England vs Australia Preview

After the excitement of the Ashes England and Australia now move into action on the limited overs games with two Twenty20 games ahead of the five game one day series.

Bookmakers are struggling to split the pair with the drawn series the 21/20 (betway) favourite in a short two game series that begins at the Rose Bowl in Hampshire on Thursday and ends at the Riverside, Durham on Saturday afternoon. Those looking to back the draw will be supported by the fact the head-to-head record in this format of the game is split at three wins each and one no contest. These two also split the last two game series which was held in Australia in January 2011. Throw in the fact that these two rank next to each other in the ICC rankings (England sixth, Australia seventh) and this looks a very hard series to call.

Those who fancy England will take heart from the fact that Australia have lost each of their last five games in this format and the home side can be backed to win the series at 5/2 (boylesports/paddy Power/ladbrokes). This will be the third Twenty20 England have played at the Rose Bowl, winning the first in June 2005 beating Australia by 100 runs and then lost by two runs to Sri Lanka in June 2006.

Those looking for Australia will be boosted by the presence of a number of players with IPL experience in the squad and the fact that England did not play great in the recent series with New Zealand. An Australia series victory is available at 37/13 (888 SPORT/unibet).

The first game of the series is at the Rose Bowl in Hampshire on Thursday evening (18:00, SKY). England are 18/19 (888 SPORT/unibet) for victory at a ground they have played twice previously at, once beating Australia by 100 runs and the second time losing narrowly to Sri Lanka. The Australia victory is available at evens (STAN JAMES/william hill). I like the look of Michael Carberry to be the top England batsman in the opening game which is held at his own ground. The Hampshire batsman will know the track well and is on great form having scored over 500 domestic runs in the Twenty20 format this season. He is 4/1 (SKYBET/betfred) to be top England batsman and 16/1 (SKYBET) to be the man of the match. Though before making the bets make sure to check for the team news.

The second game of the series is at the Riverside in Durham where England have played just one game previously in this format and they lost by seven wickets to South Africa in 2012. It is too early for prices though be sure to look out for any over-reactions to the opening game

In addition we have the conclusion of the Ashes for the Ladies with England 6-4 ahead going into the Twenty20 games. Both games are worth two points so England need to win just one to be sure of winning back the trophy. Bookmakers the home side 8/11 (BETVICTOR/STAN JAMES/ladbrokes) for victory and the visitors are 6/5 (GENERAL). The best bet could be in the top England Women Batsmen market with Heather Knight in good form and she netted 157 in the Test and a half century in an ODI. Odds of 5/1 (SKYBET) for her to be top England bat looks value.

BEST OF THE BETS

GOLD: Michael Carberry to be top England bat opening T20, 4/1 (SKYBET/betfred)
SILVER: Michael Carberry to be Man of the Match, 16/1 (SKYBET)
BRONZE: Heather Knight to top England Woman bat in opening T20, 5/1 (SKYBET)

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29/08/2013     © Frixo 2026