Dean Etheridge
- 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup
- England vs. South Africa – Match 20
- Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, India
- Saturday, October, 21st 2023
England and South Africa meet at the Wankhede Stadium in a crucial clash in the ICC Cricket World Cup on Saturday. The two teams are evenly matched, but England (-130) are the slight betting favorites. It’s a must-win match for both and here we look ahead to the fixture in our latest cricket betting picks.
Both these teams suffered bad defeats in their respective third fixtures. England lost to Afghanistan by 69 runs on Sunday. Then on Tuesday, South Africa managed to lose against the Netherlands by 38 runs.
The defeats are major setbacks for both nations. And when the competition concludes, they could be seen as the days that both teams saw their respective World Cup campaigns come to an end.
Afghanistan's big win over England earns them two valuable points, shaking up the #CWC23 standings 👊 pic.twitter.com/3ttBfO7LA1
— ICC Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) October 16, 2023
As a result of the defeats, England is now out to +750 to defend the trophy they won in 2019. South Africa is a bit shorter in the betting at +550. India leads the way on +110. And after recording their first win of the competition with a victory over Sri Lanka on Monday, Australia is now the second favorite at +450.
England vs. South Africa Match Betting
As you’ve already seen, South Africa has shorter odds to win the Cricket World Cup than England, but the English have shorter odds than South Africa in the betting to win this match.
The reason for this is the group table positions. Only the top four teams from the group of ten will qualify for the semi-finals. So far England has one win from three matches (two points). While South Africa has two wins from three matches (four points). England is regarded as the better team. But South Africa is in a stronger position to qualify for the semi-finals.
So, onto the match betting, and the best cricket betting sites make England -130 to win the match on the money line. South Africa is +110. Given the form of England, that’s a touch surprising.
Elsewhere, Dawid Malan (+333) is the favorite to be the top England batter. Reece Topley (+333) is favored to be the top English wicket-taker.
For South Africa, Quinton de Kock is +300 to be their top run scorer. Kagiso Rabada is the clear favorite to be the South African top bowler at +240.
More match-winner betting options are available on our odds table. Our best sportsbook sign-up bonuses page has details of the latest offers from the bookmakers listed.
| England vs. South Africa |  |  |  |
| England | -130 | -130 | -130 |
| South Africa | +110 | +110 | +110 |
England on the ropes after three matches
England is the Cricket World Cup defending champions. But after two defeats in their opening three matches, they are in real danger of not making it to the semi-final stage. Jos Buttler’s team has six matches left, and all six already feel like must-win matches.
Also not helping England is that their two defeats came at the hands of New Zealand (nine wickets) and Afghanistan (69 runs).
𝐀𝐅𝐆𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐍 𝐖𝐈𝐍! 🎊
What a momentous occasion for Afghanistan as AfghanAtalan have defeated England, the reigning champions, to register a historic victory. A significant achievement for Afghanistan! 🤩👏#AfghanAtalan | #CWC23 | #AFGvENG | #WarzaMaidanGata pic.twitter.com/miNw8WcDsw
— Afghanistan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) October 15, 2023
New Zealand are a team capable of reaching the last four, but they are not as strong as India or Australia. As for the loss to Afghanistan, well, they are a full ICC member, but they’ve hardly played 50-over cricket in recent years.
Starting on Saturday with the match against South Africa, England still has the majority of their difficult fixtures to come. This also includes matches against India, Australia, and Pakistan.
South Africa humiliated by World Cup Minnows
As for South Africa, they started with impressive wins over Sri Lanka and Australia and then undone all their good work by losing to the Netherlands by 38 runs in their third match of the competition.
One of the greatest ICC Men's Cricket World Cup upsets of all time in Dharamsala as Netherlands overcome South Africa 🎇#SAvNED 📝: https://t.co/gLgies5ZBv pic.twitter.com/KcbZ10qdAG
— ICC Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) October 17, 2023
Another defeat on Saturday against England could see all that hard work count for nothing.
The win over Sri Lanka was impressive. The South Africans scored a mammoth 428/5 in 50 Overs, setting a new World Cup record for the highest score on their way to a 102-run victory.
Next, Temba Bavuma’s team scored 311/7 against Australia in their second match, impressively beating the Aussies by 134 runs. And at this stage, all seemed good for the perennial underachievers.
A match against the Netherlands was next on the roster, and if they win that, South Africa surely already has one foot in the semi-finals.
How they lost to the Netherlands is a mystery. Okay, weather played a part, but that doesn’t excuse an abject performance from the South Africans. One that could cost them come the end of the tournament.
Our England vs South Africa Picks
It can be hard calling cricket picks before the toss has been made. But from what we do know, the South African team looks in a better place than England. The Netherlands’ loss has to go down as a freak result, and the South Africans must know if they can perform to the level they did against Sri Lanka and Australia, they have the beating of England.
It looks more like a 50/50 call on paper. But the odds favor England (-130), who are odds on, while South Africa (+110) is at odds against. Therefore, we are going for a South Africa win for our betting pick.
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