England return to World Cup action on Tuesday 18 June in what looks, on paper, their easiest test of the lot when hosting lowly Afghanistan at Old Trafford, Manchester. The crowds will pack the impressive venue to take in what’s expected to be a comfortable win for the locals, but supporters should be warned no result can be taken for granted at this tournament. Here are our top England v Afghanistan betting tips.
We are still in the early exchanges of the 2019 ICC World Cup but have already witnessed some strange results, upsets and big performances from supposed underdogs. This competition has already acted as a reminder there are no easy games in modern cricket and England will do well to remember that. If the favourites take to the field believing they only have to turn up to guarantee the win it could result in a very embarrassing afternoon indeed.
Something For Everyone at Old Trafford
Armchair fans can keep up to date with the play live on Sky Sports from 10.30am GMT and bookmakers offer a wealth of exciting betting markets, designed to increase your enjoyment of the contest. Have your say on markets including match winner, top England batsman and bowler, top Afghanistan batsman and bowler, highest first 15 overs and plenty more besides. The extended coverage means there really is something for everyone here.
You can keep your powder dry and wait to see how both teams line-up for this match before getting your stake money down thanks to in-play betting. Many of the more popular pre-match markets are kept live throughout the course of the afternoon, meaning a bet is as exciting in the final few balls as it was before the coin was tossed to start the day. Odds and lines are updated to match the flow of the match and in-play betting works beautifully alongside the live action.
Mixed Bag for the Antepost Favourites
England went into the World Cup as betting favourites to land the trophy for the first time in their history with bookmakers believing home advantage would help drive them towards success. It hasn’t been as clean-cut as supporters would’ve hoped in the first few games, however, with the jolly suffering an easy set-back.
They got off on the right foot when opening the show with a win over South Africa at the end of last month, grinding out a 104-run victory over a talented opponent who arrived determined to make a name for themselves. The scoreboard at the conclusion of the match read England 311-8 (50.0) against South Africa’s 207 all out (39.5). An entertaining day, especially for the majority of those watching from the stands, and it served as a real confidence booster for all concerned.
Riding the high of a win on matchday one, England were brought crashing back down to earth when beaten by Pakistan in their second outing. The visitors may have gone in as underdogs, but they rallied to upset the odds, as well as a lot of bets, winning by a score of Pakistan 348-8 (50.0) against England’s response of 334-9 (50.0). A competitive match and great watch for the neutrals but it showed, to anyone in doubt, England weren’t going to get things all their own way at home.
Return to Winning Ways
Followers were delighted to see their team make a quickfire return to winning ways when dealing out a 106-run defeat to Bangladesh. The result was more important than the performance that day, but it was encouraging to see a number of players perform to the best of their abilities in the face of mounting pressure from the stands. A second defeat in three games would’ve squashed all optimism that existed amongst fans and England would’ve been staring at a rapid exit.
It was a real team effort but it’s worth giving special praise to Jason Roy who hit a stunning 153 in Cardiff to send his teammates well on their way to the win. That was their highest ever World Cup run total which helped send out a message of intent to their main rivals. They may have been briefly shaken by a good Pakistan side, but England are serious about making history and going all the way this summer. They are expected to beat Afghanistan without too much fuss and, if they play a strong team, that run record could be smashed again.
One thing we are hoping for that is out of the players hands is the weather to stay dry. We’ve seen matched affected by rain already and although the British summertime is yet to take hold, that will become more important as the tournament goes on. Any team eliminated due to the rain will have every right to kick up a storm and there doesn’t look to be much in place to compensate for delays or postponed matched. Let’s hope we get an extended dry period in the coming weeks.
Big Win Expected Over Lowly Opponents
As you would expect, England have been priced up as hot favourites to beat Afghanistan on Tuesday and backers looking to support the jolly must make do with the likes of 1/20 being offered out by Unibet. Afghanistan are a chunky 9/1 with 888Sport but deserve to be and we don’t expect too many punters to snatch at that and get their cash down on an upset.
There are many other ways to bet on this game and you can take England to record the highest opening partnership at 2/5 with William Hill, although that won’t appeal to many casual punters. Playing the specials gives us more to aim at and we’re taking Jason Roy to score most runs for his team. Backing him to repeat his heroics of last week can be found priced at 11/4 in the top England batsman market with William Hill. That will give you an interest for the majority of play and we’re expecting backers to get a real run for their money.