Win suggests punters should buy England one-day runs
A SEVEN-WICKET win is a great way for England to start the tour of South Africa, but what does it mean for spread betters? For many, the Test series is of course still the main event, but there are some bets around for punters who can’t wait.
Perhaps the tastiest are the bets on the winner of the series. At the time of writing, Spreadex was offering a series index, (with 10 points per won game, 5 points per match tied, 0 per lost game, 25 points bonus if they win series, and 12.5 point bonus if the series is tied), with a spread of 52-56 for South Africa, and just 13-23 for England. At that price, and bearing in mind yesterday’s performances, it might be worth buying England, or selling the home team.
Perhaps equally interesting is the Total Series 50-ups. This aggregates all the scores of all individual batsmen scores over 50 – ie, if someone hits 75 that’s 25 towards the total – and the quote is 365-390.
After just one completed game, the aggregate stands at 113, meaning that again this looks like a good one to buy. A Total Series Ton-ups spread, which works the same as the above, but for centuries, stands at 40-46: only 13 were scored towards this in the first match. (Both of these prices are with Spreadex.)
Sporting Index also offer a good range of bets including markets for the highest individual score in the series (120-125), highest innings score (314-320), total series ducks (6.8-7.2), total series sixes (38-41) and fours (230-240).
Most of the spread betting companies also offer markets on the performances of individual players – notably a 50-Up market, ie the number of runs that an individual will score over his half-century. With one game already rained off, then maybe it is a better idea to concentrate on markets that don’t depend on a large number of games being completed, such as this one.
&65279;HISTORICAL RECORD
So what does history tell us about individuals’ performances? Although he only hit 16 yesterday, the statistics suggests that you might be recommended to buy Strauss’s runs.
Since he was reinstated to the ODI side earlier this year when he was made skipper – following a two-year absence from the side – Strauss has made 575 runs, more than anybody else in the England team. Until Collingwood made a ton yesterday, Strauss was the only Englishman to do so in 2009. He has had four 50-plus knocks this year, as well.
Collingwood, in fact, has been England’s star performer so far this year. He has taken nine catches in 16 games, and also taken 15 wickets in 16 innings. He has now notched up 617 runs in 16 innings and his habit of being not-out means that his average is only on the up. More importantly, it suggests that he will carry on making runs. Frankly, buying Collingwood runs sounds like a good bet, whatever the weather.