Followers of the Cricket World Cup taking place in the UK haven’t been short of entertainment so far and they look forward to another enjoyable outing this weekend with two matches scheduled for Saturday afternoon, weather permitting, of course. Here are our top Sri Lanka v Australia betting tips.
Sri Lanka and Australia go toe-to-toe in the pick of the day with that match taking place live on Sky Sports from 10.30am GMT. No sooner will the scores be in the book than we’ll get ready for the second instalment of the day as South Africa take on Afghanistan, with the former expected to stick the boot into the competition’s whipping boys.
We’ll Keep You Right
Plenty to enjoy and even more to bet on with traders at all major bookmakers offering a host of exciting odds and markets on each game. Have your say on the winner and back as a single or create a nice priced double or aim for a bigger pay-out by getting your cash down on one of the many specials. Who will be top batsman for either side? Which player will take most wickets? Heads or tails in the coin toss. It’s all there and plenty more besides and knowing the answers to these questions could boost your bank balance.
Thankfully for punters, our team of cricket tipsters and sports betting experts are on hand to offer their views on the World Cup’s most popular markets. Extra emphasis is placed on the host nation, of course, but we also pick through the best of the week’s fixtures and offer our views on how you should invest your cash and which bookmakers are offering best price on the markets that make most appeal to backers.
Knowing the firms giving out better prices than the competition is invaluable to punters serious about making a profit over the course of the tournament. Making a steady income from sports betting is difficult enough without taking less of a price on your picks. Stick with us and we’ll keep you right, focussing on Sri Lanka and Australia at The Oval, London.
Close Shave in Opener
Cricket followers were interested to see what version of this Australian team we would see at the World Cup. A nation ravaged by scandal following the infamous ball-tampering shame, the country made the changed needed at boardroom level to help get fans back on side. The quickest way to do that, however, is by winning matches of note and we saw the team blow hot and cold during the warm-up phase. They started with a win over Afghanistan, as was expected of them by most, but the performance that day seemed to throw up more questions than answers.
Seven wickets was the winning margin against an opponent who went on to suffer some heavy defeats and the form of both teams since doesn’t do an awful lot to build interest in a team that started the tournament as third favourites with bookmakers. The scoreboard that day read Australia 207 all out (38.2) against Afghanistan’s 209-3 (34.5). A close shave and a match that had both players and fans rattled.
The defending champions moved on from there to beat West Indies by 15 runs on 6 June and that was a victory that suggested they had found their feet and were warming to the challenge. The Aussies were favourites to win in the betting but were smart enough to realise they would get nothing for free against an opponent who were out to make a statement of their own. That’s exactly how the match panned out, with Oz having to scrap for every bit of joy that came their way. The score was settled at Australia 288 all out (49.0) v West Indies 273-9 (50.0).
India Defeat Rattles Oz
Match three of their World Cup campaign and Australia were now filled with confidence on the back of those two wins. They were to be brought back to earth with a thumping defeat handed down by India on 9 June, however, a result that proved again the size of the task that still lies ahead for this team. They will get plenty of joyous moments in the year to follow but it’s worth remembering, especially when it comes to betting on Australia, they are still very much a work in progress.
India smashed their way to an emphatic 36 runs victory, thanks to scores of India 352-5 (50.0) against the 316 all out (50.0) of Australia. Shikhar Dhawan recorded an impressive 117 haul and that helped drive his side to the result, helped on by an 82 from captain Virat Kohli who led from example. As well as winning that match, India also showed exactly how to beat this Australian side and we’re sure Sri Lanka would’ve been paying close attention to that lesson.
Speaking to the press at the end of the match, Australian captain Aaron Finch credited his opponents for their late scoring surge but admitted his side didn’t bowl as well as they probably should’ve when the pressure was on. Australia were outplayed on the day and there was nothing else for Finch to add, he was man enough to admit what wouldn’t be swept under the carpet. The pressure is now on him to help his men regroup and fire back.
Little Value in the Match Betting
Despite their sketchy start, Australia are betting favourites to beat Sri Lanka on Saturday and punters looking to back them will have to make do with the 1/7 offered up by Unibet. That looks on the tight side and should put most punters off, even those looking to bet on stacked accumulators. There’s too much uncertainty over the team to take them at 1/7. Having said that, the 9/2 at Unibet about a Sri Lanka upset doesn’t do much to get our blood pumping either.
The fact there’s little value in the match betting prices means we are forced into the specials where we’ll find Australia at 4/9 to score the highest first 15 overs and that makes more sense than backing the Windies at 8/5.