Cricket betting tips: England v South Africa second ODI preview and best bets
Richard Mann has a couple of strong fancies in his staking plan for the second ODI between England and South Africa, which takes place at Old Trafford on Friday.
Cricket tips: England v South Africa second ODI
3pts under 11.5 total match sixes at 5/6 (Coral, Ladbrokes)
2pts Rassie van der Dussen top South Africa batsman at 9/2 (Paddy Power, Betfair)
England's concerning white-ball slump continued in Durham on Tuesday, when Ben Stokes' farewell from ODI cricket ended in a whimper as South Africa ran out comfortable 62-run winners.
England have now lost three of their last four ODI matches, following on from their 2-1 T20I series defeat to India, and the second ODI at Old Trafford on Friday now takes on greater significance.
Even without Stokes, and fellow retiree Eoin Morgan, England's top six is laced with pedigree and power. As such, it's remarkable to think they have yet to post more than 271 in four ODIs this summer, despite the fact the weather has been very good and the pitches by no means minefields.
Runs for Jason Roy on Tuesday were welcome, but he still struggled for his usual fluency and the likes of Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root have found it similarly tough to find the perfect rhythm to their batting as they try to back up their impressive recent exploits in the Test cricket. Perhaps this is another reminder of just how tricky it can be to continually switch codes at the top level.
Despite playing some hard cricket against India, England's own preparation hasn't been much of an advantage over South Africa who were afforded two warm-up games and then hit the ground running in Durham, victory sealed thanks to a professional display in the field but the foundations very much laid by RASSIE VAN DER DUSSEN's brilliant 134 in the first innings.
While batsmen on either side found the surface tacky and two-paced, van der Dussen located his timing immediately, scoring quickly throughout and once again confirming this format to be his strongest.
The 33-year-old now averages a staggering 74.95 in 36 ODIs, with three hundreds and 11 fifties, and his more recent numbers suggest he is still on the upgrade. Since the beginning of 2022, van der Dussen has made two centuries from only seven matches, averaging 112.50 in that period against opponents of the calibre of India and England.
Clearly a man in form, South Africa have wisely made the decision to move van der Dussen from five up to number three in the batting order, something that might yet yield even greater results.
While betting on him to back up his top score in the first ODI might seem like a case of closing the stable door when the horse has already bolted, Old Trafford was a ground I had in mind for van der Dussen before the series began, with its vast square boundaries suiting those who prefer to manoeuvre the ball into the gaps and run hard for twos – something van der Dussen did so well again in Durham.
I'd expect him to go well once more, and while the consistent Janneman Malan rates a solid threat, 9/2 about van der Dussen in the top South Africa batsman market still looks too big, and certainly worth taking when others firms are much closer to the 3/1 mark.
Though India chased down 260 at a canter on this ground recently, I'm not mad keen on betting overs on runs here. In fact, Old Trafford at times proved hard work for batting in the recently concluded T20 Blast, and given the big dimensions of the ground square of the wicket, hitting sixes isn't always as easy as at other venues in the country. India only managed two in that aforementioned winning run chase.
England did manage eight in their innings but, even still, that isn't high by modern-day standards. In 2020, England posted 302-7 batting first against Australia, yet only hit six sixes, Australia 10 in their successful run chase. When the same teams played on the same ground a few days earlier, only five maximums were scored in the whole match.
With England's batting misfiring at present, and South Africa's bowling strong and own approach to batting not always the most aggressive in terms of targeting boundaries, I think playing UNDER 11.5 TOTAL MATCH SIXES at 5/6 is the right call when also taking into account the historical data at this venue.
Elsewhere in the side markets, Root is always worth a second look to be top England batsman given his role is to accumulate while those around him are tasked with taking more risks.
However, the Yorkshireman wasn't quite at his best despite top scoring in the series opener, nor in the preceding series against India when he made little impact, so I'm happy to sit this one out on this occasion.
Posted at 1250 BST on 20/07/22
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