The Ashes Regained!
December 18th, 2013 by G WaldorfWhat an Ashes series! The little urn is making its way to these shores as we write this, but Australia have been so dominant in the three Tests so far that they will have their sights on a whitewash that seemed pretty unlikely when the tourists first arrived in Australia.
But while it has been a story of revitalised Australian cricket, it’s a pretty sorry tale for England’s fans: they’ve had to watch their batting line-up fail again and again to put up any kind of meaningful resistance. It was all summed up in the second innings in lots of ways. The contrast between the English bowling performance – that saw Shane Watson smash his way back into form and George Bailey dispatch James Anderson for a record-equalling high-scoring over – and the very first ball of England’s second innings, which Ryan Harris nipped away from Alistair Cook to clip the top of the off bail. We talked about the tale of two captains as they came into this series, and in the Test that saw them both compete for the 100th time for their countries, their fortunes couldn’t have been more different. Heading to Melbourne and the next Test, there are some serious challenges facing Alistair Cook and Andy Flower, where Michael Clarke has all the best problems in the world.
So what are the series betting markets looking like now that the urn’s home has been decided? Australia taking the series 5-0 is the likeliest series result, according to the bookies at Sportsbet right now, and a $2.88 bet. If you think the England selectors will wield the axe in the hopes of injecting a bit of fight into their side, and you think that’ll help them, then you might see value in a $3.60 bet for a 4-0 final result. If there are changes in what was a very settled English side coming into the series, then Michael Clarke might get the chance to make a point for the next Ashes clash in 18 months’ time – but will he enforce a follow-on if he gets the chance? With an $8.00 bet on offer for any side to be forced to follow on, we think you might see value there, especially if Alistair Cook finally manages to win a toss! And on that note, if you’re of a mind to bet on the toss, you’ll get $3.60 for both 5-0 to Michael Clarke, or for 3-2…
Whatever you’re betting on, you can get all your latest Ashes odds just by following the link.
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