Cricket World Cup Betting: Bangladesh v India

Match Previews / Andrew Hughes / 18 February 2011 /

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Gambhir has a good record at this ground

"A resurgent Bangladesh are in good form, having thrashed New Zealand here at the end of 2010, they can be a handful on their own patch and they know the Indian players inside out."

It's the World Cup opener on Saturday morning and it should be a tasty affair as the Tigers try to topple the tournament favourites in front of a fiercely partisan Bangladeshi crowd.

London Start Time: 08:30
Venue and Conditions
Pitches at the Shere Bangla National Stadium are usually slow and low and batting there is not that easy. Only two teams have passed 300 in 42 ODIs and totals around the 250 mark are usually pretty competitive. It is also good ground to chase on with 19 of the last 24 fixtures being won by the side batting second.

Team News
Bangladesh have no injury worries and a pretty settled side, though former captain Mohammad Ashraful can't be entirely sure of his place given his poor form in recent months. Raqibul Hasan or Shariar Nafees are his possible replacements.

Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan are expected to be fit after suffering niggling injuries and India's biggest problem is which of their star batsmen to leave out. The liklihood is that Virat Kohli will play at four, with Suresh Raina sitting this one out. Piyush Chawla's fine spell against Australia may also tempt India to abandon their usual policy and play a second specialist spinner.

Match Odds
There are plenty of reasons for favourite backers to get stuck into India ahead of this game. They are the best team in the tournament, they have had a smooth preparation and hold a 20-2 winning record against their neighbours to the east. But odds of [1.14] on an Indian win look a shade too short and there could be more value to be had in siding with the home team.

A resurgent Bangladesh are in good form, having thrashed New Zealand here at the end of 2010, they can be a handful on their own patch and they know the Indian players inside out. And India can sometimes be slow starters in tournaments. If the favourites are to come a cropper, it could well be in Dhaka and at [7.0] a home win is tempting proposition.

Top Batsman
Virat Kohli averages an impressive 91.66 on this ground and would rate a decent bet at [6.0] or so, though he isn't 100% certain to play. A more solid proposition and a certain starter is Gautam Gambhir. He is just the kind of cool head his team will need on a tricky pitch in hostile conditions, has 3 centuries to his name on this ground and his 89 against New Zealand showed he is in good touch. He can be backed at [5.0]

Tamim Iqbal will be popular in the market for top Bangladeshi batsman, but I would side with the world's best ODI all-rounder, captain Shakib Al Hasan, who averages 43 at this ground including two centuries and is a reliable bet at [6.0] or better

Featured Market
With the Little Master easing his way back into cricket after a hamstring injury, it could make sense to side with his opening partner in the Sehwag v Tendulkar market at [2.0] or better.

Best Bet:
Gautam Gambhir to top score for India @ [5.0] or better.

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