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In cricket betting markets, there is a series of odds next to each possible outcome. These are shown as sets of figures and they can come in three separate formats.
Fractional and decimal odds are the most common, while a third option known as American odds is most popular with North American bookmakers. In this guide, we will show you exactly what those odds mean.
The Basics of Cricket
Cricket is a team sport with eleven players on each side. Each side takes turns to bat and bowl and the object is to score more runs than the opposition.
There are three main formats of the sport:
• First class (including test cricket)
• One Day Cricket (usually comprising 50 overs per side)
• T20 Cricket
First class cricket features timed matches over four or five days and there is an option for these games to be drawn. One day and T20 cricket matches allocate a certain amount of overs for each side and the team with the most runs wins the game.
How Cricket Betting Odds are Calculated
Cricket odds tells us two things:
• The likelihood of an event happening
• How much we stand to profit if our bet wins.
The odds setters work with probability to calculate those odds. If we take match betting for a T20 game as an example, it’s a case of looking at the two teams and deciding which one will win.
The comparative strengths of the two teams will firstly be taken into account. A historically strong team such as India will be considered as more likely to beat a developing side such as Afghanistan.
Other factors such as pitch conditions and home advantage are also considered by the odds setters.
How to Understand Cricket Betting Rates
As mentioned above, cricket betting rates reflect the probability of an event happening. Let’s say that England are rated as an Even Money chance to beat Pakistan in an upcoming One Day International.
Those odds would be shown as
• Fractional: 1/1
• Decimal: 2.0
The implied probability of England winning here is 50%.
In the game between Australia and Afghanistan, we’ll say that Australia are clear favourites at odds of 2/7 (1.29 decimal).
The probability of Australia winning this match is 77.8%
It does require a certain amount of mathematical knowledge to work those probabilities out, but the good news is that there are many online tools that will do the work for you. Simply enter the odds, and the probability percentage will be displayed.
Odds also tell us how much we can expect in the event of a winning bet.
Using the 2.0 decimal odds on England as the example, we are staking £10. If the bet wins we receive:
£10 x 2.0 = £20
These are more simple to calculate and, in any case, your sportsbook should show potential winnings when you open a betslip online.
Types of Cricket Bets
In the examples given above, we’ve used match betting as this is the simplest and most common market. It’s used by new and experienced bettors alike, but there are many more to choose from.
The list includes Futures Betting where it’s possible to bet on the outcome of a series or tournament. For example, you can speculate on which team will win the Indian Premier League or the Cricket World Cup.
Cricket also provides a wide set of side markets, many of which focus around the players. These bets focus on a player’s performance and they often relate to the number of runs scored or wickets taken.
Popular examples include
• Top Scoring Batter
• Top Wicket Taker
• Team of Top Scoring Batter
• Team of Top Wicket Taker
There are also markets available for the Player of the Match. In the big games, an award is given to the player who has made the best contribution to the outcome, and it’s possible to bet on who you think that might be.
Some bookmakers will take things even further by providing markets on individually named players. For example, will Player A score more than fifty runs in his innings? Will Player B take more than five wickets?
Other popular cricket side bets relate to the teams. Totals markets are a common choice among the bookmakers, and we can expect to see markets for:
• Total Runs Scored
• Total Sixes Hit
• Total Fours Hit
Other markets may be a little more niche. These might include a bet on whether or not a century will be scored in the game. For the biggest games of cricket around the world, the best bookmakers may have over a hundred different betting options in place. Each will have match odds, while the majority of operators will also quote for those common player and team markets.
Comparing Cricket Betting Odds
While the odds tell us the likelihood of an event happening, the figures are not the same across all bookmakers. In any sporting market, some sportsbooks will list more generous odds than others.
We all want more value for money in the modern age, and that should be the case with our betting too. Lower odds mean less profit if you win, so how do you make sure you’re not losing out?
There are many odds comparison sites online that list options for all the major bookmakers. Simply find the event that you want, and then compare the odds across all the listed platforms.
You can also follow our lists of recommended sportsbooks. One of the criteria that we use when assessing the best operators is the generosity of the odds, so this is a good starting point.
With experience, you will also start to understand which bookmakers provide the best odds for cricket betting markets. Over time and after many bets, there will be a natural understanding of value for money.
Cricket Betting Tips and Match Predictions
You can follow tipsters to get some advice, but you should check their track record first. Look to see if they have been successful over a long period of time with previous predictions.
Many cricket bettors prefer to do their own research, and there are many things that you can look at. Those odds are there to help, and they will tell you who the favorites are, but there will always be upsets in any sport.
Look at a form guide: How have those teams been performing in recent matches? Are they on a long winning streak, or have they suffered a few defeats coming into this game.
Home conditions can play a part, particularly in an international game where the away side is coming in from overseas.
Next, you can take into account any head to head results between the two teams to see if there are any useful indicators.
Similar principles apply when you are looking at individual player markets. If, for example, you are looking to bet on the highest run scorer in an upcoming match, are they in good touch with the bat in the lead up to the game? Are they strong in certain conditions and do they have a good record against specific opposition?
Those factors can also be taken into account when you’re looking at bowlers.
In totals betting, we can also look at previous results, but there are other points to consider here. For example, if we are looking at Total Runs, Total Sixes and Total Fours, it’s a good idea to look at the dimensions of the ground. A smaller playing area is likely to yield more runs, although the sportsbooks will also be aware of this, and they will adjust their odds accordingly.
In summary, by all means look at the tipsters, but be ready to do your own research. Consider the odds carefully and take your time before making a decision.
