The race to qualify for the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup semi-finals is heating up, and Australia will be looking to cement their place among the frontrunners when they take on Netherlands on Wednesday night.
While Australia will enter this clash as the raging favourites, the Dutch have shown themselves to be giant killers already in this tournament.
Check out our full preview of the match below, complete with betting tips and player props!
ICC Cricket World Cup Betting Tips
Australia vs Netherlands
Delhi, Wednesday 25th October, 7:30pm (AEDT)
Australia
Australia have managed two wins on the trot after a slow start to the tournament, beating Sri Lanka and Pakistan to jump into the top four.
The men in green and gold have shown improvement in all facets of the game, demonstrated by the comfortable nature of both victories.
Against Pakistan it was the opening batsmen who set up an easy win, David Warner (163 off 124 balls) and Mitch Marsh (121 off 108) putting on 259 for the first wicket in a whirlwind partnership.
As such, the resulting total of 9/367 was well under par, with only two other batsmen achieving scores in the double digits. The lack of runs from Australia’s middle order is sure to be a talking point going forward, especially as Travis Head is set to return from a lengthy injury layoff, putting the likes of Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Glenn Maxwell under pressure to perform.
With the ball, Adam Zampa continued his resurgence with another four-wicket haul, while the other bowlers struggled outside of Josh Hazlewood (1/37).
Overall, despite sitting 2-2, Australia are still relying on individual efforts rather than team performances to put wins on the board, which could become an issue in the latter stages of the World Cup.
Nevertheless, I can’t see too many personnel changes for this game, except maybe the inclusion of Head who is now fully fit.
Australia Predicted XI: David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa
Netherlands
Netherlands fell back down to earth after their shock victory over South Africa, losing to Sri Lanka by 5 wickets on Saturday night.
Unable to recapture the bowling form of their previous match, the Dutch took just five wickets as Sri Lanka cruised home, with off-spinner Aryan Dutt (3/44) leading the way.
Spin has been king for this Netherlands team throughout the tournament so far, the three-pronged attack of Dutt, Roelof van der Merwe and Colin Ackermann helping the team to remain competitive against quality opposition. Those three with be crucial again in this match against an Australian team that has had its fair share of issues against spin.
On the batting side of things, more is required from the top order. None of the Netherlands batters feature in the top 25 run scorers and often it has been the middle order pulling most more weight in this tournament.
Despite this, Netherlands should take a similar XI into the encounter with Australia, especially considering the win over the Proteas not so long ago.
Netherlands Predicted XIs: Vikram Singh, Max O'Dowd, Colin Ackermann, Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Scott Edwards, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Aryan Dutt, Paul van Meekeren
Betting Tips
It’s very difficult to see Australia losing this one, and the punters agree. Australia are just about unbackable favourites for this match, so I’m turning my attention away from the head-to-head market to find some value. The Aussies have been aggressive with the bat early in their innings led by Warner and Marsh, and with this set to continue I’m backing the openers to start with a flurry again on Wednesday.
Australia Runs in Over 1 (Over 3.5)
$1.73
Player Prop Quick Tips
Mitch Marsh Over 34.5 Runs ($1.83 at Ladbrokes) – Marsh has found form after a slow start to the 2023 World Cup, hitting 121 and 52 in his last two innings. The big hitting ‘Bison’ should enjoy facing Netherlands’ understrength bowling attack, so I fancy him to clear this line with ease.
