CRICKET WORLD CUP OPENING MATCHES: We preview the opening games in the Cricket World Cup which gets underway on Thursday at the Oval with hosts and favourites England taking on South Africa.
England vs South Africa
The opening game of the 2019 World Cup is at the Oval and this has the potential to be a cracker. The weather is looking good for Thursday so we should get a full 100 overs of play. England are the favourites at 1.5 while South Africa can be backed at 2.62.
There is added pressure for England being the home nation, but their confidence will be high following a recent 4-0 ODI whitewash series win over Pakistan. Jason Roy was on fire with the bat and pace bowler Chris Woakes also impressed with a haul of nine wickets. On the injury front, Mark Wood is fit to take part but there are still concerns over captain Eoin Morgan and spin bowler Adil Rashid. Since the ODI series against Pakistan, England have played two warm-up games – losing to Australia by 12 runs and beating Afghanistan by 9 wickets.
South Africa enter the World Cup sitting third in the ICC rankings thanks largely to series wins over Pakistan and a whitewash of Sri Lanka, who they also beat by 87 runs in a warm up match last week.
The South Africans will have been frustrated that the warm up match vs the West Indies was rained off last Sunday. The loss of Anrich Nortje through injury is a blow to their bowling attack, but Kagiso Rabada is in great form and Dale Steyn brings a wealth of experience. They will also look towards Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis to step up in the tournament opener.
There hasn’t been a lot to separate these teams in recent ODI encounters. South Africa won a five game series 3-2 on home soil in February 2016. The last time their paths crossed in ODI Cricket was in May 2017 when England won the series 2-1 in front of their home crowd. England also came out triumphant when the two countries last met at a World Cup in 2011. It would seem that South Africa are coming in under the radar and have a great chance of going all the way. If England can handle the pressure and the excitement of the fans before and during this game, they should get off to a winning start.
Verdict: ENGLAND
Australia vs Afghanistan
Many will feel this is the dream start for World Cup holders Australia, as they will begin the defence of their crown by facing the lowest ranked side in the tournament, Afghanistan. The game takes place in the County Ground, Bristol, on Saturday in the first Day/Night game of the 2019 World Cup. Australia are at very low odds of 1.1 making Afghanistan total outsiders at 7.
After recent struggles in this format of the game, the Aussies have found their touch once again. An impressive series win away to India in March was the catalyst for a turnaround in fortunes. More victories in warm up matches against England and Sri Lanka has many punters believing Australia can go all the way again. All eyes will be on how David Warner and Steve Smith perform. Both players received a frosty reception from the crowd vs England and this could be a continuing theme throughout the tournament. If both players continue from where they left off in the IPL then these negative reactions will not affect them.
Afghanistan may be the lowest ranked side in the World Cup but have every right to be dining with the big boys. They comfortably defeated Ireland in the deciding qualifier last year and got the better of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in the Asia Cup. Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi are two players any country would love to have.
This will be the second World Cup meeting between the two sides after Australia’s massive 275 runs win four years ago. Australia posted an impressive score of 417-6 from their 50 overs. Anything less than another very easy Australia win will be a shock.
Verdict: AUSTRALIA
New Zealand vs Sri Lanka
The first of a pair of games on Saturday takes place in Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. New Zealand, finalists in 2015, are aiming to go one better this time around. Meanwhile Sri Lanka will have it all to do to even make the Semi-Finals. New Zealand are the favourites for this clash, priced at 1.28 for this while Sri Lanka are trading at 3.75.
New Zealand were going about their business nice and quietly before landing in England but made people stand up and take notice with their six wicket win over India in a warm up game last Saturday. Any team that has batsmen like Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson at their disposal always has the potential to post big scores and cause teams problems. A lot will also depend on the performances of seamers Trent Boult and Tim Southee.
It’s hard to make a case for Sri Lanka for both this game and the tournament in general. They slipped to nine in the world and it is no surprise. They were taken to the cleaners by South Africa in an ODI series in March and backed that up with two further losses in their warm up games. The decision to leave Dinesh Chandimal at home raised a lot of eyebrows. There is a lack of experience in the squad, so a lot of people will look towards 35 year old Lasith Malinga to lead this team.
New Zealand are at short odds for this game and for good reason. Their form is good and inspires confidence while Sri Lanka’s is the complete opposite. The sides met in an ODI Series in New Zealand in January which the Black Cats won 3-0. They also ran out 98 runs winners vs Sri Lanka in the 2015 World Cup. The forecast for Saturday is bright skies and a New Zealand win.
Verdict: NEW ZEALAND
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