How To Bet on Cricket: A Complete Guide

You might be an avid cricket fan, or you might simply like to bet on sports. Either way, there are dozens of bets you can make on cricket.

Some bets are easy for any sports fan to understand. Others require a more in-depth knowledge of this sport and the teams that play it.

In this guide, we’ll show you how you can bet on cricket, as well as what sets cricket apart from other forms of sports betting. Once you understand the basics, we’ll help you turn this knowledge to your advantage. Keep reading for more.

Cricket Game Formats

In order to form a successful strategy, bettors have to first understand that teams and players don’t necessarily perform equally well in all different formats of the game.

So, before we go on to talk about the various cricket bets you can make, we should get acquainted with the three international cricket formats:

• Test matches are the longest form of cricket, lasting up to five days. Traditionalists see this as the pinnacle of the game of cricket, filled with drama and excitement, although often at a slow pace. The conditions of the game might change drastically over the course of the game, so expect a lot of opportunities for live cricket betting.
• One-day matches are limited to 50 overs per batting team (an over lasts for six balls, so that’s a total of 300 balls). The match usually takes seven to eight hours, which is more than enough time for a few twists and turns. One-day matches are packed with action and always provide interest for fans and bettors alike.
• Twenty20, also called T20, is a limited-overs format that’s become increasingly popular over the past two decades. With matches limited to a maximum of 20 overs per innings and taking three hours apiece, it’s possible for tournaments to schedule double-headers. The IPL (Indian Premier League) started in 2007 and has since become the go-to competition for the best international talent, bringing excitement to a new generation of cricket fans and attracting punters along the way.

Betting on Cricket Matches

As is the case with any other sport, there are dozens of bets you can place on cricket. We’ve made an overview of the betting options that cricket fans and punters typically enjoy the most.

Match Betting

If you’ve ever placed a bet on your favourite football or rugby team to win a match, you’ll be happy to know that you can bet the same way on cricket. You can place a bet on one of the three possible outcomes: the home team wins, the visiting team wins, or the match ends in a draw.

When searching for an online cricket betting site, try to find one that offers a draw no bet option. This makes the three-way bet into a two-way bet and reduces your risk. If the match turns out to be a draw or a tie, you’ll get your money back.

Tied Match

A tie and a draw might seem like the same thing, but in cricket betting, there’s a difference between the two terms. A draw is a common outcome in test matches; this occurs when neither team has managed to dismiss the opposition twice to claim victory after five days of play.

A tie, on the other hand, is achieved when the two teams both finish the match on the exact same number of runs. Depending on the format of the match and the series it’s being played in, the game might go to a super over to decide the winner, in which case your bet would most likely be void.

As a rule, the shorter the match format, the higher the chances of a tie. Although the odds of a one-day or T20 match going to super over might look tempting, the chances of it actually happening are actually very slim.

It’s also technically possible for a test match to be tied, but this has only ever occurred twice in nearly 2,500 matches, so we wouldn’t recommend putting your money on a cricket bet like this.

Completed Match

This is a simple yes or no bet that’s available only for limited-overs formats; you’re betting on whether the match will get completed during that day. According to the International Cricket Council (ICC), an ODI match requires a minimum of 20 overs per innings. For a T20 match, a minimum of five overs needs to be bowled per innings for the game to reach a result.

Betting on Runs

There are many ways to bet on how many runs will be scored during a cricket match. You can predict how many runs are scored in the entire match, in a particular innings, or even the first six overs. For those who like to bet on cricket, predicting runs is amongst the most common and interesting wagers to place. One way to do this is to predict whether a team will beat the par score.

Bookmakers set a par score and you bet on whether the team will beat the score or fail to surpass it. This is a two-way bet, meaning there are only two possible outcomes. For example, bookmakers set the par score at a figure like 250.5 runs, and you have to predict whether or not the team will beat this score.

Top Bowler

The top bowler is one of the easiest online bets on cricket to make, as you’re simply betting on which player will take the most wickets during the match.

Before making this bet, take into account the playing conditions. After all, your favourite fast bowler will probably perform well on the fast, bouncy pitch in Perth, but might struggle on the spin friendly-wickets in India.

If two or more bowlers have taken the same number of wickets, then the one who conceded the fewest runs will be considered the top bowler.

Top Batter

Another way to place a simple online bet on cricket is by betting on which batter makes the most runs in the match. Even the best players fall out of form sometimes, so make sure to check their current stats to see how they’re performing before splashing out.

Also, watch out for how individual players perform on each tour. Once the tour starts, it becomes clear which players are in good nick and which ones need to adapt if they are to compete. Bet on those players who are consistent with their run-scoring form.

Player of the Match

As the name suggests, this is where you bet on who’ll be dubbed player of the match when all is said and done. At this point, we’ll give you a cricket betting tip: this one is probably better suited to more experienced punters. Why? Because the player of the match doesn’t always go to the highest run-scorer or the bowler with the best figures; it could be that another player was adjudged to have had a greater impact. You really need a good feel for the game to be able to predict this.

Coin Toss

It’s a 50-50 chance, so why not start off the game with a small bet? Even if your team is notorious for having bad luck with the toss, you shouldn’t feel bad about betting against them. If you lose your bet, at least your team has a better chance of winning.

Cricket Betting Strategy

As your interest in cricket grows and your betting gets more advanced, you can develop a plan for each match depending on the specific conditions. We’ve assembled a guide to help you look for the most important factors in a cricket match, as well as some advice on how to use this information to your advantage.

The Ground and the Pitch

There are a couple of things to take into account when looking at the ground conditions. First, certain venues have been historically known to favour a certain type of play.

For example, the Adelaide Oval is a flat pitch with short boundaries. The even bounce here makes it easier for batters to settle in and go for a ton. In these conditions, it’s likely to be a high-scoring game.

On the other hand, if you’re betting on a cricket match held at the WACA ground in Perth, you should know that this venue is generally good for fast and swing bowlers. The sea breeze appears from time to time to add that crucial extra mile to the bowler’s pace.

It’s usual for a fast bowler to have more impact on the first few days of the Test match. At this stage, the side with more raw pace is going to have the tactical advantage.

However, as the match comes into the fourth and fifth days, the pitch starts to deteriorate, and as the cracks in the pitch appear, the spinners come into play. Therefore, the team with the craftiest spin bowler might have the advantage at that stage.

The same thing applies when placing one day or T20 bets on cricket. Always research the playing conditions beforehand and learn as much as you can about the scoring stats at the venue.

Team and Players

It’s important to follow the current form of your favourite players and teams. There is a lot of competition in the world of cricket, and players try to bring their best game to all formats of the game. Some are better at adapting to different formats than others, while others are particularly strong at one format and don’t even bother playing the others.

So if you’re going to bet on which cricket player will be the highest run scorer in a T20 match, someone like Jos Buttler would be a good choice, as he’s known for his devastating power in the shortest format. However, if you’re betting on a test match, it’s hard to go past Joe Root, England’s “Mr Dependable.” He’s not as aggressive as Buttler, but he’s capable of consistently making massive scores in longer matches.

Winning the Toss

The coin toss is so much more important in cricket than it is in sports like football or tennis, as it determines which team bats first. The coin toss has proven to be a deciding factor in many cricket matches, which is why you should wait to see who wins the toss first before picking a winner.

One of the more general cricket betting tips is that the team batting first usually has a better chance of winning the game, especially in test cricket. That’s because over five days, the pitch deteriorates, which makes batting much more difficult later on.

However, in a limited-overs match, this isn’t an issue. In fact, nowadays, most teams back themselves to chase a target in short-form cricket and actually prefer to bat second. The weather forecast could be an important factor here; if it’s sunny in the morning but the forecast predicts overcast conditions (which favour bowlers) later on, then a team might choose to bat first.

Final Thoughts

Cricket has always been one of the most popular sports in the world. Today, with the IPL and International T20 matches drawing in crowds like never before, it looks like this game is going from strength to strength.

The betting community has caught on, and there are more cricket punters now than ever before. In this guide, we’ve given you a comprehensive look into what makes cricket betting attractive and how to form a winning strategy. If you’ve followed us this far, we suggest finding a trusted sportsbook and testing your luck.

FAQ

How to bet on a test match

Betting on test cricket is similar to betting on other formats, although there are a few more options, since test matches take much longer to conclude. Because these matches last for five days apiece, there’s a higher chance of batters scoring half-centuries and centuries, so those bets are going to have more appeal for punters than when they’re betting on T20 cricket.

How to bet on cricket online

To do this, you first need to make an account at a betting site. Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to deposit funds into the account so you can bet. Go to the “live” section, where you’ll find the current matches. However, we suggest that you take some time to learn more about the teams and the venue where the match will be held before wagering any money.

How can I bet on cricket?

You can find an online betting site or go to a brick-and-mortar sportsbook. There are many different bets you can place, including which team wins the match, who is the top run-scorer, or which player takes the most wickets.