ICC World Twenty20.....Asian Round Robin

By Bigjoe

Commences Friday 30th April 17.00 GMT

The inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007 saw India beat Pakistan in the final. The next edition in England last year saw Pakistan beat Sri Lanka in the final. There is every chance in this latest edition of the Asian round robin being completed with a final between India and Sri Lanka.

That possibility is made even more likely by the fact that, unlike the pitches in South Africa and England, the ones on offer in the Windies will be of the slow and low variety, pitches that are more common in the sub continent.

The Asian sides will feel at home, especially in light of their vast resources in the spin bowling department. I believe spin will play a major role on these pitches and batsman with experience on slow tracks will also be at an advantage. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have those spinners, they have those batsmen and I am confident that they will dominate this tournament again.

Here is my take on all the contenders:

West Indies

Chris Gayle, Keiron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Kemar Roach took part in the IPL tournament just completed in India. Pollard had a couple of great cameo innings, but overall they struggled to make a big impact, with Gayle and Bravo being the biggest disappointments.

The Windies need these big players to fire if they are going to have any chance at all, however I feel too many of them are out of form and, with their bowling on the weak side too, I feel the Windies will struggle to make any significant impact in this tournament.

New Zealand

Very lack lustre perfmances in the IPL by Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori, Ross Taylor and Shane bond suggests that the Kiwis have a big task in making their mark on this tournament. The Kiwi’s normally punch above their weight, but I feel they will struggle this time and may well be the victims of a giant killing or two.

South Africa

The perennial under achievers in World Events will have been encouraged by the performances of Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn in the IPL, but other big names Hershelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers, Mark Boucher and JP Duminy failed to make an impact. Pace bowling will not be as effective on these Windies pitches and the Saffers lack of top class spinning options could see them underperforming in a major event yet again and they could fail to make the Semi Finals.

England

Successful outings in the IPL for Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood and Ravi Bopara will hold them in good stead here. England bat deep and will be capable of scoring big. The weakness will on the bowling front on these slow pitches where the pace bowlers Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson and Tim Bressnan will struggle and there will be an over  reliance on the spinner Graham Swann. I can see England getting into winning positions, but fear their bowling will struggle to defend even big scores and they will do very well to make the semi final stages.

Pakistan

The holders have been going through a horrendous run both on and off the field. A disastrous tour of Australia was followed by suspensions and wide spread discontent amongst the players. To make matters worse, all the IPL franchises ignored the Pakistan players, and they continue to be the nomads of International cricket with no cricket at home due to security issues. Not the ideal preparation then for this tournament and I feel its going to be very difficult for them to retain the trophy. On a positive note, they do have in Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal probably the most effective spin pairing in the tournament and on these pitches they are still capable of making the semi finals.

Australia

Captained by Michael Clarke, Australia look very strong on paper. Big hitters Shane Watson, David Warner, Brad Haddin and Cameron White backed up by Michael and David Hussey represents a formidable batting lineup.But, as with South Africa, the weakness will be on the spin bowling department. Nathan Hauritz and recent newcomer Steve Smith are not of the calibre of other spinners in this tournament and on these pitches the Aussies will struggle to defend targets. They are strong enough to reach the semi finals but I fear they will fall short of making it to the final.

Sri Lanka

The losing finalists from last year should make it to the final again. A strong batting lineup of Sanath Jayasarua, Tilkeratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakarra, Mahela Jayawardne and Angelo Mathews backed up by a balanced bowling attack including Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis represents the perfect blend for this format. The pitches will be more akin to the Sri Lankan pitches they are used to and I fully expect Sri Lanka to go all the way to the final again.

India

Most likely winners for me. The loss of Virender Sehwag is a blow to them, however the batting order is still packed with attacking, positive players. A lineup of Gautam Gambhir, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma and Yousef Pathan is, arguably, the best in the tourney. On the bowling front the ever reliable Zaheer Khan is complimented by the spin trio of Harbhajan Singh, Pyush Chawla and Ravinder Jadeja.

On these pitches, this balanced Indian side has the firepower to go all the way and repeat their success of 2007. I am confident that they will do so, and in emphatic style.

Bettingwise, I will be playing the outright market as well as the top tournament batsman and bowler markets. My suggested bets are:

In the Outright Market:

BACK India to win for 5 points @ 5.5 Bet365, Totesport, Bwin, Coral

BACK Sri Lanka to win for 3 points @ 7.0 at Totesport, Paddy Power, Sportingbet and Extrabet

In the Tournament Top Batsman Market:

BACK Gautam Gambhir for 1 point @ 15.0 at Bluesq and 888Sport

In the Tournament Top Bowler Market:

BACK Lasith Malinga for 1 point @ 17.0 at Bluesq, Totesport and 888Sport

Join me as I am confident that the Asian round robin will be completed in this tournament.

Bigjoe