The Gabba will play host to the 1st ODI between Australia and Pakistan on Friday, January the 13th as Pakistan look to salvage something from their summer down under. After losing the 3-Test series in a clean sweep, Pakistan, who are the 8th ranked ODI team in the world, will be hoping they can cause an upset against the number 1 ranked and ODI World Cup Champs, Australia.
Australia have made some contentious decisions to their squad ahead of the start of the series on Friday, bringing in BBL06 stars Chris Lynn and Billy Stanlake to the squad at the expense of ODI mainstays Aaron Finch and George Bailey. The changes prove to be exciting ones if nothing else, especially the selection of Brisbane Heat skipper Lynn. He has the Heat atop the BBL ladder with 4 wins from their 5 games, smashing a ridiculous 309 runs at a 177 strike rate in the process.
Stanlake has taken 6 wickets through his 4 games so far, at a tidy economy rate of 6.98. If he debuts, he will become the tallest player to ever represent Australia in cricket, standing at a mammoth 204cm, one taller than Bruce Reid. His height and bounce combined with the ability to bowl 140+ should be worrying for the Pakistani batting line-up, as we have consistently seen him terrorise world class batsmen in the BBL this season. He may have to wait to make his debut however, with Mitch Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins also fighting for selection it what will likely be a 3 pronged pace attack.Other notable inclusions in the Aussie line-up are Melbourne Stars duo James Faulkner and Glenn Maxwell, who I believe represent the best 2-man all-rounder combo in ODI cricket. It’ll be a big test for both of them, who both need to play well to impress ahead of the al- important Test selection for the upcoming series in India.
Pakistan will most likely go into the game with a semi-revamped batting line-up to the one that competed in the Tests. Middle order batsmen Shoaib Malik and Umar Akmal will likely step in for Test specialists Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq. Regardless of who comes in, the Pakistani line-up will have their work cut out for them coming up against any combination of Starc, Hazlewood, Cummins or Stanlake.
With the depth of their batting line-up due to their ability to play a few all-rounders combined with their supreme fast bowling stocks, I find it hard to see a way in which Australia, who is the #1 ranked ODI team after all, don’t win this series at least 4-1. There’s not much value in the betting for game one, but Australia to win 5-0 is looking the goods at $3, that should keep you going all January.
TIP: Australia to Win 5-0 - $3 at Sportsbet
David Warner, Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja are all in blistering form coming into the match, so it’s really a toss up to which one of them is going to lead the Aussies in runs. However, one player market I like is Glenn Maxwell to win man of the match, due to his ability to have an impact with the ball as well as the bat. He’s also the best fielder in the world.
TIP: Glenn Maxwell MOTM - $10 at Sportsbet
