The first ODI between New Zealand and England was a cracking contest on Sunday and hopefully we will get an equally entertaining match when they meet for the second game in the five match series at Mount Maunganui on Wednesday.
New Zealand snatched that opening match at the death after England had been in control for long periods and now the tourists will go in search of a leveller with a win here. New Zealand can put themselves in a wonderful position were they to pick up a second successive win.
New Zealand
The Kiwis are now up to nine matches unbeaten in 50 over cricket this summer and a win in this match would see them equal their record of 10. In many ways the victory at Hamilton might well have been their most satisfying as they proved they can win from a position of difficulty and that always does wonders for confidence.
Overall I would suggest New Zealand will be happy with their performance in that match. They bowled pretty well in the main with the exception of a few overs where Jos Buttler was putting pressure on them and after they had initially collapsed at the early stages with the bat they came through strongly in the end.
England
I would imagine England are still wondering how that opening match got away from them but it did and that might lead to a concern or two. Putting it simply, not for the first time recently, they did not put up a big enough total with the bat. That hasn’t come back to haunt them in recent times because their opposition has been poor but it will do here and they found that out on Sunday.
The batting is very much the strength of this England side so they really need to maximise things with the bat in their hand because as we saw in Hamilton, even when they have a good start with the ball, there is always a struggle to defend a score. With that in mind there should be a greater emphasis on the start with the bat which was where they really failed.
Team News
New Zealand are set to be without their captain Kane Williamson for this match as he has a hamstring strain. Mark Chapman has been called up to replace him should he not be good to go while Tim Southee will skipper the side if Williamson does not play.
Mark Wood has been bowling in the nets ahead of this match and he could come back into the side while there are suggestions that Craig Overton is being considered too. It appears that the failing Jonny Bairstow experiment is set to continue for at least one more match.
Bay Oval
This will be the fifth ODI to be held at the Bay Oval but it is the first one that will be played under lights although there have been some T20 internationals at night here. New Zealand have a win and two defeats from the three matches they have played on the ground while England will be playing here for the first time.
Reports suggest that there is a lot more grass on this wicket than the one at Hamilton so the bowlers should enjoy some good pace and bounce. This is a bigger ground than Seddon Park but the T20 matches suggest big scores are still able to be made.
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Betting
Both main bets that I took for the opening ODI came in safely and I don’t really see any reason to shift away from them in this match. Hitting sixes on this ground will be more difficult and you need to be a really clean hitter of the ball to do it which should suit England even more because they have many more hitters. We saw that in the first game and I expect us to see it here too.
I’ve said enough about this move to put Jonny Bairstow as an opener. It is nonsense and it was shown to be such in the first game where he looked awful. His performance line has only dipped three points and that still isn’t enough to sway me from taking the under. I highlighted all the statistics for the last match and they still apply here. Under 39.5 for me here.
Tips
WON – Back England Most 6s for a 4/10 stake at 1.95 with Betfred
Back them here:
WON – Back J.Bairstow’s Performance – Under 39.5pts for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
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