Richard Mann is chancing his arm at some big prices when England and the West Indies lock horns in the second ODI in Cardiff on Sunday morning.
Cricket betting tips: England v West Indies
1pt Matthew Forde top West Indies batsman at 33/1 (BoyleSports)
1pt Gudakesh Motie top West Indies batsman at 33/1 (General)
It’s hard to see things getting any easier for the West Indies on Sunday, when they look to bounce back from a 238-run thrashing in the ODI series opener on Thursday.
Swap Birmingham for Cardiff, with stumps out at 11am UK time, but expect the same result in what is likely to prove another mismatch.
Despite Edgbaston serving up a beautiful batting wicket, one which England posted 400 on, the tourists could only manage 162 in reply.
Gulf in class makes for one-sided affair
The series opener highlighted a clear gulf in class between the two sides, and an early look at the weather forecast for Sunday suggests there will be enough cloud cover to make the ball talk.
It wouldn’t need to be a lot, going on Thursday’s evidence, and this West Indies batting line-up looks very vulnerable.
We might’ve missed the boat with this one, but the top West Indies batsman market looks worth a dart, with some big prices down the order taking the eye.
What are the best bets?
Number 11 Jayden Seales won the market with 29 out on Thursday, and while I won’t be going that low, I’m happy to chance MATTHEW FORDE and GUDAKESH MOTIE, both at 33/1.
Forde made a hundred in his last First Class appearance, and then blasted a 19-ball 58 in the recent ODI series with Ireland. He also made 38 in the previous match.
He can clearly hit a long ball, and a quickfire cameo might well do the job on Sunday if England’s seamers do some early damage again.
He will likely bat at number eight, with Motie listed to come in at nine.
Motie made 18 on Thursday when looking for all money like he would top score, just as he did in a Test match against England at Lord’s last summer.
He only made 31 not out that day, but is a lovely, clean-striker of the ball who is more than capable of landing when the West Indies are so heavily outmatched.
Roston Chase was also seriously considered.
A good player who has batted in just about every position across formats, Chase is only 12/1 despite being listed to bat down at number seven.
Root England's batting rock
We were with Joe Root on Thursday, and while I still like the angle of backing England’s best player while his brief is to control the middle part of England’s batting innings, I’ll sit this one out.
One concern is that if England bat second, they might not be chasing a great deal, and the form of opener Ben Duckett could mean he gets a good jump on Root.
Keep a close eye on the pitch, and weather, before striking any in-play bets, but for now we’ll take a flyer on that flaky West Indies batting line-up.
Preview published at 1020 BST on 30/05/25
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