IPL Betting: Devil of a surprise

Betting tips / Andrew Hughes / 21 April 2012 / Leave a comment Bet Now View Market

Pune have lost their last couple of games and need to regro

Andrew Hughes thinks the Warriors, who have lost two on the bounce, can surprise the table-topping Daredevils in Saturday's second IPL game.

Team News

Delhi have not made too many changes in recent games, but Ajit Agarkar bowled particularly poorly last time so could be in line for a rest. Roelof van der Merwe will continue to keep the bench warm.

Pune will be hoping that leading wicket taker Ashok Dinda recovers from the side strain that kept him out of Thursday's game. Alfonso Thomas or Wayne Parnell are the options if they want to bolster their pace attack.

Venue and Conditions

Delhi have won both their home games this season, chasing down totals of 112 and 162. There is a bit more life in the Fero Shah Kotla pitch than most grounds in the IPL, but it is still a decent batting track, flat and true rather than slow and low.

Match Odds

Delhi's game plan has been to bowl the other team into submission then chase down the runs and it has worked a treat so far. They've won three on the trot to top the table and now that their star trio of Kevin Pietersen, Mahela Jayawardene and Ross Taylor are acclimatised, they could take some stopping.

By contrast, Pune have lost their last couple of games and need to regroup, but they have the biggest squad in the IPL and have plenty of options to freshen things up. At odds of 2.44 the Warriors are too big and I'd back them to bounce back against Delhi, whose pace-dominated attack will be to their liking.

Top Delhi Batsman

Pietersen hit his first ever T20 century on Thursday but is likely to be available at pretty cramped odds and with Virender Sehwag and Ross Taylor yet to get going, it's safest to stick with the reliable Mahela Jayawardene at 4.0 or better

Top Pune Batsman

A wide open market, but Jesse Ryder should be better suited by Delhi's fast bowlers than he was against the spinners in Chennai and can be backed at 3.5