Pakistan vs Australia 2nd ODI Betting Tips 31/03/2022

After suffering a chastening defeat at the hands of a depleted Australia in the series opener, Pakistan now face the battle to save the series as well as save themselves from further embarrassment. To do that, they must win the second ODI, which will be played at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on March 31 (Thursday) and begin at 3:30pm IST.

Teams Status

Pakistan

Pakistan were super bad in all the facets of the game in the first ODI. Their bowling unit was missing ace pacer Shaheen Afridi and without him the pace battery looked toothless to put it lightly.

Debutant Mohammad Wasim Jr was treated to a baptism of fire as he went wicketless and conceded 59 runs in his 8 overs, proving to be the most expensive of Pakistan bowlers. The other debutant, Zahid Mahmood, was also expensive but at least picked up two wickets.

During the run chase, Pakistan were doing well at 120 for 1 when they suffered an all too familiar meltdown. Imam-ul-Haq got his century and Babar Azam got his half century but the rest of the batting line-up did next to nothing. A mere 225 runs for a side enjoying home conditions and facing second string Aussie side was disappointing to put it lightly.

It is such displays why Pakistan languish in 11th place in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League standings.

Australia

Already without a number of their superstars, Australia were given more setbacks in the build up to the first ODI as they lost Ashton Agar as well as Mitchell Marsh.

But the next man up philosophy of the Aussies took center stage and Travis Head gave them such a headstart that they made Pakistan play catch up for the rest of the day.

Head’s century powered them to a total past 300 and then in the other innings it was Adam Zampa’s turn to impress. Generally, Pakistanis are thought of as excellent players of spin but against Zampa they looked feeble as he finished with a four-for.

Australia sit fourth in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League standings with 70 points to their name. A sweep here could help them climb up the ladder.

What Do the Sportsbooks Say?

Brand	Pakistan	Australia
	1.60	2.30
	1.675	2.21
	1.65	2.26

Despite being thrashed in the series opener, Pakistan are still the favourites for the second ODI. Parimatch has Pakistan priced at 1.60 and Australia at 2.30. Paripesa has Pakistan available for 1.675 and Australia for 2.21. Lastly, Sportsbet has Pakistan priced at 1.65 and Australia at 2.26.

Tipster’s Angle

Tip: Mohammad Rizwan to score less Under 29.5 runs @ 1.87

Mohammad Rizwan is a brilliant batter as evident in the awards he has accumulated over the past year. However, he plays his best when opening the innings. Down the order he has yet to prove himself and truth be told he does seem uncomfortable when sent in to bat late. We’re not convinced of him as a number five yet. We expect him to struggle to cover the spread here. The odds have been sourced from Parimatch.

Tip: Aaron Finch to score less than 27.5 runs @ 1.87

Another batsman we are unsure of is Aaron Finch who looked far from his best during his laborious 23 off 36 in Game 1. Granted that he was playing facilitator to Head but still he was clearly not at his best. On top of it, if Shaheen Afridi plays the second ODI, it will be very difficult for Finch to survive the opening exchanges. The odds have been sourced from Parimatch.

Conclusion

Pakistan will find its scorers but they will not be able to find an alternative option for Shaheen Afridi. The man is Pakistan’s best bowler by a country mile and if he is absent again, Pakistan will struggle.

Zohaib Ahmed

23:54, 30 Mar 2022

Senior Author

Zohaib Ahmed

Senior Author

23:54, 30 Mar 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.