Twenty20 / Ed Hawkins / 27 April 2010 /

There is value aplenty on the top-bat and top-bowler markets in the World Twenty20. Ed Hawkins reminds you of the key rules to finding a winner and picks out some tasty prices.

If there are two elements to Twenty20 that can be considered 'predictable' it is that opening batsmen and death bowlers hog the limelight. Remember that when you place your wager on a top batsman or top bowler for the World Twenty20, which starts in the Caribbean on Friday.

It is not the kind of thinking which is going to impress Oxford or Cambridge. Common sense dictates that batsmen who have the opportunity to bat for longest, and the powerplay overs, often end up at the top of the charts. Death bowlers, who also have the opportunity of wickets with the new ball, pick up cheap victims at the end when batsmen have thrown caution to the wind.

In last summer's World Twenty20 in England, four of the top five runscorers were openers. Three of the top five bowlers were spinners, which would suggest a spanner in the works but we are not sure how effective they could be this time. Of course we must factor in form on the Caribbean wickets before picking a batsman for the sake that he is an opener or a bowler because he operates at the death. For instance Gautam Gambhir, the India opener, may well tempt punters at [15.50] but he averages only 19 there.

The men with everything in their favour are Jacques Kallis at [12.00], Graeme Smith at [18.50] and Mahela Jayawardene at [27.00]. All three are expected to open the batting and as part of strong sides, they should get plenty of matches under their belts.

Kallis is actually the top visiting runscorer in 50-over cricket in the Caribbean and coming off the back of a tremendous IPL, it will be no surprise to see him continue such strong trends. Smith, who has been out of the game with injury, also has a fine record in West Indies and we are grateful for the market appearing to factor in his absence.

Jayawardene looks the pick, though because few seem to have cottoned on to the likelihood that he will open. At the tailend of the IPL, Jayawardene opened the batting for King's XI Punjab and was something of a revelation. Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara has said that Jayawardene will be paired with Tillakaratne Dilshan, relegating Sanath Jayasuriya to a middle-order slot. With an average of 47 - boosted by Sri Lanka's World Cup charge in the Caribbean - Jayawardene is one of the most reliable batsmen in the tournament in these varied conditions.

Other batsmen who must get a mention are West Indies' Chris Gayle and New Zealand's Brendon McCullum. Gayle was third-highest runscorer in the last World Twenty20 and gets a [18.50] quote. McCullum, the top bat in international Twenty20, is too big at [40.0].

With the spinners impressing in the last World Cup (Ajantha Mendis, Saeed Ajmal and Shahid Afridi all made the top five) and West Indies pitches being hyped to take turn, one could be forgiven for siding with a twirler. Try to resist the temptation, though. In the top 10 of overseas wicketakers in 50-over cricket around the islands, only two are spinners and just 25% of wickets go to slow bowlers.

Having said that Muttiah Muralitharan, who is No 2 on that list, looks overpriced at [21.0]. The death men to look out for are Lasith Malinga [14.0], Dale Steyn [11.5], Shaun Tait [14.0] and, for something a little chunkier, Dwayne Bravo [50.0]. Umar Gul, top wicket-taker last time, is out with injury.

Malinga was tied for third in the last tournament and has a great record in the Caribbean with 18 wickets in just eight 50-over matches. One just hopes that he has not wasted too much energy in Mumbai's IPL campaign. Steyn is quick and accurate and liable to get plenty of games while Tait, although expensive, is a surprising seventh on the all-time list of 50-over visiting top wicket-takers.

As for Bravo he has been criminally underrated and although he cannot be guaranteed to bowl the crucial late overs, it is a role has often been asked to do in the past. With his canny changes of pace and cutters, Bravo could offer the best of both worlds - a bit of pace and turn.

Ed Hawkins says: Back M Jayawardene for top Twenty20 bat at [27.00]

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