England and Pakistan Favorites To Win T20 World Cup
India went in as betting favorites to win the ICC T20 World Cup, which is currently taking place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). India has had a horrible start to its T20 World Cup campaign, losing its first two games to Pakistan and New Zealand. Its chances of qualifying for the T20 World Cup playoffs are extremely low as multiple factors need to fall in place outside its control to qualify.
As of this writing, the two teams in the driver’s seat are England from Group 1 and Pakistan from Group 2. England top their group, having played 3 games and coming out victorious in all three games. Pakistan has done the same thing in their group, winning 3 out of 3.
England – Betting Favorites
England has one of the best T20 squads in world cricket and was expected to have a good run at the T20 World Cup even though they are without their premier all-rounder and vice-captain, Ben Stokes. England also came into the T20 World Cup a bit unsettled as there were concerns over their upcoming tour to Australia, where they get to play in The Ashes.
The English and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) sorted out the Ashes fiasco and enabled England to go into the T20 World Cup with a clear mind. Eoin Morgan did not have a great IPL but displayed some great leadership skills, and he has once again done that leading the national side.
England has looked a class apart as their batters and bowlers have been dominant. Their last game was against Australia, and it was expected to be a tough clash as Australia does have a strong squad. England demolished them with a fine bowling performance that saw the Aussies bundled out for 125. England chased it down with relative ease and won in 11.4 overs to considerably boost their net run rate.
South Africa and Australia are in the same group as England but don’t look as dominant or confident as England. The West Indies, the current T20 champions, have struggled, losing two out of their first three games.
If you are considering betting on the winner of the T20 World Cup, you should definitely consider England.
Pakistan – Betting Odds
The most unpredictable team in world cricket has shown some great consistency in the first three games of the T20 World Cup. Their biggest challenge was against India, as Pakistan has always struggled to beat India in ICC World Cup games. They broke that jinx when they hammered India and showed their fans that they were serious about winning their first T20 World Cup.
Pakistan’s commitment is clear as captain Babar Azam is leading from the front. His mother was on a ventilator when Pakistan played India, but that only motivated him to play a brilliant knock and score 68.
Azam has been under a lot of stress during the last three games, but he did not want to drop out as this is the first time he is captaining Pakistan in a big ICC event. Pakistan also defeated New Zealand who was their second biggest threat in the division. The key for Pakistan to do well is to stay in the same frame of mind and play as a team.
Former England captain Michael Vaughn says the only team he thinks can beat England at the ICC T20 World Cup is Pakistan. It is always risky to put your money on Pakistan as you never know when they will have a bad day. However, based on how they have played at the T20 World Cup, you should definitely consider backing Pakistan.
Can India Qualify For The Playoffs
India looks out of sorts, and our experts predicted this because all of their key players struggled during the 2021 IPL and went into the T20 World Cup in poor form and short of confidence. Virat Kohli also announced that he was going to step down from T20 captaincy at the end of the T20 World Cup and head coach Ravi Shastri also announced that he would be moving on after the T20 World Cup.
This wasn’t the best time for those announcements, and one wonders what impact they have had on the players’ mindset. You must consider these factors when you ask if India can qualify for the playoffs.
They will have to win all their remaining games and try to win by a huge margin, so their net run rate goes up. They will also need to depend on outside factors such as the Kiwis losing to Scotland or Namibia. If this happens, India will have a chance to qualify, but as of now, it looks like that is highly unlikely.
