Cricket betting tips and preview: England and South Africa set for crunch T20 World Cup clash
England take on South Africa in Sharjah on Saturday, and Richard Mann is backing two speed merchants in the Man of the Match market.
Cricket tips: England v South Africa, November 6
1pt Anrich Nortje to be Man of the Match at 12/1 (General)
1pt Mark Wood to be top England bowler at 16/5 (Betfred)
1pt Mark Wood to be Man of the Match at 16/1 (General)
Despite recording an ultimately commanding victory over Sri Lanka in Sharjah earlier in the week, I’m not convinced this venue plays to England's strengths and they will no doubt be pleased to see the back of it for the semi-finals and final – should they get that far.
Following a flawless campaign to date, England are sitting pretty at the top of Group 1, but it is worth remembering that they were 35-3 against Sri Lanka at one stage and needed an extraordinary hundred from Jos Buttler to get them to a match-winning score of 163-4.
Prior to that, the likes of Jason Roy, Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow all found things tough as the low, skiddy bounce that has dominated Sharjah in the last few months made run-scoring hard work, while spin continued to pose a big threat.
South Africa bowling can hurt England
South Africa’s well-rounded attack can tick both of those boxes, with excellent pace duo, Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, coming into this clash having shared six wickets against Bangladesh last time out, and spin twins Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi continuing to enjoy these conditions.
Expect Maharaj to feature in the powerplay – and his battle with Roy could be fascinating – while Rabada and Nortje will go hard at Buttler, hitting the pitch with pace from back of a length and hoping for some uneven bounce.
Buttler is the obvious choice in the top England batsman market, given his strong form and a few doubts about the rest of the top order, but quotes of 5/2 are about right now and I’m not sure I want to be rowing in at those prices on a pitch that promises to play plenty of tricks. With Buttler already on-side in the pre-tournament specials preview, I’ll leave him alone and hope he can finish the job.
Following Australia’s rapid hammering of a woeful Bangladesh outfit on Thursday, South Africa need to better their result against the West Indies earlier in the day to qualify for the semi-finals.
That clearly puts the Proteas under more pressure than is ideal, but this side has responded to adversity all through the tournament – and even in the build-up – and I think they could push England hard on this ground, one at which Rabada and Nortje have plenty of experience in the IPL.
That pair will know the lengths they need to find, particularly ANRICH NORTJE who is a real hit-the-deck bowler, one who has been magnificent at this World Cup so far. Nortje has taken eight wickets in four matches with a stunning economy rate of just 4.56.
If South Africa are to win this crucial clash, they’ll need Nortje to shape the match in the powerplay and as such, with bowlers continuing to fare well in the Man of the Match market, I’m happy to have this terrific operator in the staking plan at 12/1.
The obvious drawback with Nortje, or indeed Rabada, is that this award is almost exclusively awarded to a player on the winning side, meaning a second bet on someone from England’s starting XI is an absolute must.
Hungry Wood back and ready to rumble
That someone is MARK WOOD, who wouldn’t have waited so long to play his first match of the World Cup were it not for suffering pain in his ankle before the West Indies clash, and I’ve been itching to see him bowl at Sharjah for a while.
Wood looked in fine shape when claiming four wickets against New Zealand in one of the warm-up games and his express pace and skiddy trajectory should prove ideal for a pitch like this that can keep low from back of a length, particularly for someone who can bowl as quickly as Wood can.
With Tymal Mills injured and out of the tournament, England will have to take the wraps off Wood now and I’ll be staggered if he doesn’t bowl well here, for all the small dimensions of this ground can sometimes mean express pace goes the distance. A top-edged six won’t worry England captain Eoin Morgan too much, and I suspect he’ll back Wood to make the early breakthroughs that win his side the match.
I recommend backing Wood for top England bowler and also for Man of the Match honours – giving us a pace ace from each team in a clash that can hopefully provide this World Cup with the type of contest it has been so badly lacking.
Posted at 1710 GMT on 04/11/21
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