The summer of cricket continues down under, with yet another team lining up to be Australia’s next victim at home. This time, the West Indies, a nation with a proud cricketing history yet a sad decline over recent years, heads to Aussie shores with the hope of causing an upset. We break down the latest Australia vs West Indies odds ahead of the first clash on Friday.
Australia have been the gold standard in Test cricket the past few years, while the West Indies have been largely inactive and unsuccessful. Do the visitors have any chance of upsetting the World Test Champions? Some of the latest odds may shock you, as will the AUS vs WI cricket betting tips that we suggest.
| ℹ️ Tournament: | West Indies tour of Australia 2024 (Two Tests, three ODIs, three Twenty20) |
| 🏟️ Venues: | Stadiums across Australia |
| 🗓️ Dates: | Wednesday, 17 January to Tuesday, 13 February 2024 |
Before we get into our AUS vs WI cricket Test betting predictions, let’s look at what bookmakers in Australia have to say ahead of this series. Here are the Australia vs West Indies odds for the first Test of the series:
Australia are resounding favorites heading into the first Test of the series. The hosts pay 1.10 (1/10), while West Indies are at a whopping 17.00 (16/1), and even a draw is 11.00 (10/1). When it comes to cricket bets, you’ll struggle to find more imbalanced odds in any match-up between full member nations across all of cricket history.
West Indies and Australia have a proud history of playing cricket against each other, with West Indies first heading to Aussie shores almost a century ago, in 1930/31. Overall, Australia lead the head-to-head across the two longer formats, with a record of 60-31 with 25 draws and one tie in Tests and 76-61 in ODIs. The island nation have been more dominant in T20Is, however, leading 10-9 in that head-to-head.
Looking at Test matches specifically, here’s how the past five meetings between Australia and West Indies have unfolded:
Australia have played just one Test series since the drawn Ashes series in mid-2022. This was recently against Pakistan, where Australia hosted a three-match series that they won convincingly, 3-0. Without being incredible, the hosts consistently put up moderate scores and kept Pakistan to humble totals, only once allowing the visitors to make 300+.
West Indies haven’t been particularly active in the Test format, playing only four matches in the past 13 months. They’ve been winless across these, with three heavy losses and one draw. Their top score has been 255, and on four occasions, they’ve been bowled out for less than 160.
Looking at all the highest cricket odds, we’ve come up with the best AUS vs WI cricket betting tips ahead of the first match this Wednesday:
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We’re coming right out of the gate with a somewhat unlikely prediction, but that’s simply because these Australia vs West Indies odds for a draw are far too juicy to turn down. A myriad of different factors can lead to a draw – one big partnership, crazy weather, slow over rate, stonewall batting, ineffective wicket – the list goes on.
While no one is arguing that the West Indies are a better team than Australia, if they were to play 10 times, would we expect to see at least one draw? Yes, in which case, this is a good bet to take. They do have some international-class batters such as Kraigg Brathwaite, and several young, unknown quantities. All it requires is for one of these to step up, plus another variable or two to fall in their favor, and we have a draw.
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Speaking of which, expect Kraigg Brathwaite to yet again be the anchor around which this West Indies side build their opening innings. The man is the one truly world-class batsman in their lineup, with 5000+ Test runs and a somewhat respectable average of 34.89. Just last Test, he racked up 75 and 28 against India, more than his fellow teammates could boast.
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Usually, you’d think Nathan Lyon’s best figures would come in the final innings, as opposed to his first innings bowling, but in this case, we believe he’ll catch the visitors unawares. The conniving Aussie’s spin will be a real handful for a West Indies lineup that are largely inexperienced abroad. Even if there is a big partnership higher up in the innings, it’s easy to see Lyon quickly ripping out a five-for to wrap up the first innings.
The West Indies head to Australia for what must initially feel like something of a mission impossible – defeating the World Test Champions at home in a two-Test series. We don’t think they’ll be able to do it but don’t be surprised if they manage to scrap a draw in the first match, approving this risky 1×2 betting option with a very healthy payout.
