INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE: Our cricket tipster The Edge previews Royal Challengers Bangalore v Kings XI Punjab on Thursday with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
The Edge has been a professional cricket trader for over 12 years, and we are delighted to have his columns on BETDAQ Tips. He provides his best bets on a points scale between 1 and 5, with 5 being a rare max bet.
Because we see so much action in-running on cricket, he will also provide some in-running strategies that could develop in-play and lead to some excellent value bets. The Edge covers all forms of cricket: Test Matches, ODI’s and T20’s but his favourite competition is the Indian Premier League each season.
MATCH OVERVIEW:
It’s game 31 at the Indian Premier League as we move back to Sharjah to see the return of Chris Gayle! Royal Challengers Bangalore are back in action after an impressive win against KKR on Monday following on from their win over CSK at the weekend, while Kings XI Punjab had another last over defeat against KKR at the weekend. While Kings XI have been lacking on quality this IPL, they have lost been lacking in luck – that’s combined to put them bottom of the table with only one win from seven games.
I have already said this towards the start of the tournament, but this was always going to be the best opportunity for RCB to win because they have moved away from their home ground in India. The very high scoring games in Sharjah have now gone it appears, so every game will be won on talent and not easy batting conditions. That being said however, RCB still need their stars to fire – and we have seen what happens when they don’t in this very fixture!
Punjab beat RCB by 97 runs in Dubai earlier in the tournament when Finch, Kohli and de Villiers all failed to fire. But the damage was done by the Punjab batters that day as they posted 206/3 with Rahul scoring 132 not out off 69 balls. Punjab lost games with their bowling early on, and then their batting failed to fire. Once you get on a losing run in these tournament it can be difficult to change momentum with games coming up so quick.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
We’ve definitely saw the pitch change in the last two games here, and while we might see 200+ based on talent alone from the batsmen, the conditions would suggest that 200+ is no longer a par score. AB De Villiers got RCB very close to 200, but they set a superb platform and that will be the key here. Start slow, keep wickets in hand and launch at the end. It’ll be fascinating to see what Chris Gayle does for Punjab! Thankfully the weather is set fair.
RECOMMENDED BET:
RCB are in excellent form and AB de Villiers was excellent on Monday. It’s only natural for the market to have them favourites here given the run of Punjab, but I don’t think they should be as short as 1.71. Punjab are worth a small bet for me at 2.3. They are playing ok cricket, they just can’t get over the line. RCB need their three big stars to fire, and if Punjab can get them out quickly then they should win. Given the Punjab performance the last time the sides met, I think it’s worth having a small bet on Punjab at the odds.
The Edge Says:
One point win Kings XI Punjab to beat Royal Challengers Bangalore at 2.3 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange.
View the market here -> http://bit.ly/BDQRcbPun
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
With the pitches slowing down, it’s definitely an advantage to bat first. In fairness even with the dew it’s been an advantage to bat first the whole tournament. I’d be very happy to be on the team batting first, but at the end of the day they need to deliver for your trade and set a good target. The blueprint is definitely what RCB did in their last game here, and you have to target those final five overs here with the short boundaries.
In RCB’s recent wins, the three stars have fired. I think the market might have RCB too short even after they are gone given their recent winning run and I would be very keen to be against the RCB mid-to-low order once de Villiers has gone. The Punjab bowling could be better, but it still presents a trading opportunity to be against the RCB lower order. I would also look to be against the batting team when chasing in the middle overs – they might start quickly in the opening six overs and then slow down as the fielders go out and the pitch gets slower.
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