England v Australia 1st T20I – 04/09/2020

England v Australia 1st T20I Preview – Betting Tips, Latest Odds, Team News – 04/09/2020

England and Australia begin their white-ball series with a T20I clash in Southampton.

Preparations for next year’s T20 World Cup will be on their minds but maybe not as much as claiming victory over their rivals.

Make sure you explore our free expert cricket tips ahead of the first T20 battle.

England v Australia 1st T20I – Match Preview

Australia just edge the head-to-head record between these two teams in T20Is. They have won nine, England six and one no result from 16 clashes to date.

England won the last meeting when the sides met in Birmingham for a one-off match in 2018. They won by 28 runs after Jos Buttler starred with the bat.

Where: Ageas Bowl, Southampton, England

When: Friday 4, September 2020

Start Time: 21:30 (IST), 17:00 (GMT)

Pitch conditions: The pitch at Southampton has tended to be lively early in the match before settling down later. However, the ground has seen plenty of cricket this summer so don’t be surprised to see plenty of movement as well as added bounce and grip to help spin.

Weather conditions: It is set to be a dry day in Southampton with mostly cloud cover. It is set to brighten for the first part of this contest. Temperatures are set to be around 20 degrees.

England v Australia 1^st T20I – Latest Odds

England are made very slight favourites to start with a win on home soil. They can be backed at 1.8 with bet365.

Australia are priced at 2.0 with the same firm to edge this one.

England v Australia 1st T20I – Team News

England have recalled Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood. All three did not play in the recent T20I series against Pakistan.

Buttler’s return gives England another option at the top of the batting order in the absence of the injured Jason Roy.

The returns of Archer and Wood offer more fire to the seam attack, which will be without Lewis Gregory this time.

England Test captain Joe Root was overlooked, despite a fine performance in the T20 Blast recently.

Batsman Dawid Malan has been retained, but there is no room for left-arm seamer David Willey. Batsman James Vince has been left out again, too.

Australia named a 21-man squad for the trip, including Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, David Warner and Marcus Stoinis.

Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon make up a strong outfit. Batsman Josh Philippe may also get an opportunity.

England v Australia – Squads

England reserves: Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood

England v Australia 1st T20I – Betting Tips and Prediction

We highlight the best value bets on offer and make our selections to look out for before the action gets underway.

These include who we think the best batsman and bowlers will be for the first contest.

Pick Australia to Have the Highest Opening Partnership

It’s probably Aaron Finch and David Warner v Jonny Bairstow and Tom Banton for this one. Jos Buttler might get in there ahead of Bairstow.

Whatever the combination of openers, we’ll likely see them go big or get out quickly – they’re those type of players.

England tend to lose an opener early, while Finch and Warner are looking good for an extended stay here. You could almost double your money by betting on Australia to have the highest opening partnership at 1.9 with Betway.

Bet on an Accumulator Outcome for All-Round Ali

Moeen Ali performed well in the recent final T20I against Pakistan. He is one of England’s better hitters in the middle-order and can take crucial wickets with his spin.

He is also one of their strongest fielders, so is placed in strategic catching positions, predominantly on the off-side.

We are big fans of 22Bets’ accumulator outcomes – and for this one they have Ali priced at 13.0 to hit a six, take a wicket and a catch. Now that’s good value.

Pick Wood to be the Outright Star in Southampton

Mark Wood has been biding his time in the T20 Blast. He’s back in national colours now and the fast bowler’s outright pace could really unsettle Australia.

Wood has ‘wow’ factor and is offered at long odds of 21.0 to be the man of the match with 10Cric. He might prove costly runs-wise, but that could be offset by plenty of wickets.

He has taken at least one wicket in each of his eight T20Is – and two or more on five of those occasions.