England v Australia: World Cup betting preview, TV channel, team news & tips

TV: Sky Sports Cricket & Main Event, 10.30am Tuesday

Lord's, London

England won nine of their ten one-day internationals against Australia in 2018 but they will be taking nothing for granted in their World Cup showdown with the Aussies at Lord’s.

England’s defeat to 8-1 underdogs Sri Lanka means they are not yet guaranteed a place in the semi-finals and their last three league matches are against the top three in the table – Australia, India and New Zealand.

Australia started 2019 as 6-1 shots to retain their World Cup crown but, after series wins over India and Pakistan, they were backed into 7-2 by the start of the tournament.

Aaron Finch’s men have made a solid start, losing to India but winning their other five games, and they are 6-5 to extend England’s wobble with a victory in St John’s Wood.

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England’s opening batsmen have played crucial roles in their rise to the top of the ICC’s ODI rankings but Jason Roy is still nursing a hamstring injury and Jonny Bairstow has had a patchy tournament, bagging golden ducks against South Africa and Sri Lanka.

Roy’s understudy James Vince has failed to grab his opportunity with scores of 26 against the Afghans and 14 against the Lankans and Australia’s new-ball pair Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins represent a significant step up in class for Vince.

The Aussies are evens to have the higher opening stand and that price is worth snapping up given the form of Starc and Cummins with the new ball and Finch and David Warner at the top of the order.

Bairstow may curb his naturally attacking instincts after his second duck of the World Cup and Vince suffered another frustrating dismissal against Sri Lanka, nicking a catch to slip after taking ten runs off the first three balls of a Lasith Malinga over.

Australia’s openers, in contrast, have been churning out the runs at this tournament. Warner’s last three innings include 166 against Bangladesh and 107 against Pakistan while skipper Finch, who has scored 82, 153 and 53 in his last three outings, averages 57 in 19 ODIs this year.

England bowlers Chris Woakes and Jofra Archer have to be respected but at the prices Australia are worth backing to post the higher first-wicket score.

Joe Root’s dismissal for 57 began England’s slide towards that shock defeat to Sri Lanka and the number three has a crucial role to play against Australia.

Root ended the pre-tournament series against Pakistan with an innings of 84 at Headingley and his six knocks at the World Cup have yielded three fifties and centuries against the West Indies and Pakistan.

The Yorkshireman’s last ODI innings at Lord’s was a superb unbeaten 113 against India last July.

Australia’s bowling in the middle overs is less threatening than their efforts in the Powerplay and death overs and Root, who is brilliant at keeping the scoreboard ticking over, could take advantage of that weakness.

Recommendations
Australia to have higher opening partnership
2pts Evs Betway, Sky Bet
J Root top England runscorer
1pt 3-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Team news
England
Roy is set to miss his third game with a hamstring problem but he may be fit enough to face India on Sunday. Vince will continue to deputise at the top of the order.

Australia
Marcus Stoinis returned from a side strain to bowl eight overs in the win over Bangladesh and he should feature again.

Venue
Pakistan’s pace bowlers and spinners created huge problems for South Africa in Sunday’s game at Lord’s and the winning margin of 49 runs would have been far wider had they held their catches.

Pakistan made 308-7 and England scored 322-7 against Australia last year but the last six ODIs at Lord’s have featured only two individual centuries.

Weather
Cloudy but dry morning, sunny afternoon and temperatures reaching a balmy 25C.

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