England v Pakistan preview, player tips & predictions

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MATCH INFO
England v Pakistan
Venue: Trent Bridge, Nottingham, Monday, June 3, 10.30am (British time)
Head to head odds: England $1.25; Pakistan $4
Last time they met: England 9-351 (50 overs) d Pakistan 297 (46.5 overs) at Leeds, May 19, 2019.

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Everything in the recent form of these two teams points to an easy win for England in their 2019 ICC World Cup match against Pakistan.

The home team started their World Cup with an emphatic win against South Africa, and before that they crushed Pakistan 4-0 in a ODI series in England in May.

Pakistan, meanwhile, swung a few squad changes after the England series but then collapsed in spectacular fashion at this very ground Trent Bridge against the West Indies in their World Cup opener last Friday.

But Pakistan being Pakistan you can’t help but suspect they will produce something spectacular. They certainly have the ability and can play with a bit more freedom in a match they are not really expected to win. Plus England’s batting did wobble slightly before all-rounder Ben Stokes came to the rescue against the Proteas.

That being said, we will bet around the head-to-head market and try to find some value elsewhere. With the home team in action local bookmaker William Hill is certain to come up with some interesting markets and we’ll scour them and see if we can find a way to make a dollar while watching what should be another intriguing clash.

This England-Pakistan betting preview will run you through best bet options for match 6 of 48 of the ICC World Cup 2019.

England v Pakistan odds:

For full markets visit the William Hill website.

HEAD TO HEAD BETTING:
England $1.25, Pakistan $4
Prediction: England were solid in their opening win against South Africa; Pakistan crumbled. We expect a much better effort this time from Pakistan. This could be a good match in which to take the $4 about Pakistan and if they got on top in the match, look to the betting in the run if you are in a country where this is available and lock in a profit.

TOP RUN-SCORER BETTING:

England:
Top five in betting: Joe Root $4, Jason Roy $4.33, Jonny Bairstow $4.33, James Vince $5, Jos Buttler $6.

Top scorers from past five ODIs:
v South Africa: Ben Stokes 89
v Pakistan: Joe Root 84
v Pakistan: Jason Roy 114
v Pakistan: Jonny Bairstow 128
v Pakistan: Jos Buttler 110no

Pakistan:
Top five in betting: Babar Azam $3.75, Imam-ul-Haq $4.33, Fakhar Zaman $4.50, Haris Sohail $6.50, Shoaib Malik $6.50.

Top scorers from past five ODIs:
v West Indies: Fakhar Zaman 22, Babar Azam 22
v England: Sarfaraz Ahmed 97
v England: Babar Azam 115
v England: Imam-ul-Haq 151
v England: Fakhar Zaman 138

Top batter prediction: England big guns Jason Roy and Joe Root made half-centuries but did not go on with it, while Jonny Bairstow was out first ball! We liked the calm demeanour with which Root batted so will go with him to top the charts for England this time. Fakhar Zaman looked the part in his brief knock for Pakistan, so the $4.50 available this time looks decent value.

TOP WICKET-TAKER BETTING:

England:
Top five in betting: Jofra Archer $3.75, Adil Rashid $4, Chris Woakes $4.50, Liam Plunkett $5, Tom Curran $5.

Top wicket-takers from past five ODIs:
v South Africa: Jofra Archer 3-27
v Pakistan: Chris Woakes 5-54
v Pakistan: Tom Curran 4-75
v Pakistan: Chris Woakes 4-67
v Pakistan: David Willey 2-57, Liam Plunkett 2-64

Pakistan:
Top five in betting: Hasan Ali $3.75, Shadab Khan $4.33, Mohammad Amir $4.33, Wahab Riaz $4.33, Shaheen Afridi $4.50.

Top wicket-takers from past five ODIs:
v West Indies: Mohammad Amir 3-26
v England: Shaheen Afridi 4-82
v England: Imad Wasim 2-62, Mohammad Hasnain 2-80
v England: Junaid Khan 1-57, Imad Wasim 1-58, Faheem Ashraf 1-75
v England: Shaheen Afridi 1-80, Hasan Ali 1-81, Yasir Shah 1-60

Top bowler tip: We successfully selected the rising superstar Jofra Archer to take the most wickets against South Africa, but this time we will switch our allegiance to Chris Woakes. The fast medium bowler proved a real handful for the Pakistan batsmen in the recent series, so he will do us for this match.

Mohammad Amir was the only Pakistan bowler to take a wicket against the West Indies and he has arrived to this World Cup in good nick after being a late in. No reason not to back him again as the ball has seemed to do a little bit in the opening overs and he is likely to get first crack.

WGL best bets: England v Pakistan

Each of our ICC World Cup betting previews will highlight some potential wins for punters, or where our cricket tipsters think there is value to be found.

Joe Root to be top England batsman

William Hill is offering enhanced odds on this outcome so we will happily put our faith in the tough Yorkshireman. He is the real class act among a team of power-hitting dashers, so we can see him playing the anchor role again.

Team of top batsman: Pakistan

We’re expecting at least one of the young Pakistan batting stars to get hot this time, and they have a few really capable of making big hundreds. The $2.50 for Pakistan as opposed to $1.50 for England seems generous to us.

England v Pakistan prediction

This is a difficult match to line up because, even though Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur hates to hear it, his team is the most wildly unpredictable and inconsistent on the planet. This is a match for which we advise punters to tread warily and maybe just have a small investment. Just watch it for the sheer theatre it seems likely to produce.

ALSO READ:
ICC World Cup 2019 betting guide
ICC World Cup 2019 leading wicket-taker
Cricket betting sites
ICC World Cup 2019 leading run-scorer
ICC World Cup 2019 player of tournament

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