Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 1st two quarter finals tomorrow. Durham vs Yorkshire at 5.10 and Essex vs Northants at 7.40. Both are on Sky. I'm going with 3 in the two matches. I'm not betting on the Essex match itself as I'm on Northants outright and a win here guarantees me an ew payout. I will have a top bat in that match but I'll do the Durham vs Yorkshire match 1st. 10pts Yorkshire to beat Durham 5/4 Bet365 Both these sides suffered disappointment in their Friends Provident Trophy semi finals over the weekend so both will want to bounce straight back and reach finals day and a chance at the potential $5m that could go with it. Durham had the better of the matches between the two in the group stage having gained a DL win and a tie from the two matches. Durham will make at least two changes to the side which played Kent in the FP Trophy on Friday. Paul Collingwood is now away with England while Neil Killeen has been left out of the squad. Ben Harmison and Callum Thorp look likely to come into the side. Albie Morkel may well go up one and bat at number 5. Shaun Pollock has been expensive recently and Durham will hope that he regains his economic ways. Yorkshire will probably go with the same side which lost to Essex. Michael Vaughan is now with England and there isn't another batsman immediately knocking the door down. Gerard Brophy might go up to open with Andrew Gale with Adam Lyth batting down the order. Yorkshire's seam attack should go well at the Riverside. Tim Bresnan has bowled well all season while Darren Gough will attempt to lead from the front. Both these sides look a batsman light but I think Yorkshire can get away with it because they have two real quality players in McGrath and Rudolph. Durham have more hitters than batsmen and I've just a sneaky feeling Gough can lead Yorkshire to finals day. 5pts ew D.Benkenstein Top Durham Batsman 5/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Dale Benkenstein comes into this match having top scored for Durham against Kent on Friday. He was also 2nd for Durham against Yorkshire in the group match here so he's a guy in form. He's probably the most genuine of the 4 "big hitters" in this Durham side. He's been coming in at 4 in the tournament so far and with Smith and Di Venuto not having much form in this competition he may well be in fairly early. Phil Mustard would be a big danger as he opens but we get our money back so long as Benkenstein is in the top 3. I can't see him not being in there so he's a good ew bet to nothing. 5pts ew J.Foster Top Essex Batsman 8/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) James Foster failed for me on Saturday but I'm prepared to try him again in a format he is Essex's top scorer in this season. I appreciate that Bopara plays here but that won't move Foster down the order. He'll bat at number 5 and if the in form van der Wath and Hall do some damage early on then Foster can be the one to capitalise. If Essex are in trouble Foster can dig in and play a solid innings or if he comes in when they are flying he can score quickly from the off. He's a good runner and I'll go with him one more time.

[winbet]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I am going for Durham to hit the most 6's: 11/10 @ skybet. They have the more explosive hitters, Morkel especially, and also the likes of Mustard & Bekenstein. Yorkshire with the likes of Gale & Lyth, Brophy not so known for their explosive hitting, though Rudolph and Mcgrath usually get a few. I am awaiting team news on Northants v Essex, mainly concerning whether Hall is fit to play. I may go down the 6's route backing Essex, or have a little flutter on Essex to win the match. Actually Essex are a bit relient on Napier for their 6's, while Northants spread them around. Napier has amassed 25 6's out of Essex's total of 49. Napier is the main in form at the mo, so am looking for a bookie who has a "man of the match market".

[wolves27]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 durham v yorkshire is postponded due to inleigable player used in previous match involving yorkshire looks at though theyll be chucked out the competition just wether durham have to play new opposition or get a bye into finals day

[whycantistayawayfromdogs]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 wow what a toss to win. The ball didnt move at all for the seamers whilst northants were bowling, then a rain shower changes the conditions completely and its moving in, away, bouncing more etc. But i suppose thats what we will have to accept once all cricket is 20:20 in ten years time lol, 1 rain shower can decide an entire game/competition. Has anyone else noticed that 20:20 really draws the 'scumbag' element of society to cricket, not an altogether good idea if they are going to shout ****** all the way through both innings.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 That's floodlit cricket for you. It's always a different game under the lights at Chelmsford but the rain made it almost unplayable. As for the yob culture, I've watched twenty20 matches in most grounds now and it's only there I've noticed it. Foster was pipped at the post by Napier so he came 4th and Northants are out too so -14 for the day and for the 1st time in 4 years I won't have any representation at finals day. -77.49 for me now. The 3rd quarter final which has actually turned into the 2nd one is tomorrow at The Oval. It's Middlesex vs Lancashire. I'm going with 3. 10pts Middlesex to beat Lancashire 5/4 Totesport Middlesex have had a great season in twenty20 this year. They only lost 2 of their group matches in what turned out to be the strongest group in the competition. Lancashire only lost 3 matches themselves but that was in a weaker group. Middlesex have never made finals day while Lancashire are regulars at the party. Middlesex will be buoyed by the return of their best one day batsman in Owais Shah after he's missed most of the competition being with England. They do lose Andrew Strauss though who has gone off to play for England. Dawid Malan and Billy Godleman will open with Shah, Morgan and Joyce in the middle order. The Crusaders will also be without Dirk Nannes who is injured so Steven Finn will go into the bowling attack along side Murtagh and Henderson. Udal and Kartik will be key with their spin. Lancashire have confirmed Lou Vincent will see the season out with them and he'll open here with Mal Loye. Stuart Law and Andrew Flintoff are likely to bat at 3 and 4 respectively. Francois du Plessis and Steven Croft make up a weaker than they'd like batting attack. Saj Mahmood is bowling well and he'll open up with Chapple with Hogg, Keedy and Marshall likely to make up the attack. This should be a good close match but at The Oval you need your batsmen to keep on coming and Lancashire don't have a great batting lineup. Middlesex have bowled so well in this competition and have 2 very good spinners which is crucial at The Oval. They've played here in this competition already which could give them another edge too. I don't think there's much between these two so Middlesex look the value call. 5pts O.Shah Top Middlesex Batsman 4/1 Betfred Owais Shah has already top scored on this ground for England in the one day series with New Zealand and it's the ground he has his highest ODI score at too. He also top scored in a twenty20 match with the West Indies here last year so it's clearly a place he enjoys batting at. In his only knock in the competition so far for Middlesex against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl he top scored there too so 4/1 is pretty generous on a guy we know is real class. 5pts S.Law Top Lancashire Batsman 7/2 Stan James Stuart Law comes into this match off the back of a superb 158 not out in the Championship against Sussex last week. He's adopted a very attacking style in this competition, changing his stances and playing harder shots than normal. He's Lancashire's 3rd highest scorer in the competition this season but when they've beaten Derby by 9 and 10 wickets that's to be expected. Being an Aussie, Law will enjoy the pace and bounce that The Oval brings and assuming Loye and Vincent aren't too far clear when Law comes in I think he'll enjoy the conditions and can top score for his side.

[Charlie Wong]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Middlesex Vs Lancashire Both teams will fancy their chances of making it through to finals day here but i like the beaten finalists of 2005 who have an excellent record of at least making through to finals day, In Lou Vincent, Stuart Law and Mal Loye they have three experienced and explosive batsmen who can score very quickly, add Flintoff to the mix aswell and their could be plenty of runs, Flintoff will be key with the ball mainly, with every over he bowls he looks to be getting stronger, which is good news for England aswell. Middlesex have been very good, qualifying out of their group and have England ODI man, Owais Shah to look to, I appreciate the two spinners will be key to Midd chances, but if theirs any drizzle/rain/moisture the ball wont turn much and conditions will be more seamer friendly. Lancashire WIN @ 1.78

[whycantistayawayfromdogs]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 i took the bait and backed lancashire today...Good of stuart law to let them back in the game by bowling two spinners who just bowls half trackers. why on earth was that spinner forced to bowl out on a pitch that didnt turn at all, and then not bring back your two openers. Well done to anyone who backed Middlesex, youve won.

[winbet]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Arafat batted at no 3 for Kent in their last 20/20 group game where he scored 42, so will have a small wager e/w on him for the match tomorrow against Warwicks at 25/1 with Corals.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Me too mate. +2.5pts for the day after Middlesex beat Lancashire. The top bats failed miserably though. That Malan knock was one of the best rearguard knocks I've ever seen. 3 for me tomorrow. Or Thursday if the rain comes! 10pts Warwickshire to beat Kent 6/5 Betfred Warwickshire qualified with the best record of any side in the competition having lost only one match in the group stages and that was a dead rubber against Northants in the last group match. Kent struggled through but made it courtesy of beating Sussex on the last night of the group stage and were one of the best 3rd placed finishers. Warwickshire are a strange side in that there isn't a single star there. Jon Trott's a decent player but they are missing Ian Bell, Tim Ambrose (both with England) and Darren Maddy who is still out injured. I'm not sure if Ian Westwood is fit. Trott will open with Carter who can win a game on his own. Jim Troughton's going well at 3 and Frost and Powell make up the middle order. It's with the ball where Warwickshire are best though. Martin and Woakes are bowling well and Botha and Salisbury are strangling teams. Kent are the defending champions, through to the Friends Provident final and going well in the Championship. They are led by the excellent Rob Key with Joe Denly opening the innings with him. Denly's the best young batsman I've seen in many a year. van Jaarsveld is batting brilliantly while Darren Stevens, Azhar Mahmood, Geraint Jones and Yasir Arafat will boost the total. With the ball, Ryan McLaren has been superb in this as he was last year as has Azhar Mahmood. This is a tough game to call. This is of course where Kent won the twenty20 last season but I don't think it'll be quite as good a return for them. Warwickshire have a set plan in this and it's working and with Kent having played a lot of cricket recently and the Bears having home advantage I'll just favour Warwickshire at a decent enough price. 10pts Warwickshire Highest 1st 6 Overs Evs Boylesports I really like Warwickshire to be ahead early on. 1st of all they open with Neil Carter who is one of the most explosive one day batsmen in the county game. As well as that, Chris Martin and Chris Woakes are both bowling well with the new ball for the Bears. Martin is going at less than 6.5 an over which shows he is very tight. In contrast Arafat and Mahmood go around the park at a decent rate early doors despite taking wickets. Earlier in the competition Hampshire were through 70 in the 1st 6 overs against Kent. Jon Trott, Neil Carter and Jim Troughton all have over 200 runs in the competition, they are batting well and they can see Warwickshire ahead through 6 overs. 2pts ew Y.Arafat Top Kent Batsman 25/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) Yasir Arafat top scored for Kent in their last group match at Sussex with a brutal 42. In this match he could be a bit of a floater but he could very well bat 3 unless Key and Denly get off to a good start and the 1st wicket falls when the spin is on. In that case Kent may leave him until later like Essex did with Napier last night. Whenever he bats though he'll be going big from an early stage and if he comes off the fireworks will start. Looking at the weather forecast, this could very well be a shortened overs match in which case the likelihood of Arafat batting at 3 is greater and if he gets going, someone coming in to beat him is less likely. Conditions could dictate this bet but they could well assist us so Arafat looks a good each way bet at a big price.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I've just looked again at Arafat in this competition and he's batted at 5 or above in the last 3 matches in this competition regardless of when wickets went down and placed on the two occasions he didn't top score. I'm now certain he'll go up the order even if it's at 5. I was at Edgbaston on the final night of the group games and they played to a very very short boundary. I'd imagine they'd do the same again as Warks have been successful and if they do an Arafat mishit would clear it. Having thought about it again, I'm upping my stake on Arafat to 5pts ew as it's clearly a price assuming he'll bat at number 9. Just to confirm, 5pts ew Y.Arafat Top Kent Batsman 25/1 Coral (1/5 1,2,3) rather than the 2pts ew above.

[Charlie Wong]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 wd with Middlesex last night mate, am totally gutted, after having them at 21/4 thought Lancs would win it, but thats 20/20 for you. like Kent's chances but wont be betting on the outright. top runscorer market Kent - Justin Kemp @ 11/2 War - Jim Troughton @ 5/1

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Predictably it was rained off tonight. They'll try again tomorrow. It's no longer televised though. All bets will still stand. When the match was abandoned Arafat was trading at 12/1 at Coral!!

[winbet]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Maddy is fit for Warwicks and will bat at no 4. Weather forecast not the best for the reserve day tomorrow either. Hopefully they can fit at least a 5 overs a side in though, as it will be a shame if it goes to a bowl out. I will have a punt on Warwicks too (2.5 on betfair) seeing as it could well be a reduced overs game, or bowl out - making it more of a lottery; also warwicks have home advantage.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Maddy playing is subject to his missus not dropping their sprog in the next 24hrs. It goes without saying he's a massive boost if he plays though. Why he'd bat 4 is beyond me though. Stick him up the top and drop Trott and Troughton down one for me.

[mdivenuto]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 ARAFAT BET ISSUE I backed Arafat with a number of firms. Coral have refunded my money, which seems rather cheeky as there is no sign of the fancy price I backed him at originally. I have queried this with customer services but they have told me that their trading team have confirmed this is correct. Anyone else in agreement that Coral are pulling a fast one, having read their rules I believe all bets should stand for tonight?

[psandhar]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I backed him at 25/1 with StanJames and my bet is still standing! Looks like you've been shafted.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I've been refunded too mate. I'm not particularly happy but Arafat hasn't come out at number 3 anyway so that levels my frustration out a bit. Kent posted 37/1 off 6 overs which shouldn't be enough. No van Jaarsveld for Kent with Maddy playing for Warks should give the home side the edge. 40/1 off 7 overs as I type.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Key has gone. 44/2 off 7.4 overs. Both openers in the hutch. Arafat walks out at number 4.

[mdivenuto]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 are you listening to this live somewhere, my updates on cricinfo seem well behind i need arafat to win it now, place no good with stan james

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I am mate. Go to the Warwickshire website and the link is there. www.edgbaston.com. Afarat is out and is unlikely to place so I've had my money saved but that's no use to those of you who went elsewhere.

[mdivenuto]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Fun while it lasted, he was clearly well over-priced. I hope Coral take no notice of my stroppy e-mail demanding my bet is re-instated!!

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Kent put up 175/6 from their 20 overs. There's a ridiculously short boundary but that's a decent score. It was helped by the penultimate over going for 34 :eyes. Gut feeling is Warwickshire need some fireworks from Carter to be able to chase this down.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Would you Adam and Eve it. Needing 6 off the 6th over to bring the 6 over bet in Trott decides to play the over out and scores only 4 which came from a misfield. What a shitheap.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Just looking through this thread I'm convinced I've run over a black cat or something. So many near misses and the circumstances they've lost too is beyond the joke. Warwickshire were never in the run chase tonight which just about summed my day up with the Luton news as well. -20 for the night and -94.99pts overall. Elsewhere, Yorkshire have been thrown out and Nottinghamshire have taken their place. They'll go to Durham for a quarter final on a date to be named. Hopefully it's on TV so we can get the full array of bets. As there's only 4 games left in this tournament I'll keep going and will try and salvage something from it.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Durham vs Glamorgan tomorrow. It's now been switched to Sky. I think I'm going to be priced in on Glamorgan but I'll come back with definite bets soon.

[whycantistayawayfromdogs]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Gillespie is in the squad although i read somewhere that he isnt going to play because of ICL connections and the danger of 'the champions league' banning us or something (maybe this has been resolved). Ben wright isnt suited to this sort of cricket whilst alex wharf has been plain awful in this competition. Very surprised not to see watkins in the squad as hes been our best non-spinner (or was in the only tv game and has been decent in other games). Tom maynard is like his dad, can go big and therefore i hope he plays. Im hoping to see the following...: Grant, Hemp, Maynard, Powell, Wallace, Dalrymple, Croft, Harrison, Gillespie, Cosker, Harris. With perhaps croft or harrison (a la Napier :P) accompanying grant at the top of the order (with hemp batting further down). Looks like durham are going to field a side packed full of internationals [kolpak scum et al] so it should be an interesting game...

[whycantistayawayfromdogs]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 looks as though gillespie is definately out, so i guess wharf gets the go ahead.

[winbet]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Hmmm no Gibbs or Gillespie for Glamorgan, while Durham have benefited by a little by the postponement of Yorkshire match by having Collingwood, and Chanderpaul available to play. I reckon some sort of deal went on whereby Glamorgan were allowed to progress to the Quarter Final if they didn't play any ICL associated players. If Notts didn't have any, instead of 3 which Notts weren't going to leave all of them out, then it may have been Notts playing. Also convenient as both teams have a nice free date to play tomorrow. ;) I am not bitter honest, as Notts didn't really deserve to be reinstated anywayz.. The likes of Croft, Hemp will have to player blinders to see Glamorgan through here! I can't really see Durham not winning this, I am already on Durham outright for the tournament, and a best price of 4/9 is too short for me. Inrunning prices though may interest me, as around 4/6 on Durham could well get me involved. Croft will most likely open for Glamorgan, so him & Hemp could get them off to a flyer. Also Durham may not get off to the great start batting wise with Di Venuto, Mustard, Smith not the most consistently good scorers. Glamorgan 6/5 highest opening partnership, and 6/5 highest first six overs both at bluesq may tempt me..

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 I am priced in. I can't really put a really strong case forward for backing Glamorgan but I can give reasons why they shouldn't be 9/4. Either way I'm taking a chance. 10pts Glamorgan to beat Durham 9/4 Totesport I fully accept this is a risk but all through my twenty20 betting past, and on the whole I've been successful although it's gone tits up this season, I've maintained no side should be anything like 9/4 in a twenty20 match. The slightest thing can change a game and anything over 2/1 enters the value column whoever is playing. Of course Glamorgan didn't expect this opportunity. 2 weeks ago they thought they were out and sometimes things like this have a fairytale ending. Think Denmark Euro92. I'm not basing my bet on that though. England haven't done Glamorgan any favours by dropping Paul Collingwood making him available for this match and losing the 2nd test inside 4 days which has made Shaun Pollock available. Albie Morkel has cleared off though only to be replaced by Shivnerine Chanderpaul. Graham Onions is fit and will fit into the bowling attack alongside Steve Harmison and Liam Plunkett. Phil Mustard and Michael di Venuto will open up the batting. What also hasn't helped Glamorgan is Herschelle Gibbs has gone home. He basically contributed every time Glamorgan did anything in the group so they will need someone to step up and replace him. Robert Croft may well go up to open or Alex Wharf could pinch hit. Michael Powell, Jamie Dalrymple and Mark Wallace will need to play well in the middle order. One thing Glamorgan do have on their side is an excellent spin attack. Dean Cosker, Robert Croft and Jamie Dalrymple can really put the squeeze on teams even on pitches which don't spin while David Harrison has been very economical with the ball. James Harris could well play here. Glamorgan need to get stuck into Durham early with the ball. This is an international lineup down to 7 really but they have the bowlers to do it. If the batsmen can get a score on the board then Glamorgan will have a chance. That's the key here. Luckily Shaun Pollock's been sat on his arse for the last 2 weeks so he might leak a few. Glamorgan are definitely 2nd favourites but they shouldn't be 9/4 so I'll take a punt that their fairytale continues.

[kevshat]

Re: Cricket: Twenty20 Cup 2008 Hopefully Coral or Boyles can stick some top bats up before the off for us to get stuck into.