ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Free Predictions & Betting Tips

India Team Preview

India Team News

The two-time champions have included Dinesh Karthik, KL Rahul and Vijay Shankar in their 15-man World Cup squad but the Virat Kohli-led team has no room for Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu. Shankar sustained a blow to his forearm during a training session ahead of the warm-up match against New Zealand. However, no major injury has been reported and the all-rounder is expected to be fit for India’s campaign opener against South Africa. The number four spot in India's batting line-up had been up for grabs for quite some time but the issue has finally been put to rest with Shankar confirmed for that position. Lokesh Rahul will serve as a reserve opener while Dinesh Karthik has been selected as a back-up wicket-keeper for MS Dhoni. Meanwhile, Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of the World Cup for three weeks due to a thumb injury. Though the Indian team management is yet to decide on his replacement, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer seem to be the most likely candidates to replace him in the squad.

Jasprit Bumrah will be spearheading India's pace attack which also includes Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami and all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Ravindra Jadeja will serve as the third spin option with spin-twins Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal being the first-choice spinners. All-rounder Kedar Jadhav, who was ruled out of the IPL midway through the tournament with a shoulder injury, has regained complete fitness and is declared fit for the World Cup. This means that India’s final CWC19 squad remains unchanged.

India in World Cups

India have won the tournament twice - first in 1983 beating the West Indies in the final at Lord's and then 28 years later in 2011 when they beat Sri Lanka in the final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. They have also had successful campaigns in the 2003 and 2015 editions. In 2003, they went on to reach the final but faced a heavy defeat against Australia at the Wanderers. Last term, they topped their group and won seven matches on the trot before going down to the same opponent in the semi-final.

India Recent Form in ODIs

India have enjoyed plenty of success in the fifty-over format over the last three years. They have won 10 of their last 12 ODI series including the Asia Cup held last year in the United Arab Emirates. However, they were beaten 2-3 at home by Australia in their previous series in the month of March.

India Key Players

India's batting strength relies mainly on Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal form a potent bowling attack.

India World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

India are being offered at odds of 4.33 on Betway, 4 on Bet365 and 4.30 on Betrally to win the ICC World Cup 2019.

India Squad World Cup 2019

Australia Team Preview

Australia Team News

David Warner and Steve Smith, who finished serving their year-long bans last month, have returned to the Australian national team for this upcoming quadrennial showpiece event. With Warner back in the set-up, Australia will now have to reconsider their opening positions that are currently held by Usman Khawaja and captain Aaron Finch. Shaun Marsh's impressive recent form has earned him a place in the preliminary 15-man squad while Peter Handscomb and Josh Hazlewood are the two notable omissions.

Meanwhile, Jhye Richardson has been removed from Australia’s CWC19 squad after failing to recover from the shoulder injury he had sustained during the ODI series against Pakistan in the UAE. The Australian selectors have called up Kane Richardson as a like-for-like replacement and he will be joining Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jason Behrendorff and Mitchell Starc to form the team’s five-man pace attack. Nathan Lyon and Adam Zampa are the two specialist spinners in the squad. All-rounder Marcus Stoinis along with Glenn Maxwell and Shaun Marsh will constitute Australia's middle order.

Australia in World Cups

They are the most successful team in the tournament with five title triumphs. They beat New Zealand in the final of the previous World Cup at the MCG and so they will enter the 2019 edition as defending champions. They finished second in their group with four wins and a solitary loss from six matches before going on to clinch the trophy for the fifth time. The Aussies have finished runners-up on two occasions - in 1975 and 1996 when they lost to the West Indies and Sri Lanka in the respective finals.

Australia Recent Form in ODIs

After losing six bilateral ODI series on the bounce, Australia have started to return to their winning ways with wins in their last two series. They carried out a 5-0 whitewash of Pakistan in their previous series in the UAE. Prior to that, they defeated India 3-2 in their own backyard.

Australia Key Players

David Warner and Steven Smith have finished serving their one-year bans from international cricket and the duo along with Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh will be the key figures in this Australian batting line-up. Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Coulter-Nile will be threatening with the ball in English conditions.

Australia World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

Betway and Bet365 are both offering odds of 4.50 on Australia to win the ICC World Cup 2019 while Betrally is offering 4.30.

Australia Squad World Cup 2019

Pakistan Team Preview

Pakistan Team News

Mohammad Amir, who was left out of the team’s preliminary 15-man World Cup squad due to poor form and illness, has now been picked in the final squad after regaining complete fitness. While Amir has replaced left-arm pacer Junaid Khan, Wahab Riaz has been included at the expense of all-rounder Faheem Ashraf. Mohammad Hasnain, who caught the attention of the selectors in this year's PSL, has been preferred over Usman Khan. He will be joining Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Shaheen Afridi and Hasan Ali to form the team's pace attack. Mohammad Rizwan is another notable omission from the squad.

Pakistan had earlier included young batsman Abid Ali, who holds the record for the highest individual score by a Pakistani batsman on debut, but he has now been replaced by middle-order batsman Asif Ali. Ali is currently in the USA to attend his daughter’s funeral and there is no official confirmation yet on when he will be rejoining the team. Mohammad Hafeez has recovered from his finger injury and will take part in the tournament. Skipper Sarfraz Ahmed together with Haris Sohail and Shoaib Malik make up the team's middle-order batting while Imad Wasim and Shadab Khan have filled up the all-rounder slots. Shadab had earlier been ruled out of the England tour after contracting an infection, making him doubtful for the World Cup, but Pakistan will be relieved to see the full recovery of their premier spinner.

Pakistan in World Cups

They too are one of the former champions, having won the tournament back in 1992 when they pipped England in the final at the MCG in Australia. They also had a successful run in the 1999 edition where they went all the way to reach the finals at Lord's. Unfortunately, they suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Australia to finish runners-up. In the previous World Cup, Pakistan went into the quarter-finals having won four of their six group matches, only to get knocked out with a six-wicket loss to Australia.

Pakistan Recent Form in ODIs

Pakistan failed to reach the finals of the Asia Cup last year. They have since played four bilateral ODI series - against New Zealand (in the UAE), South Africa (in South Africa), Australia (in the UAE) and England (in England). While they managed a 1-1 draw against the Kiwis, they suffered a 2-3 defeat against the Proteas before being swept 0-5 by the Aussies and 0-4 by England.

Pakistan Key Players

Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam and Shoaib Malik, who is set to retire from ODI cricket after the 2019 World Cup, will be the key men for Pakistan with the bat. Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim and Shadab Khan are the main weapons in the team's bowling arsenal.

Pakistan World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

Pakistan are currently being offered at odds of 21 on Betway, Bet365 and Betrally to win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

Pakistan Squad World Cup 2019

Afghanistan Team Preview

Afghanistan Team News

The inclusion of former captain Asghar Afghan and pace bowler Hamid Hassan were the main headlines as Afghanistan revealed their 15-man CWC 2019 squad. Asghar will be one of the key batsmen in the middle-order along with Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Rahmat Shah and skipper Gulbadin Naib. Hazratullah Zazai and Noor Ali Zadran are the two openers in the side. Meanwhile, Mohammad Shahzad has been ruled out of the remainder of the World Cup after aggravating his knee injury he had picked up during the warm-up match against Pakistan. He has been replaced in the squad by wicketkeeper-batsman Ikram Ali Khil.

Afghanistan's pace bowling group comprises Aftab Alam, Dawlat Zadran and Hamid Hassan who has been preferred over an out-of-touch Shapoor Zadran. Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb ur Rahman are the team’s primary spinners while Rahmat Shah and Samiullah Shinwari will serve as part-time spin options. Javed Ahmadi and left-arm wrist-spinner Zahir Khan are among the notable exclusions.

Afghanistan in World Cups

Afghanistan became an ICC member only after the 2003 World Cup and they failed to qualify for the 2007 and 2011 editions. They finally made their first World Cup appearance in 2015 where they had to bow out at the end of the group stage after losing five of their six group games. Their only win in that tournament was a narrow one-wicket victory that came against Scotland at Dunedin.

Afghanistan Recent Form in ODIs

Afghanistan have been making rapid strides in the white-ball format. After handing Zimbabwe a 4-1 thrashing in the UAE in February last year, they won the ICC World Cup Qualifier held in Zimbabwe the following month before beating Ireland 2-1 in Ireland. They exceeded expectations in the Asia Cup, winning both their group-stage encounters and giving Pakistan, Bangladesh and India a good run for their money in the Super Four round. Afghanistan then  played a five-match series against Ireland in India which ended in a 2-2 draw. They beat Scotland 1-0 in a two-match series at Edinburgh earlier in the month before drawing 1-1 with Ireland at Belfast.

Afghanistan Key Players

Afghanistan’s batting will depend primarily on the likes of Mohammad Shahzad, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Asghar Afghan while the spin troika of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi will hold the key to their bowling.

Afghanistan World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

Afghanistan are huge underdogs amongst the bookmakers to win the World Cup. They are being offered at odds of 201 on Betrally and 101 on Betway and Bet365.

Afghanistan Squad World Cup 2019

South Africa Team Preview

South Africa Team News

South Africa had included paceman Anrich Nortje in their 15-man squad for the upcoming CWC19 while leaving out batsman Reeza Hendricks and all-rounder Wiaan Mulder. However, Nortje has been ruled out of the tournament with a hand injury and he has been replaced in the squad by all-rounder Chris Morris. Aiden Markram has been picked over Hendricks owing to his impressive form in the domestic one-day tournament and he will accompanied by Hashim Amla and skipper Faf du Plessis at the top of the order. The Proteas have just the one specialist wicket-keeper in their squad in form of Quinton de Kock while Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller serve as the back-up wicket-keeping options.

Lungi Ngidi and Kagiso Rabada make for a formidable pace attack. While Rabada and Ngidi have made full recoveries from their respective injuries, Steyn has failed to recover from his shoulder injury and has therefore been ruled out of the 2019 Cricket World Cup. Left-arm pacer Beuran Hendricks is set to replace Steyn in the squad. Tabraiz Shamsi and Imran Tahir are the two frontline spinners with JP Duminy being the part-timer. Dwaine Pretorius and Andile Phehlukwayo are the two all-rounders in this South African squad. JP Duminy and Imran Tahir are set to retire from ODIs after the conclusion of the World Cup while Dale Steyn will step down from white-ball cricket.

South Africa in World Cups

South Africa, despite being one of the most dangerous ODI teams in the world, have never won the World Cup. Leave alone winning, they are yet to make their first appearance in the final. They, however, have a pretty good record in the tournament; they have featured in seven World Cups so far and have reached the semi-finals on four occasions. The Proteas finished second in their group last term with four wins from six matches. They thrashed Sri Lanka in the quarter-final but could not overcome New Zealand in the semi-final.

South Africa Recent Form in ODIs

South Africa have been showing impressive form in the fifty-over format. After the conclusion of the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, the Proteas have played seven bilateral ODI series till date and have won six of those (the last five on the trot). Their most recent ODI assignment came against Sri Lanka at home this year in March and they won all the five fixtures of that series.

South Africa Key Players

Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis and JP Duminy form the pillars of this South African batting line-up. Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo and Imran Tahir will be the main threats with the ball in England.

South Africa World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

South Africa are currently priced at 11 on Betrally and 13 on Betway and Bet365 to win the ICC World Cup 2019.

South Africa Squad World Cup 2019

Sri Lanka Team Preview

Sri Lanka Team News

Sri Lanka have appointed Dimuth Karunaratne as their captain for the 2019 World Cup. His inclusion means that the team will be having a new opening combination with the skipper partnering with either Lahiru Thirimanne or Avishka Fernando. The latter picked up an ankle injury while fielding in the warm-up game against South Africa and had to be stretchered off the field. However, scans have revealed no serious injury. Angelo Mathews, the former captain, has returned after having recovered from his hamstring injury. Dinesh Chandimal and Niroshan Dickwella have been ignored due to their recent batting struggles with the latter passing on the wicket-keeping duties to Kusal Perera who has recuperated from his hamstring injury.

Sri Lanka's pace attack is formed by Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep and veteran Lasith Malinga who will probably be playing his last World Cup. Thisara Perera and Isuru Udana are the two pace-bowling all-rounders while Milinda Siriwardana and Jeevan Mendis are the two spin-bowling all-rounders. Sri Lanka have, surprisingly, preferred leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay over Akila Dananjaya. Angelo Perera, Oshada Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga and Kasun Rajitha have been named as standbys.

Sri Lanka in World Cups

The 1996 edition is Sri Lanka's most memorable World Cup as they went all the way to clinch the title, beating Australia by seven wickets in the final at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. In addition to winning the tournament once, they are also two-time runners-up having made back-to-back appearances in the final in 2007 and then in 2011. Last time, the Lankans made it through to the knockout round quite comfortably after winning four of their six group encounters. However, a humiliating nine-wicket loss to South Africa in the quarter-final resulted in their elimination.

Sri Lanka Recent Form in ODIs

Sri Lanka have only two wins in their last twelve ODI series (excluding the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy and the 2018 Asia Cup). They won the tri-series involving Bangladesh and Zimbabwe last year in January after defeating the former in the final. They had a disappointing Asia Cup in the UAE where they lost their first two fixtures to be ousted from the competition during the group stage. The Lankans have since lost to England at home before suffering clean sweeps against New Zealand and South Africa respectively. However, they beat Scotland 1-0 in their most recent ODI assignment.

Sri Lanka Key Players

Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Perera and Angelo Mathews are currently the most reliable figures in this Sri Lankan batting group. When it comes to bowling, there will be huge expectations on Suranga Lakmal, Thisara Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva and veteran Lasith Malinga.

Sri Lanka World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

The odds for Sri Lanka to win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 currently stand at 67 on Bet365 and 101 on Betway and Betrally.

Sri Lanka Squad World Cup 2019

New Zealand Team Preview

New Zealand Team News

New Zealand have picked plenty of experienced campaigners in their 15-man World Cup squad with Tom Blundell being the only surprise inclusion. He will be serving as a back-up option for first- choice wicket-keeper Tom Latham whose availability for the two warm-up matches and the campaign opener against Sri Lanka is under a cloud due to a finger fracture. If Latham is declared unfit for the opening game on June 1, he will be replaced by Blundell who will then become only the second New Zealander to make an ODI debut at the World Cup. Wicket-keepers Tim Seifert and test specialist BJ Watling have both been placed on standbys.

New Zealand are likely to open their batting with Martin Guptill and Henry Nicholls who has displaced Colin Munro from the opening position. Munro, however, has been included in the squad as a reserve batsman. Ross Taylor and captain Kane Williamson complete a formidable Kiwi batting line-up. Tim Southee and Trent Boult will be spearheading the team's pace attack that also has Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson. Mitchell Santner is the primary spinner in the side while Ish Sodhi has been preferred over Todd Astle as the second spinner. Colin de Grandhomme and Jimmy Neesham are the two all-round options.

New Zealand in World Cups

New Zealand, like England and South Africa, are yet to win a World Cup title and they will be looking to break their duck this time around. In the previous edition, the Kiwis topped their group after winning all of their six matches. They then defeated the West Indies and South Africa in the quarter-final and semi-final respectively to seal the final clash against Australia which they ended up losing to finish runners-up in the tournament.

New Zealand Recent Form in ODIs

New Zealand have been faring pretty well in ODIs of late - they have won four, lost two and drawn one of their last seven series. Their previous three series have all come at home; they first whitewashed Sri Lanka 3-0 in January, then received a 1-4 hammering from India before sweeping Bangladesh 3-0 in February.

New Zealand Key Players

Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Kane Williamson and Tom Latham will be the key men for the Black Caps with the bat while Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Matt Henry and Mitchell Santner will be their main weapons with the ball.

New Zealand World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

New Zealand are 11 with Betway and 10 with Bet365 and Betrally to win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

New Zealand Squad World Cup 2019

Bangladesh Team Preview

Bangladesh Team News

Mashrafe Mortaza will be leading Bangladesh in this showpiece event. All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has returned and has been named Mortaza's deputy. Tamim Iqbal is a guaranteed starter at the top of the batting order and he could be partnered by Liton Das who has been selected ahead of Imrul Kayes. Sabbir Rahman and Soumya Sarkar will be batting in the middle-order that has not been tweaked much by the Bangladeshi selectors. Left-handed batsman Mominul Haque has been left out of the 15-man squad while Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin and Mohammad Mithun have all earned their maiden World Cup call-ups. Saifuddin had picked up a back injury in the recent ODI tri-series in Ireland which put his World Cup chances at risk, but the all-rounder now seems to have fully recovered.

Off-spinner Mosaddek Hossain is a surprise inclusion while test specialist Abu Jayed has been picked ahead of Taskin Ahmed who is currently recovering from an injury. The selectors, however, have made it clear that Taskin will replace Jayed in the final CWC19 squad if he is deemed fully fit by May 23. Apart from Jayed, Bangladesh's pace bowling group comprises Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain and skipper Mashrafe Mortaza.

Bangladesh in World Cups

Bangladesh have never won the World Cup nor have they ever made it to the final of the tournament. They managed to reach the Super Eights round in 2007 and the Quarter-finals last time in 2015 and these have been their best World Cup performances till date. In the previous edition, they finished fourth in their pool with three wins and two losses from six matches. They met India in the quarter-final and were knocked out with a heavy 109-run defeat.

Bangladesh Recent Form in ODIs

After defeating the West Indies 2-1 in their own backyard, Bangladesh had a pretty successful Asia Cup campaign in the UAE where they managed to give India a massive scare in the final. Post that tournament, they have beaten Zimbabwe 3-0 and West Indies 2-1 in back-to-back home series last year in October and December respectively. Earlier this year in February, Bangladesh received a 0-3 drubbing in New Zealand at the hands of the hosts. However, they emerged victorious in the recent tri-series involving the West Indies and Ireland, winning all their matches including the final against the Windies.

Bangladesh Key Players

While Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mohammad Mithun form the nucleus of Bangladesh's batting, Mustafizur Rahman, Mashrafe Mortaza and Mehidy Hasan are the key figures in the bowling department. Shakib Al Hasan is the x-factor in this side and the one to watch out for with both bat and ball.

Bangladesh World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

Bangladesh are a whopping 81 with Bet365 and 101 with Betway and Betrally to win the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

Bangladesh Squad World Cup 2019

West Indies Team Preview

West Indies Team News

The inclusion of Andre Russell was the big news when West Indies announced their 15-man CWC19 preliminary squad. Russell's swashbuckling form in the IPL earned him a spot in the squad ahead of fellow all-rounder Kieron Pollard. Chris Gayle, who is set to retire from ODI cricket after the World Cup, has been appointed vice-captain of the team. The explosive batsman will probably open the batting together with Evin Lewis while Shimron Hetmyer, Darren Bravo and Shai Hope constitute the middle-order. Nicholas Pooran and Shai Hope are the two specialist wicket-keepers in the squad.

Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Oshane Thomas, Sheldon Cottrell and skipper Jason Holder make up the team's fast-bowling contingent. Fabian Allen brings variety to the spin department that has Ashley Nurse as the primary spinner. The likes of Andre Russell, Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Holder and Fabian Allen all possess all-round abilities. Among the notable omissions are Devendra Bishoo, John Campbell, Sunil Narine who is nursing a finger injury and Alzarri Joseph who recently injured his shoulder in the IPL. Dwayne Bravo, who had announced his retirement from international cricket last year, has been named in the reserves list. West Indies have also picked Kieron Pollard along with Raymon Reifer, Sunil Ambris, Khary Pierre, Keemo Paul, Shane Dowrich, Roston Chase, John Campbell and Jonathan Carter as reserves.

West Indies in World Cups

They are two-time World champions having won the first two editions of the tournament - in 1975 when they beat Australia in the final and then in 1979 when they beat England in the final. They came very close to winning their third consecutive title in 1983, losing the final against India at Lord's to finish runners-up. Last time, the Windies had barely managed to make it through to the knockout round. With three wins and as many defeats from six group games, they ended up fourth in their pool overhauling Ireland on account of better net run-rate. Their campaign came to an end when they suffered a crushing 143-run defeat against New Zealand in the quarter-final.

West Indies Recent Form in ODIs

West Indies have not won an ODI series/tournament since 2015 which is a clear indicator of how badly they have struggled in the fifty-over format over the past 3-4 years. The last time they won an ODI series was in 2014 when they whitewashed Bangladesh 3-0 at home. After losing to Afghanistan in the final of the ICC World Cup Qualifier last year, the Windies lost their next three ODI series before drawing 2-2 with England at home. Their most recent ODI assignment came in Ireland – a tri-series involving the hosts and Bangladesh. They won both their fixtures against Ireland but lost to Bangladesh on all the three occasions including the final.

West Indies Key Players

Shai Hope, Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer along with power-hitters Chris Gayle and Andre Russell will be the biggest hopes for the West Indies with the bat while Shannon Gabriel, Kemar Roach and Jason Holder will be their best bets with the ball.

West Indies World Cup 2019 Betting Odds

West Indies are currently priced at 13 on Betway, 15 on Bet365 and 14 on Betrally to win the ICC World Cup 2019.

West Indies Squad World Cup 2019

World Cup 2019 Schedule