Couch Critic previews the first T20 International between England and Australia which which takes place in Manchester on Friday including best bets from @Olimp_SA
ENGLAND vs AUS 1st T20 - Friday 04 Sep, Southampton
Whilst South Africans have no clue as to when cricket action will finally return international action has come thick and fast for the Poms of late. A visit from the Windies was closely followed by the Pakistani’s arriving and now it’s the old enemy that has arrived on English shores – this time for a purely white-ball series.
Setting the Scene
Two seriously strong short-form squads have been assembled to do battle in this series. Warner, Finch and Steve Smith are all available at the top of the order for the visitors whilst the English still have Buttler, Bairstow and Banton even without the missing Jason Roy.
On the bowling front the visitors have world class quick men in Cummins and Starc who will look to match fire with fire as the Poms roll out Archer and Wood. Both Adam Zampa and Nathan Lyon have also shown some good form in the warm-up encounters whilst Adil Rashid is a key component to the success of the 50 Over World Champions.
The teams really do match up well and this should be a cracker of a series.
How I see it Playing Out
The English are fresh of two T20 games against Pakistan and the likes of Wood, Buttler and Archer already have a strong summer of cricket behind them. The Aussies go into the match not having had a taste of competitive cricket for a number of months. Conventional wisdom would thus have us favouring the hosts but given the price as well as the fact that the Aussies arrive with some a touch more explosiveness in their ranks – think Carey, Maxwell and Stoinis as options down the order – I feel there is a touch of value in backing the visitors.
Betolimp Best Bets
Top England Batsman – Eoin Morgan @ 6.80
Top Australian Batsman – Alex Carey @ 10.00
I’m not real one for backing players lower down the order in T20 cricket but with two strong bowling attacks the chances are we can see the top order struggling to go big. Morgan looked a cut above in the young English white-ball set-up and I expect him to keep leading the charge. Carey was in superb form in the last two warm-ups so he looks a bit of value despite probably not striding to the wicket very early.
Player to hit Most Sixes – Marcus Stoinis @ 11.00
Despite power hitters liks Finch and Warner at the top of the innings, the visitors could be looking a the burley Stoinis to power a few big ones over the ropes to help them along – he is a man who specialises in the shorter format of the game and specifically in hitting it large.
Man of the Match: Adam Zampa @ 19.50
The leggie is very effective in this form of the game and he should be a runner in this market if the Aussies can get up in the opener.
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Note, odds quoted are available at the time of writing but are subject to change
Couch Critic
