T20 WORLD CUP: Our cricket tipster The Edge previews Wednesday’s T20 World Cup match between Ireland v Sri Lanka with a recommended BETDAQ bet.

MATCH OVERVIEW:

The big games keep coming at the T20 World Cup and we have a top of the table clash in Group A on Wednesday! After a massive win for both sides in their opening fixture, Ireland meet Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi. We’ve already had some massive shocks and swings in-play on BETDAQ Betting Exchange, and we could have more drama here. I think everyone is expecting Sri Lanka to qualify from this group, but we also all know they aren’t the force of old and we could easily see Ireland or the Netherlands beat them.

Ireland recorded a massive win for them in their tournament opener against the Netherlands. Prior to the tournament, the general vibe was this was the best side the Netherlands ever had, but Ireland’s bowlers an through them and chased it easily. Tougher tests lie ahead for Ireland though, and you have to wonder how they were fare should Sri Lanka take early wickets. The top three in the batting order are so important for Ireland.

Sri Lanka made light work of Namibia on Monday, bowling them out for 96 and chasing it down in 13.3 overs. That was a good performance, but let’s not forget why Sri Lanka are even playing at this stage of the tournament. They have had a big fall from grace, and Ireland have a really big chance here – we should have a close game.

WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:

Although we’ve had a few days of this stage of the tournament, I still feel we are guessing what a good score is. I suppose that is an issue with associate cricket because we can see a big range of scores. The way Ireland and Sri Lanka chased on Monday would suggest par is probably similar to what we saw in the IPL here recently, but then when you add the pressure sides probably only need to score 150 batting first. I feel bowling first offers a big edge based off what we’ve seen, but this is probably the highest quality game we’ve seen at this stage.

RECOMMENDED BET:

While I am not a major fan of Ireland because they rely so heavily on the top three in the batting, they look good value here at 3.05. I expect a closer game than those odds suggest. The Irish bowlers performed very well against the Netherlands on Monday, and if they can repeat that performance here they will cause Sri Lanka a lot of issues. I know Ireland have a lot of issues with their batting, but they look good value to win here. Sri Lanka aren’t a great side anymore, and it won’t take much to beat them. I’m happy to limit stakes given my worries with Ireland, but I feel once we get past this stage of the tournament everyone will see how limited Sri Lanka are.

The Edge Says:
One point win Ireland to beat Sri Lanka at 3.05 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange

View the market here -> https://bit.ly/BDQIreSri

IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:

Although we are getting deeper into the tournament, I still feel I am searching for some in-running strategies. It’s been hard to get a read on conditions, but that has been a product of associate cricket – you see a big range of scores, and when it goes wrong it goes very wrong very quickly! This game might show us what a par score is, but I feel the biggest edge in-play here will be getting on the side who bowls first. At the moment, bowling first looks a big edge and the results so far reflect this. Chasing might be helped by dew too, and over all I feel the bowling side should do well here. I’d also be keen to get against the Ireland mid-to-low order if they come in under pressure needing a decent run rate as they just haven’t performed with the bat. They will need big runs from the top three, but I feel the market will overrate Sri Lanka a lot here, and there could be a lot of value going against Sri Lanka at times.