Zimbabwe vs Pakistan Betting Tips 29/04/2021

18:55, 28 Apr 2021

Senior Author

18:55, 28 Apr 2021

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.

The first of the two-match Test series between hosts Zimbabwe and tourists Pakistan will begin on April 29 (Thursday) at 1pm IST in Harare.

Teams Status

Zimbabwe

The hosts shocked the world recently by beating a star-studded Pakistan side in a T20I match recently and could have even won the series, had they kept their cool in the final T20I.

Their confidence must have been boosted with those kind of performances and they’d be keen to impress in the longest format as well.

However, already not blessed with the deepest of talent pools, Zimbabwe will also be without by several of their regulars due to injuries. Craig Ervine has a calf injury while Sikandar Raza has not yet recovered from his infection.

Ryan Burl, Wesley Madhevere, Richmond Mutumbami, and Brandon Mavuta have been left out. The injuries and cuts meant a lot of new positions were open so Zimbabwe selectors have inducted uncapped quintet Luke Jongwe, Richard Ngarava, Roy Kaia, Milton Shumba and Tanaka Chivanga into their squad, while Brendan Taylor and Tendai Chisoro have also been recalled.

Pakistan

Pakistan have several new faces on their roster but then that has been nothing new under the reign of chief selector Mohammad Wasim. It remains to be soon though that how many of Abdullah Shafique, Agha Salman, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel, Shahnawaz Dahani, Tabish Khan and Zahid Mahmood end up making the cut.

The hosts will be wary of the fact that despite their excellent overall record against Zimbabwe, they did lose the last time they played a Test in Harare back in 2013 and ended up drawing the series 1-1. For a team featuring big names such as Younis Khan and Saeed Ajmal, it was a major disappointment.

Incumbent head coach Misbah was the captain back then and will know better not to underestimate the opponents, who are capable of springing surprises.

What do the Sportsbook Say

Home team name	Draw	Away team name
7.5	5.5	1.22
8.5	6.5	1.228
8.0	7.0	1.24

Pakistan are heavy favourites. 22Bet has a Pakistan win at 1.228, Zimbabwe win at 8.5 and draw at 6.5. Bet365 has Pakistan at 1.22, Zimbabwe at 5.5 and draw at 7.5, whereas LeoVegas has Pakistan at 1.24, Zimbabwe at 8 and draw at 7.

Tipster’s Angle

Tip: Babar Azam will score 50 runs – Yes @ 1.5

One of the sure shot bets in world cricket is to bet on Babar Azam to score runs. The man is a run machine who rarely fails. In Tests, he still has to achieve a lot but against Zimbabwe, he can be backed to at least make a half century.

Tip: Best player of the match – Shaheen Afridi

Shaheen Afridi did not play a single match in the T20I series against Zimbabwe and got a much-needed and deserved rest. So far in his young and blossoming career, he has done well in ODIs and T20Is but has yet to stamp his authority in the longest format, where his bowling average is a rather ordinary 32.33.

Now rested and against a weak opposition, it is the perfect opportunity for Shaheen to improve his record.

Conclusion

Pakistan have gotten their wakeup call in the T20I series. In the longest format, chances of an upset are lower than they were over 20 overs. Expect Pakistan to whitewash.