T20 Warm Up: Australia backed to open series with win

Punters are backing Australia to make an opening start to their upcoming Twenty20 series with Pakistan, despite their opponents sitting top of the world rankings in the T20 format.

Australia welcome Pakistan to Sydney, Canberra and Perth for the three-match series. 

And Paddy Power have given the hosts 3/10 odds to open the series with a win. The visitors meanwhile can be backed at 12/5 to get off to a winning start on Sunday.

Sydney Cricket Ground plays host to the opening game. And the home side are favourites despite being ranked in fourth spot for T20 internationals.

After a hectic few months for Australia in Test and One Day International cricket, they now make a return to the shortest form of the game. They certainly haven’t been at their best in this format in recent years, and face a tough test against Pakistan.

They do, however, boast some of the game’s most talented stars. The likes of David Warner, Steve Smith, Aaron Finch and D’Arcy Short will all be ready for action.

Warner is currently 2/1 to be Australia’s top run scorer on Sunday, with both Finch and Short available at 5/2. Serial run scorer Smith can be backed at 4/1 to outscore his team-mates in the first game against Pakistan.

The visitors meanwhile also comprise a team of top talents. Babar Azam will be looking to produce with the bat, and the captain is currently available at 12/5 to score the most runs for his side.

Fakhar Zaman and Haris Sohail will also be looking to get off to a good start against the Aussies. The former is 3/1 to top score for Pakistan, with the latter available at 9/2.

In what will undoubtedly be a heavy-scoring affair, both sides will be out to find their feet and score as many runs as possible. The home side are currently 8/13 to score the most sixes. The visiting team are 15/8 to score the most, and it’s 11/2 if they can’t be separated on sixes scored.

The two nations will also face each other in a two-game Test series later this month, but both will have their eyes firmly set on the upcoming T20 internationals.

Australia have the bragging rights for that one so far, however, sitting fifth in the Test rankings compared to Pakistan in seventh.

Pakistan did, however, win a series against Australia this time last year. The pair meet firstly in Brisbane and then in Adelaide this time around. But the small matter of three T20 games is first in the calendar.