England rest Pietersen and Swann but remain strong in betting
England look to continue their fine form as they start their one day international series against Bangladesh. After taking the world by storm in winning the ICC Twenty20 World Cup, England then backed up their success by beating Australia 3-2 in their ODI series recently. England stretched out to a 3-0 lead over their old rivals from Down Under, before being pegged back. That victory gave England a record of 4 wins out of 6 one day matches this year, a marked improvement in their game. England’s batting in the short forms of the game have come on leaps and bounds, ever since the selectors were brave enough to shake up the team and kick out some of the old guard. In have come some exciting players which has injected some new life into the England cricket scene. The next challenge for Andrew Strauss and his men, in this busy year which will culminate in taking on Australia for the Ashes at the end of the year, is to keep all levels of concentration high against Bangladesh.
Bangladesh have never beaten England at any form of the game, and this should be an ideal opportunity for the home side to make another clean sweep. England can afford to show no complacency at Trent Bridge on Thursday, if they are really going to push forward and develop into a ruthless world beating team. This is more of a test of mental ability over technical, as in the latter department, England should win hands down. The only questions about whether England will win this or not, will be if England can stick to their task and not be over-confident, and how potent Bangladesh star Tamim Iqbal performs with the bat. England beat Bangladesh 2-0 in a Test series at the start of the summer, but out in Bangladesh, despite making a clean sweep in the one day series, England found the going tougher than expected. They were strong enough to win the matches, but they were made to work a lot harder for the victories than they would have thought.
Bangladesh have changed their captain, with Mashrafe Mortaza stepping up to take charge of the national side. Batsman Tamim Iqbal is regarded as being the biggest of threats to England, as his fine form with the bat shows a lot of promise in being able to attack the England bowlers. But the conditions should suit England a lot better back in the UK, which should give them an extra edge over their superior quality already. Bangladesh are much more of a threat in the shorter formats of the game than they are in the Test matches, and that is because they can get quite inventive with their shots. Bangladesh will try and utilise their variety of spin, but they should not have as much penetration as the English bowlers, certainly not under conditions which will suit seamers. But Nottingham should be pretty dry, even under floodlights, and it should certainly favour the batters, which could see England run up a big score.
Although England have been enjoying a lot of success, their team in the ODI is far from being settled enough to consistently be at the top. England coach Andy Flower is resting Graeme Swann and Kevin Pietersen, who have been two of England’s main performers, along with Eoin Morgan who was named man of the series against Australia. Luke Wright’s position should be under threat as he did not make any great real contribution to the cause against England, while they will probably stick with him and give him the chance to rebuild some confidence and form. With Swann rested, James Tredwell will be a lone spinner, and Michael Yardy will likely prop up the batting at number six. The exciting Craig Kieswetter could also do with a very good knock to re-establish his worth in the squad.
Current Form:
England: LLWWW
Bangladesh: LLLLL (have lost their last 13 ODI matches)
England (probable team): Andrew Strauss (capt), Craig Kieswetter (wk), Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Michael Yardy, Luke Wright, Tim Bresnan, James Tredwell, Stuart Broad, James Anderson
England to win – 1/8 at Totesport
Bangladesh to win – 6/1 at SkyBet
Top Bangladesh Batsman: Tamim Iqbal: 3/1 at Ladbrokes – A genuine world talent.
Top England Batsman: Ian Bell: 5/1 at Bet365 – Ian Bell has made changes to his game in order to affirm himself as a one day player, and coming back into the side after missing out against the Aussies, should mean that he is very hungry if he comes in at number three. Great form for the Lions, and every chance he can back it up against Bangladesh.
