England's busy summer of cricket continues at The Oval on Tuesday, where Jos Buttler's side kick off a three-match ODI series with India – Richard Mann has two bets to consider.
Cricket tips: England v India ODI
2pts Joe Root top England batsman at 100/30 (Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook)
2pts Rohit Sharma top India batsman at 100/30 (Sky Bet)
While England fans are rightly enjoying the feel-good factor that has descended on English cricket since the appointment of Brendon McCullum as head coach of the Test team, one man whose cheeky grin has returned in recent weeks is former captain JOE ROOT.
The 31-year-old, currently ranked as the number one batsman in Test cricket, appeared to have the weight of the world on his shoulders as England limped through last summer and were then thrashed by Australia in the Ashes, before defeat in the West Indies saw his tenure as captain come to an end.
It is true that Root's captaincy had its faults, but nobody in English cricket worked harder to keep the show on the road through the pandemic, managing his players through bubble after bubble with empathy and care while, by his own admission, the demands of the job impacted on his own family life.
Looking back, it's no surprise that England grossly underperformed in that time – no other country played more Test cricket than England through the pandemic – and that Root still managed 1,708 runs in 2021, while those around him could barely crack an egg, says everything about Root the player, and Root the man.
Red-hot Root hard to ignore
With the burden of captaincy now gone, and normal life having returned to Britain for the summer at least, it was entirely predictable that Root would kick off this new era with a glut of runs.
In fact, what we have seen from Root in the first four Tests of the season has been nothing short of a clinic in Test match batting. A master of his craft who has already propelled himself to greatness, a status that will remain long after he has stopped playing, Root compiled scores of 115*, 176, 86* and 142* in four straight Test victories over New Zealand and India to help deliver England's impressive transformation.
McCullum and new captain Ben Stokes will rightly take most of the plaudits, but things could have been much different had Root not held together England's nervy run chase in the first Test against New Zealand on a tricky surface at Lord's, securing a victory that changed everything.
It was much the same as he and Jonny Bairstow completed a staggering run chase of 378 at Edgbaston just a few weeks later. Bairstow was Man of the Match for his two centuries in the game, but he was dropped twice in the second innings. Root, on the other hand, barely played a false shot as he waltzed along at a strike-rate of 82.08 for his 142 not out.
Without question, Root is the best player in the world right now and returning to a format which, for a while anyway, I felt was his strongest, it's time to cash in.
With 16 centuries, 35 fifties and a career average of 51.33, Root's ODI record stands up to the closest scrutiny and though he hasn't played as much of this format in the last 18 months as he would have liked – instead concentrating on leading the Test side through a particularly busy period – he made scores of 79* and 68* as Sri Lanka failed to dismiss him once in their three-match ODI series last summer.
Root, like every other member of the first-choice squad, was forced to miss the subsequent series win over Pakistan as Covid-19 forced England to pick an entirely new team at the last minute to ensure that series went ahead, but the fact he has played plenty of T20 cricket for Yorkshire this summer means I have no fears about him switching back to limited-overs cricket – and he will surely keep scoring heavily in the coming weeks.
Yorkshire duo rate Oval value
While series betting is unfortunately thin on the ground, Paddy Power and Betfair Sportsbook have been first to go up with prices for Tuesday's opener, and Root makes strong appeal at 100/30 in the top England batsman market.
It's easy to make a case for Root on form and his overall record, but his role within this England side makes him even more appealing. While Root is tasked with controlling the England innings with his effortless rotation of strike and ability to manipulate the field, often striking in the region of 100 without taking any undue risks, the likes of Jason Roy, Jos Buttler and Bairstow are the ones who will take the game on with more brawn and aggression.
And that's exactly what is needed. It takes all types to help shape a well-rounded team, and Root is an integral cog in a batting line-up where he holds things together, allowing those power hitters to play around him.
Whose role is more important is an argument for elsewhere, but when betting on top batsman markets in ODI cricket, I'd much prefer to be with the man more likely to bat through until the latter stages of the innings than someone forced to take lots of risks to strike at 170. It also helps when that man is Joe Root.
I do think the 9/2 on offer with Paddy Power and Betfair Sportsbook about Bairstow is also wrong. I can't for the life of me understand why Phil Salt is shorter in the betting (4/1) than Bairstow, another man in form and certain to open the batting, but Root still stands out and on balance appeals as the safer play. 100/30 is a price to take on Tuesday and for the remainder of the series.
India flex muscles as England rue key absences
I must confess to have been taken aback by India's newfound aggression with the bat in the recent T20I series between these two sides. We had seen just a few signs of that same intent against South Africa recently, but to do it away from home against a world-class outfit like England was an impressive change in approach from the more cautious strategy we saw from India at last year's T20 World Cup.
How that affects India's approach in 50-over cricket is a question we may get an answer to in the next few days, but good weather and a generally flat pitch at The Oval will demand that India continue to take the game on with the bat, with big runs very likely.
At The Oval, defending even the biggest totals can be a tough ask in this format, so checking out the both teams to score markets closer to kick-off time is an absolute must. Both teams to score 280 here looks highly likely, and 300, 310 and even 320 is not out of the question.
Another reason why high scores are in play here is England's injury list. Having no Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Adil Rashid in their bowling attack is a huge blow, and I thought the skill levels of the Indian bowlers in the T20I series was a notch above their England counterparts.
That's not to say England bowled poorly, and certainly not Chris Jordan who was excellent throughout, but when it came to taking wickets, India's attack had that little bit more craft on some very flat pitches. That is the value of the IPL, particularly for bowlers, who must learn the hard way to succeed in that competition.
England's bowling attack for this series does concern me, and while I wouldn't have a strong opinion on the match market either way, I can see why India are slight favourites with some firms. England's batting might be fearsome, but their bowling is not and India might just have more boxes ticked.
Rohit ready to dazzle in London
Expected to lead the way for the visitors is captain ROHIT SHARMA, a giant of this format with 29 hundreds to his name, and three double-hundreds, helping build a record that has seen him become one of India's best ever white-ball batsmen. When set, Rohit can be almost unstoppable in this format and his appetite for big scores, and his ability to make them, make him a puzzling betting proposition.
The issue with Rohit is that he is invariably priced up very short in the top India batsman market, meaning picking your moments is key, but I've always felt that he is a rhythm player who works his way into tours and series. I made reference in another preview recently that though top scoring in both Test series played between England and India in 2021, Rohit actually took his time to warm into his work on both occasions, and his lowest returns came in each of the opening Tests.
This is another series opener, and it might be that Rohit comes good at Lord's on Thursday, but I thought he was coming to the boil nicely in the recent T20I matches, making starts in each of the three games, and the fact he has always batted well on this ground – including his sublime 127 in last summer's Test series – is another reason to expect him to make his mark on Tuesday.
Like Root, Rohit has does have strong competition in a fine Indian batting line-up, but he'll get first crack at a weakened England bowling attack and, should he start well, might not be for catching. 100/30 (Sky Bet) is big enough to lure me in with so much seemingly in his favour.
The top bowler markets make little appeal at this stage, so aside from scouring the side markets for runs bets on a ground that should see the batsmen enjoy themselves, it's Root and Rohit who are tasked with making hay while the sun continues to shine on English cricket.
Posted at 1045 BST on 11/07/22
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