Australia vs Sri Lanka 5th T20I Betting Tips 20/02/2022

February 19, 2022

Zohaib Ahmed, Senior Author

The fifth and final T20I between Australia and Sri Lanka will be played on Feb 20 (Sunday) at Melbourne Cricket Ground. The match is to begin at 11:40am IST.

Teams Status

Australia

Having already wrapped up the series in the 3^rd T20I, Australia decided to rest key players such as Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc for the final two matches but still managed to win the fourth T20I with ease.

Just as in the third match, the Aussies restricted the Lankans to a lowly score – 139 for 8 this time – before getting to that total without breaking a sweat.

The home side’s pair of Richardsons – Kane and Jhye – took two wickets apiece while Ashton Agar choked the life out of Sri Lankan innings with a stingy 1 for 14 bowling display as the guests once again struggled for runs as well as to keep their wickets.

To chase 140 runs should not have been a problem for the Aussies but they still had a bit of a bother when they were 49 for 3 in the 9^th over. But then a Josh Inglis blitzkrieg of 40 off 20 and Glenn Maxwell’s unbeaten 48 made sure there were no more dramas.

Sri Lanka

Batting was once again Sri Lanka’s Achilles heel and is the reason why they are four down in the series. Apart from Pathum Nissanka, no one else managed to stick at the crease for a long time.

Even then, the top four got some runs. The batters that followed them were totally hopeless and the less said about them the better.

Nissanka has been the one positive point for the islanders this series. He has yet to fail so far on this tour and continues to turn heads in a side that needs much more batting talent of different variety.

Wanindu Hasaranga has been missing for the last two games due to a Covid diagnosis. He did return a negative PCR test recently. If he does so again tomorrow, he’d be available for selection and significantly bolster the Lankan playing eleven.

What Do the Sportsbooks Say?

Brand	Australia	Sri Lanka
	1.11	6.0
	1.11	7.0
	1.14	5.70

Australia are massive favourites for the 5^th T20I. Parimatch has Australia priced at 1.11 and Sri Lanka at 6.0. Paripesa has Australia available for 1.11 and Sri Lanka for 7.0. Lastly, Sportsbet has Australia priced at 1.14 and Sri Lanka at 5.70.

Tipster’s Angle

Tip: Sri Lanka to win @ 7.0

Before raising your eyebrows, just look at the odds. The odds on offer on Sri Lanka have now soared to 7.0. That is outrageously lucrative even if Australia are on the cusp of a whitewash and even if the Lankans have not win a single game this series. The Aussies are playing several fringe players and the Lankans must now desperately want to avoid a sweep. They might also get back their talismanic allrounder Hasaranga for the final game. Don’t go crazy on this but you can make a little play on Sri Lanka for a potential bonanza. The odds have been sourced from Paripesa.

Tip: Pathum Nissanka to score more than 18.5 runs @ 1.87

The only Sri Lankan player who has enhanced his reputation even in a 4-0 mauling is Pathum Nissanka. The man has not failed once in this series, which is why we like him for this bet as well. The odds for this play have been sourced from Parimatch.

Conclusion

One team is obviously much stronger than the other and it reflects in the series results being tilted in their favour. However, the odds on offer are just so tasty that we couldn’t help but root for Sri Lanka here.

Zohaib Ahmed

21:43, 19 Feb 2022

Senior Author

Zohaib Ahmed

Senior Author

21:43, 19 Feb 2022

Zohaib Ahmed is a sports journalist whose profession is to report and edit but whose passion is to predict and bet. He’s been in the industry for more than a decade and has worked/written for various bookmakers/tipsters. His expertise is in cricket, football, MMA, boxing and basketball.