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Cricket
Punters were on the mark in the first Test between India and Australia when the match ended up drawn.
There was plenty of money to suggest that would happen before the Test began, with one punter from the UK placing a total of $12,000 on a draw at an average of 2.30. There had also been support for India (3.25 into 3.00), but they were all but out of contention during their first innings chase of Australia.
After that point in time, the possibility of bad weather as well as a reasonably favourable batting track saw money continue to come for a draw, including one bet of $8000 at 1.60. That result has given us some hope however that the Aussies either win or draw the four Test series and that would be a more than handy result. Several four figure amounts (largest being $6000) was placed on India to win the series at 2.25, and while that remains the price, we haven’t given up hope just yet.
The second Test gets under way on Friday, and it will be the first time that Australia has played India in Mohali. Only seven Tests have been played at this ground, and while India has only lost once, there have been four draws. That statistic has seen plenty of money come for the draw again, and in the first 24 hours of betting, the price crashed from 2.30 into 2.20.
Anil Kumble has been under fire this week about his performance in the first Test, but it is worth noting that the spinner has grabbed 15 wickets at his last two appearances in Mohali. That may be an opportunity if any bookies are offering a most wickets market, and of course also points towards the pitch being a spinners track. We will be taking on the draw again to try and get some of the first Test losses back.
Formula One
Fernando Alonso won his second successive GP in Japan at the weekend, and once again it was a big upset.
Alonso was nowhere near the 67.00 that he was in Singapore, but he still went around on Sunday virtually unwanted at 26.00. Plenty went right for the Spaniard with favourites Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa encountering their fair share of problems, but at the end of the day it was Alonso who came out on top.
Pre-qualifying, Alonso was at 21.00, and he eased out slightly after being allocated position number four on the grid. Lewis Hamilton was on pole, and he was the one that punters were keen on. After opening at 1.90 at the conclusion of the Saturday session, Hamilton was into 1.70 at start time, with the largest bet being $8000 from an Asian client who may well have been at the race.
He didn’t get much of a run for his money as Hamilton was given a drive through penalty for trouble he caused on the first turn after a slow start. After that he was rammed by Massa, and that was the end of either of their winning hopes. Hamilton wound up in 12th place which of course means he failed to get a point, while Massa finished in the points in 7th place. The gap between the pair has now closed to five points, so we can expect some thrilling action in the two remaining races which will be held in China and Brazil.
Title betting is still alive and well, and Lasseters has Hamilton at 1.33 ahead of Massa at 3.20, but Robert Kubica is still a remote chance (21.00) of causing an upset after finishing second in Japan.
Motor Bikes
The trick to finding the winner of Sundays Moto GP in Malaysia will be deciding who has the most motivation, and who is fit.
As we know, Casey Stoner won the most recent race in Australia, and all the talk before the race was whether or not he would in fact finish, such is the magnitude of his wrist injury. Stoner was naturally eager to win on home soil, but you have to question how he will perform this week.
Lasseters has listed Stoner as a 2.50 chance pre-qualifying, but there has been no interest at all in him. To be fair, the betting overall has been quiet, with Valentino Rossi heading the market at 2.10. The Italian has already wrapped up the Championship, and while punters always hold the view that somebody like Rossi now has nothing to ride for, he has been in this position before and still won.
Rossi has won three of the last five Malaysian GPs, and they all came on the back of qualifying fastest. He finished 5th last year behind Stoner, but Casey wasnt carrying any injuries at that time. Next in line are Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo (both 8.00), and both of these riders are more than capable of winning, especially given that each of them has been competitive at various stages this season.