There is another significant round of fixtures in the Royal London One Day Cup on Tuesday with ten sides looking to bolster their chances of making it through to the quarter finals of the competition.
The action begins with two morning starts as Gloucestershire host Durham and Lancashire host Nottinghamshire in what is the match of the day on paper. Hampshire entertain Essex in the afternoon start along with matches between Derbyshire and Leicestershire and the televised clash which sees Surrey going up against Worcestershire.
It was a second good day in a row for the competition tips on this blog with the three main bets which ran for us on Monday all winning and the only loser being the long range top bat. All in all that means we’ve collected over 23pts of profit from the One Day Cup in the last two days and with a nice set of fixtures hopefully we can make some more on Tuesday.
I’ll start with the TV match on this post and that sees Surrey taking on Worcestershire. Surrey have flown out of the traps in this competition and for the four matches they have played they have won them all and they’ve played some good sides including Durham and Yorkshire so they are in good form and they are targeting this competition given that they are out of the other two from a winning point of view.
Worcestershire are the opposite. They have played three matches and lost them all including a bizarre game against Northamptonshire at the weekend where they had reduced the Steelbacks to 19-6 and still managed to lose. That isn’t likely to have done their confidence much good and you do worry for them in this one.
I fear for Worcestershire in this match but even allowing for that Surrey are a bit short here. Worcestershire have been resting bowlers in this tournament but both Ajmal and Shantry play which gives Worcestershire a fighting chance but I don’t believe they have much more than that the way they are playing. Given Ajmal can bowl any side out at any time I’m not taking Surrey at a short price.
One bet I will happily take is Surrey to hit the most runs in the first 15 overs. Surrey have got off to some wonderful starts in this tournament with scores over 76 in all four of their matches. Their top three have all hit centuries in the competition thus far so they are in good form.
Worcestershire haven’t gone past 58 in their opening 15 overs in their three games and have lost wickets on all three occasions. Ajmal only tends to come on towards the end of those 15 overs so really Surrey look good things there.
Another bet I like comes in the performance markets which have served us well over the last couple of days. Worcestershire’s keeper Ben Cox is an underrated batsman but with Ajmal, Shantry and D’Oliviera in his side he will be up to the stumps a lot and he can easily pick up the odd stumping not to mention a catch or two.
His performance line is at 32. His last two innings have been 38 and 36 and although he failed with the bat in his first match of the event he would have covered this line with catches. The Oval does turn so he could score well here.
Away from the TV I’m going to leave the Hampshire vs Essex game alone. If I was betting I’d go with Hampshire on their home patch but I’m not convinced enough by their batting yet. I’m also going to leave the Lancashire vs Nottinghamshire match too. I believe Nottinghamshire will win but they are no price.
In the other two matches there are two I like in the Gloucestershire vs Durham game. The first is on the visitors to win. Gloucestershire are unbeaten in this tournament so far but their wins have been secured off either the last ball or the penultimate ball. You would think that luck is due to run out and with Durham having a solid batting line up and a good seam attack which is never a bad thing in Bristol I think they are a good bet at even money.
Speaking of that solid batting line up one man who should go well here is Paul Collingwood. He already has a century to his name in this competition and I would imagine he’ll bat well on this wicket but it is his bowling which interests me here.
Gloucestershire have a number of canny medium pacers so the wicket will play into Collingwood’s hands in that regard and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he snaffles a wicket or two. His performance line is 44 which combining bat and ball is more than achievable but when you factor in his fielding too that line is definitely within reach.
In the other match with Derbyshire not having Mark Footitt who is away with England, Leicestershire could be a smidgeon of value. It should be said that Tillakaratne Dilshan is flying in for this game but he’s been flying all over the world in recent weeks and might not be 100%.
Leicestershire aren’t going brilliantly in this competition but they’ve been competitive at times but lost the key moments. Derbyshire are renowned for doing the same thing so this is one time Leicestershire could get over the line.
Back Surrey Highest 1st 15 overs vs Worcestershire for a 5/10 stake at 1.80 with Paddy Power
Back B.Cox’s Performance – 32pts and over for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
Back P.Collingwood’s Performance – 44pts and over for a 4/10 stake 1.83 with Bet365
Back Durham to beat Gloucestershire for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Stan James
Back Leicestershire to beat Derbyshire for a 3/10 stake at 2.30 with Bet365
Blog cricket YTD: -11.58pts
