Cricket World Cup Semi Final – 10.30 am
The two old rivals England and Australia will go toe to toe for a place in the final of this summer’s Cricket World Cup. What a mouth-watering clash this is going to be as host nation England will be out for some revenge. They lost heavily against the Australians in the group stage. Will Eoin Morgan’s men be able to set the record straight and power through to the final? The English have all the pressure on them as 8/11 favourites* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on June 8th, 2019 at 7:38 pm)
England v Australia Winner Odds*
England 8/11
Australia 11/10
* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on June 8th, 2019 at 7:38 pm)
Can England beat Australia and reach World Cup Final?
Pre-tournament, England were expected to be in the semi-finals. They are, but they had a bit of a scrap to get there in the end. After some setbacks against Sri Lanka and the Australians in back to back game, England were left in a position of needing to win their final two games. Those were tough games as well against India and New Zealand, who are the other two qualified semi-finalists.
But that is when England got back into their groove. In their game against India against Edgbaston, England showed all the control and power which took them to the top of the ODI game. They beat the Indians by 31 runs. Then in their final match, a must-win clash against New Zealand, England produced a thumping 119 victory over the Kiwis. Those were some huge results, big tests of characters that will give England a huge boost of confidence.
What’s expected at Edgbaston?
This semi-final is being hosted at Edgbaston, where England had that big win against India. The English looked much better with the bat there, although it was predicted that the conditions were going to suit the Indians a little better. This has been a good batting pitch. In the last two matches in Birmingham, there have been 300+ scores posted in three of the four innings.
India had a huge complaint about the ground though because one of the boundaries are really short, which suited England’s heavy hitters perfectly. The weather is not predicted to be all that great. So there may end up being an advantage to bowling first in case the Duckworth Lewis comes in. England have looked a bit better though when up batting first.
England’s Key Players
For England, there are two players who are going to need to have big games. One is Jofra Archer, who is one of the top wicket-takers of the tournament. England need to hit above off stump with regularity in order to try and keep India pinned down. His pace has to come in and trouble the Indian top order with the new ball. Archer is 5/2 to be England’s top bowler* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on June 8th, 2019 at 7:38 pm).
With the bat, England have so much power and class. The return of Jason Roy has made a huge difference at the top. But England will know they need to build well at the start and therefore opener Jonny Bairstow, a devastating hitter needs to keep himself in the game as long as possible. He is looking for a century for the third straight match. Bairstow is at 3/1 to be England’s top batsman* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on June 8th, 2019 at 7:38 pm).
Can Australia return to the World Cup Final?
The Australians are the World Cup title holders and there is no way that they are going to let this title slip easily. They have been on fire throughout this tournament. They just missed out on top spot in the group stage though after a slip up on the final day of group stage action. The Australians lost, surprisingly, by 10 runs to South Africa. That’s the same South Africa who had had a terrible tournament and were one of the first teams to be eliminated.
There was a lot of good and a lot of bad from Australia on the day. The only other defeat that Australia suffered in the tournament was against India early on. Australia have lost top order batsman Usman Khawaja through an injury sustained against South Africa and Marcus Stoinis is a big doubt as well. Surprisingly what let Australia down against South Africa was their bowling. They just couldn’t find a way to keep the reins on the Proteas. Against a free-scoring England, they will know that they have to be better.
Predictions
England will know that if they can eat into the Australian top order quickly, notably their biggest threat of David Warner, then they should have a decent chance. Australia were pretty poor with the ball in their last fixture. England look to have rediscovered their self-confidence. This is likely to be a nail biter but England can win at 8/11 odds* (betting odds taken from Bet365 on June 8th, 2019 at 7:38 pm)
