England to blow away Gayle and the Windies

West Indies is a better limited-overs team than a Test one but bookmakers appear to have overrated the Caribbean side`s chance of beating England in the three-game One Day International series that starts in Southampton.

Windies coach Ottis Gibson has talked up the talents of returning opener Chris Gayle, labelling him as the best one-day batsman in the world and the most destructive.

The latter maybe but the former certainly not. According to the most objective of assessment tools, the Reliance ICC ODI Championship Batting Ranking, there are 31 one-day batsmen better than Gayle, including three England stars - Jonathan Trott (5), Alistair Cook (7) and Eoin Morgan (29).

Marketing types have latched on to Gibson`s hyperbole and, thankfully for level-headed punters, so have bookmakers by quoting lower than appropriate odds about West Indies beating England and Gayle top scoring for the away team.

The statistics speak for themselves: the Windies have won only three of their last 11 One Day International matches irrespective of venue and five of their last six in the backyard of their opponents. They are just not that good.

England, on the other hand, is ranked fourth in the Reliance ICC ODI Ranking - West Indies is eighth - and whitewashed Pakistan 4-0 in the United Arab Emirates four months ago.

The last One Day International clash between the English and the Windies took place in the Indian city of Chennai in March 2011 and resulted in a comfortable 18-run win for Andrew Strauss` side. England scored 243 thanks to solid contributions from Matt Prior, Ian Bell, Trott and the captain at the top of the order and skittled West Indies for 225 in spite of a 72-run seventh wicket partnership.

Indeed, the English have won each of their last five completed One Day International games against the Windies, getting up by 18 runs, 58 runs, six wickets, 26 runs and nine wickets in a streak dating back to March 2009.

England trails West Indies 38-41 with four no-results all time in the One Day International arena but a home clean sweep, available at around 7-2, and a levelling of the ledger is not out of the question over the coming days.

Returning to the topic of Gayle, a cricketer who knows how to find a headline, he is rank bad value at around 2-1 to top score for the Windies in the three-match series.

All of Gayle`s West Indies teammates are at least two points bigger in the betting which, when you view the Reliance ICC ODI Championship Batting Ranking, makes no sense whatsoever.

Lendl Simmons will have his supporters at around the 11-2 mark but Kieron Pollard sticks out like a sore thumb at 12-1 in places. Some smart bookmakers have got him as low as 8-1.

Pollard is level with Gayle at 32nd position in the Reliance ICC ODI Championship Batting Ranking, averaging 26.28 runs having scored two tons and four fifties in 51 innings. The 25-year-old Trinidadian is a limited-overs specialist with both bat and ball, hitting 68 sixes and those 51 knocks.

The English and the Windies meet in Southampton on Saturday 16 June 2012, in London on Tuesday 19 June 2012 and in Leeds on Friday 22 June 2012 before playing the only Twenty20 International on their program on Sunday 24 June 2012.

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16/06/2012     © Frixo 2024