on Sunday. Mark Pettini is back in the side now and he's captain allowing James Foster to concentrate on keeping wicket. David Masters and Graham Napier are key with the new ball and the match could hinge on Kaneria's 4 overs. Sussex have won their last two thanks mainly to Murray Goodwin. He's been well supported by Matt Prior though with Chris Adams and Dwayne Smith also capable of chipping in with the bat. Michael Yardy has been bowling well and Martin-Jenkins and Kirtley need to be economical. Dwayne Smith is usually tidy with the ball too. As I said, the pressure is all on Essex tonight. They've not batted well in this competition though. They've only gone past 150 once and that was against an awful Surrey side. Sussex have been going fairly well with the bat and combine that with a bit of momentum and I think they can win this one. 5pts ew J.Foster Top Essex Batsman 7/1 Boylesports (1/4 1,2,3) James Foster has been going really well for Essex in this competition. He's the top scorer for the Eagles in this competition and has scored 60 more than his nearest competitor. Foster started this tournament batting at number 7 but his good form has seen him move up to number 5 which will become 4 if the pinch hitting of Graham Napier isn't used. Foster top scored in the reverse fixture between these two and also against Surrey and Middlesex. He's also been 2nd in a game too so is always there or thereabouts and at 7/1 he looks a decent ew bet.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Hmmm, easy come easy go as they say :$. Would've been a good night as it happens but for Napier's 152 off 58 balls :eek. You won't ever see a better one day innings than that so I was a bit unlucky to walk right into that but that's life. Foster was 2nd to him to give me the only return of the night after Somerset failed to defend a decent score. That defeat pretty much put them out and sent Northants through despite them losing. It's tightened up big time in the other two groups though. I'm off to see Hampshire vs Essex tomorrow night and that's a huge game now. -26.25 tonight and back to -65.74 for the tournament. I'll come back with any bets for tomorrow in the morning although on the face of it there's not much value around.

[TheRat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Unlucly mate Some knock though from Napier

[zimpan25]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 lol Kevshat, blame me mate =) Never gone Cricket before untill last night iguess do bring bad luck :( Did read your picks and it all did sounds so well, but i went to hell :D dont worry tho id follow you tonight aswell and then id be your luckysheep ;)

[wolves27]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 so much for me backing angaist worcestershire lol you reckon they have any chance next two games? gloucestershire away and then glamorgan home i think theyll lose least one so that gives me hope

[TheRat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008

so much for me backing angaist worcestershire lol you reckon they have any chance next two games?

:lol To be honest I think we will lose them both. As predicted earlier in the thread we have been abysmal this year

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Best knock I've seen was that last night. Hopefully I don't see much of him tonight as I'm off to the Hampshire vs Essex match this evening. Leaving shortly so no time for huge writeup's but I've made my views on the sides clear throughout this thread. I'm going with 3 tonight. 10pts Worcestershire to beat Gloucestershire 5/6 Stan James It's a bit dangerous betting on this match as neither have anything to play for but Worcestershire may want to get more wins under their belt going into the defence of the Pro40. They gained a very good win against Northants last night which should've given them heaps of confidence. Gloucestershire beat a poor Glamorgan outfit last night but they are still struggling for personnel and even though Simon Jones is being rested by Worcester I still think with the likes of Kabir Ali, Gareth Andrew and Gareth Batty they have enough to win this one. 10pts Hampshire to beat Essex 5/6 Stan James This is a must win match for Hampshire. Essex go to the Rose Bowl after battering Sussex but that was all down to one innings and I'd be amazed if he can replicate that knock again. Napier certainly won't do it here with the boundaries at the Rose Bowl much bigger than at Chelmsford last night. Hampshire have been playing well and Lumb, Carberry, Harvey and Ervine are all in good nick with the bat. They bowl well too and even without Mascarenhas and Tremlett I think they'll win tonight. 10pts Middlesex to beat Sussex 4/6 Boylesports Middlesex beat Kent in a top of the table match last night and that means that if they can beat Sussex tonight they will be through to the quarter finals with a game to spare. Sussex are out now and may bring a couple of youngsters in for the likes of Goodwin and Adams. Middlesex have Andrew Strauss available tonight and are at full strength with their bowling. Their bowling attack has been excellent throughout which is something Sussex's certainly haven't been and I expect Middlesex to win this one.

[zimpan25]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Really nice kev =) goodwork ;)

[TheRat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 :clap Well done Kev Good day ont he whole yesterday

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Ta chaps. Not a bad day all round. Saw an incredible match at the Rose Bowl last night. Swung both ways and eventually was a tie but it was really tense and sets up the return match on Friday beautifully. As that match was a tie I got my cash back there but the other two were winners so I was +15 for the night and now back to -50.74 for the tournament. There isn't much around tonight but I'm going to research a couple of things and will come back with any bets.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I'm going with 2 tonight. Not sure if there will be much play at Headingley tonight where the TV cameras are but I'll go with a top bat there anyway. 10pts Northamptonshire to beat Somerset 8/11 Stan James This is a pretty important match in the Mid/West/Wales group. Northants know if they avoid defeat they are through while a win would see them with a chance of topping the group and getting a home quarter final tie. Somerset have to win else they are out. Northants come into this match off the back of a surprise defeat at Worcester on Tuesday but back on their own patch they should play better. Niall O'Brien and Rob White could be key at the top of the innings while Klusener, Sales and Hall have all had good knocks recently. Hall, van der Wath and Boje are bowling well while Johann Louw is tricky to score off at the death. Somerset are full of big hitters but it's not uncommon for them to be 4 down cheaply if neither of them come off. Trescothick is in great form though while Langer and Trego have batted well too. The Sabres are very expensive with the ball though and that will have to improve if they are to win tonight. Wantage Rd is a tough little place to play at and win at. Northants have a decent side and can set up a real good game with Warwickshire by winning here. Their batting doesn't misfire too often and that's been the factor in their 3 defeats so far. I expect them to put that right though and win this one. And a top bat in the TV game.... 5pts ew P.Nixon Top Leicestershire Batsman 5/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Paul Nixon has top scored twice for the Foxes in this competition and has rarely been out of the top 3. HD Ackerman is Leicestershire's top scorer in this competition so far but he isn't in the squad tonight. James Allenby appears to be coming into a bit of form but Nixon knows the score with twenty20 and with Leicester having nothing to play for he can play some big shots tonight. I can't see Nixon being out of the top 3 so at worst we should get our money back but with no Ackerman, the keeper could steal the top score.

[psandhar]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 You must be due a monster night soon Kev! My bets for tonight.. 10pts e/w on S Cliff Lazarenko Leics Top Bat 100/1 - Coming off the back of a solid performance against The Crafty Cockney last week I fully expect Big Cliff to come out swinging a hot bat tonight. 5pts e/w on Emmerson Boyce Leics Top Bat 5/1 - This Luton Reject has blistering pace between the wickets and pops up with a goal every now and then so is great value at 5s. Finally, my 2 main bets.. Jacques Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer top Yorks bat to bring home some festive goodies and James 'The Power' Taylor to score the most 180s. I hope this thread is helpful to all and clear in its purpose, Good Luck to all who play! P.S. I fully expect Andrew Gale to breeze into a place so 7/1 with Hills is a huge wind-ow of opportunity for all potential backers.

[Charlie Wong]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 gl Kev, agree with your verdict on Northants to bt Somerset.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 All 3 matches were no results in the end which was a bit annoying because Northants were looking certain to win before the rain came down. Final fixtures are tomorrow where everyone plays so hopefully a few bets will be around. I'm off to Warwickshire vs Northants which is a nothing match now as Northants are already through although I think they can still get the best 2nd place with a win. I'll put up any bets in the morning.

[winbet]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I will be at tomorrow's live game: Notts v Yorkshire. Whoever wins will go through to the quarter finals. Notts batting is still a bit fragile, though Yorkshire's not the greatest either and I expect a low scoring contest. 140-150 probably a par score, with it likely to be a slow pitch, favouring the bowlers. Mcgrath a good bet to be top Yorkshire batsmen, he has scored nearly double the runs of the next highest scorer - Rudolph. Pyrah has taken 14 wickets in this years comp, and always seems to do well against Notts, though I can't find anywhere which is taking bets on "top bowler" Voges the selection for top Notts batsmen. Betdirect go 5/4 on there being 2 or more run outs in the match, which looks a good shout. Notts had 3 run outs themselves in their defeat last time out to Lancashire, and one in both their preceding games. Both team likely to be feeling the pressure and could well take 1 or 2 risks too many in trying to pinch extra runs,

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Last night of group matches tonight. I'm already getting nervous about Hampshire's match! Quarter final draw is live straight after the TV match which is Notts vs Yorkshire which is a strange decision but I guess I'm pretty biased :lol. I'm going with 5 bets tonight. 4 match bets including the TV game and the match I'm going to and a top bat for the TV game too. 10pts Derbyshire to beat Leicestershire 5/6 Stan James Both these sides have been pretty poor in this competition but Derbyshire are still fielding their strongest available 11 whereas Leicestershire are likely to stick the kids in. HD Ackerman won't play tonight and it's unsure whether Dippenaar will either. Youngsters like Dan Rowe and Sam Cliff are expected to play. I don't think Charl Langeveldt is fit for Derby tonight although I've not seen anything which says what's wrong with him but Wagg, Doshi and Needham can do the job in his absence. Greg Smith and Wavell Hinds play. Neither have much to play for but it's probably more important in terms of their progress for Derby to win this and I think they will. 10pts Hampshire to beat Essex 11/10 Coral These sides played out a thrilling tie on Wednesday night at the Rose Bowl. Hampshire will feel they should have won that and will be confident of winning this winner takes all battle. The loser tonight has to hope Sussex beat Kent in order to go through. Hampshire are hoping to have Tremlett and Mascarenhas available tonight although they won't know that until later this afternoon. Essex's focus will be on Graham Napier who plays at Chelmsford for the 1st time since his amazing knock on Tuesday night. I think Hampshire have a decent bowling attack and if Tremlett and Dimi do play and Harvey's neck injury is ok I expect the Hawks to go to the quarter finals by winning here. 10pts Northants to beat Warwickshire Evs Ladbrokes For the most part this is a nothing game although Northants can still achieve the best 2nd placed position with a win and a couple of results going their way. They may have to win this one without Andrew Hall however after he went lame last night. David Sales signed a new 4 year contract today and that should be a good boost. Warwickshire have overachieved in this for me. Man for man Northants are the better side but in Carter, Salisbury, Martin and Botha Warwickshire have a good bowling attack. That attack however got carted for 9 overs by Glamorgan yesterday while Northants ran through a strong Somerset batting lineup. That's what sways me to the Steelbacks here. And now the TV game. 10pts Yorkshire to beat Nottinghamshire 11/10 William Hill Momentum is key in this format of the game and Notts don't have much having lost their last 3 matches. They're not batting well and this Yorkshire side isn't really who you'd want to face with a misfiring batting lineup. Yorkshire themselves are well short of a decent batting lineup but they have enough bits and pieces players to get them to totals. Under Darren Gough they've gone well in one day cricket. They're in the FP semi finals next week and made the quarters in this last season. Notts have the abilities to be a good side but something isn't clicking. Yorkshire are well led though and can take their quarter final spot by winning this winner takes all match. 5pts ew W.Jefferson Top Nottinghamshire Batsman 4/1 Boylesports (1/4 1,2,3) Will Jefferson came into the twenty20 with hardly a run to his name this season but he's gone consistently well at the top of the order for Notts. He's a big hitting batsman who enjoys pace on the ball which is handy because he'll get tons of that from Yorkshire. He top scored against Lancashire on Wednesday night and also top scored along with Adam Voges in the reverse match between these two with 40 off 19 balls. We get our money back if he comes 2nd or 3rd but in a lineup which Adam Voges aside isn't firing he looks a good price to top score.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Mixed day today. Had 2 winners but at half time the two which lost looked good too. Really annoyed Hampshire couldn't chase down 160 at Essex especially with Mascarenhas and Tremlett playing and as the draw turned out winning that would've given us a decent chance of going all the way. Derby lost too but I suppose I did steal a win for Northants. +1 for the day but all the group outrights, Hampshire and Leicestershire outright and Ervine and Spearman top bats lost. Patel won though but I'm still -12.75 for the settled outrights. That puts me -63.49pts for the tournament. Quarter final draw is: Durham vs Yorkshire Essex vs Northants Warwickshire vs Kent Middlesex vs Lancashire Ties are the week after next and all 4 are on Sky so hopefully we'll get lots of markets for me to eat into that loss. Northants are my sole outright hope from here on in :hope.