Sunday's first T20I between India and Sri Lanka in Guwahati was washed out without a ball bowled, but offered bettors a sneak peak into plans for the rest of the three-match series.
Indian captain Virat Kohli's decision to bowl first is a good tip for what the toss-winning captain will do for the rest of the series, as conditions will likely be similar in Indore and Pune. Bet365, meanwhile, have Kohli and Sri Lanka captain Lasith Malinga each priced at 1.90 to win the toss in the second match in Indore.
“We're going to bowl first. We haven't played here in a while. The last time we played here, we chased well. The game we played prior to that against Australia, they chased well too. The track does play differently in the second half as compared to the first part. It's a good thing actually, there isn't too much of a difference in conditions, except that the track settles down better later on with the wet ball,” said Kohli at Sunday's toss before the rain started to fall.
The XI Kohli named also offered insight into what it will look like for the next two matches. Manish Pandey, Sanju Samson, Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravindra Jadeja were left out. Spinner Kuldeep Yadav and Washington Sundar were named in the team alongside three specialist seamers.
The three seamers, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur and Jasprit Bumrah, are offered at 6.00, 5.00 and 2.87, respectively, to be India's top team bowler for the second Twenty20 match.
India vs Sri Lanka 2nd T20I top tips – highest wicket-taker
| Bowler |
Odds |
| Jasprit Bumrah (India) |
2.87 |
| Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka) |
3.40 |
| Yuzvendra Chahal (India) |
3.75 |
| Isuru Udana (Sri Lanka) |
5.00 |
| Washington Sundar (India) |
6.50 |
The first T20I washout as dramatically changed the odds of a series draw. With two matches left, if Sri Lanka and India win one each, odds of a series draw at 3.25 can reap reward. Alternatively, India are at 1.44 to win the series in the outright markets – and Sri Lanka are at 17.00.
“We have prepared well and will want to put it into performances. Need to put runs on the board and then take it from there. We have brought 16 players as we need to fine tune our combination for the T20 World Cup,” said Malinga.
The T20 World Cup, indeed, is later this year. Sri Lanka are priced at 26.00 to win the T20 World Cup in Australia and India are offered at 4.50.
T20 World Cup early betting odds
| Team |
Odds |
| Australia |
3.75 |
| India |
4.50 |
| England |
5.50 |
| South Africa |
7.50 |
| New Zealand |
8.00 |
| West Indies |
10.00 |
| Pakistan |
11.00 |
| Sri Lanka |
26.00 |
| Afghanistan |
51.00 |
| Bangladesh |
101.00 |
| Ireland |
501.00 |
| Netherlands |
1001.00 |
| Oman |
1001.00 |
| Papua New Guinea |
1001.00 |
| Scotland |
1001.00 |
| Namibia |
1501.00 |
