THE EDGE: The Edge previews the Cricket World Cup clash between ENGLAND v SOUTH AFRICA with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
England v South Africa
MATCH OVERVIEW:
Is this the biggest game of the cricket World Cup yet? We’ve had India v Pakistan, and Australia v Pakistan will have a big impact on the top four on Friday too, but England and South Africa clash on BETDAQ Betting Exchange on Saturday with so much on the line. England are in big trouble after losses to New Zealand and then Afghanistan most recently. The tournament allows for a loss or two, but basically you cannot afford to drop points against the lesser sides like Netherlands, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh because it means you have to beat the bigger sides.
Not many cricket fans were giving South Africa a chance in this World Cup. They have the choker tags from the past, but not many were expecting them to reach the Semi-Finals this time. A win over Australia put them in the box seat early though, especially along with the England results however a shock loss to Netherlands earlier in the week puts a big dent in their chances again. They will now need to beat one of the big boys again. I knew Netherlands would shock someone, it was just hard to know when it would happen. South Africa also lost to Netherlands at the T20 World Cup.
The stakes couldn’t be any higher here, and we should have a fantastic game too. On paper, there isn’t much between the sides. England will be the favourites, but South Africa know that England’s batting hasn’t been in form at this tournament. They will also know that they need their top order to fire; what a fantastic game we have ahead.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
This is the first game at the Wankhede in Mumbai, and most cricket fans will know this stadium very well. Even ignoring all the IPL cricket here, this is one of the main grounds in India and we see a lot of International cricket here. The last International ODI here was earlier in the year in March; India bowled Australia out for 188 and chased it easily. This is usually a high scoring ground, but from time to time we can get a very spin friendly wicket when the surface gets too dry. With this being the first game here, you’d expect pretty good batting conditions. I would expect the side who wins the toss to bowl first; this is generally a good chasing ground and you have the added chance of dew too.
RECOMMENDED BET:
You have to say we have a fascinating game here. Both sides have their flaws, and they equally have the talent in their top order to blow the game apart with a massive score. The South African batting clearly flopped against the Netherlands, but the England batting has hardly set the world alight either. They put up a massive score against Bangladesh, but they equally flopped against Afghanistan. Even in the Bangladesh game, Dawid Malan and Joe Root lead the way there and the middle order failed in the last ten overs too. I feel this is a game for low stakes, but the pressure is all on England here and South Africa tend to do better in those situations compared to when they are expected to win. I’m happy with a small bet on them at 2.2 or bigger.
The Edge Says:
One point win South Africa to beat England at 2.2 with Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/EngSou
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
The England middle order hasn’t fired at this tournament yet, and I would be happy to take them on in a pressure situation here. The South African bowling is pretty solid, but I do expect very good batting conditions here. We can see some very high scoring conditions here at times, and you’d have to feel the wicket will be at its best too – they host one of the Semi-Finals here in a few weeks. IN general, you want to look for trades on the batting side here, and I also feel chasing might provide a little edge. It usually skids onto the bat lovely under lights so I wouldn’t be surprised to see 300+ chased down.
