Durham Back On Track
Durham are the big movers in the betting on Division One of the County Championship following the latest set of fixtures.
Their decision to bat Yorkshire out of their game at Chester-le-Street by not enforcing the follow-on paid off in style as the visitors crumbled in the face of a target of 418.
Yorkshire were all out for 122 as Durham claimed maximum points from a 295-run victory to climb off the foot of Division One.
And having leapt off the bottom they are now one of the three 4/1 co-favourites for the title with Stan James.
Sharing that mark are Nottinghamshire and Lancashire who played each other ay Old Trafford, Notts coming out on top by seven wickets.
That victory stretched Notts' lead at the top of the table to 18 points from Surrey.
Surrey, who drew with Hampshire, are bracketed on the 13/2 mark by BetFred along with Yorkshire.
In Division Two the top three in the betting - Essex, Warwickshire and Middlesex - all had a week off.
Essex remain the general 5/2 favourites, with Warwicks 5/1 at BetFred and Middlesex 11/2 with Stan James.
(c) Bettingzone.co.uk 2008
Home Comforts Beckon
Our Championship double this week may not scream value but the big-hitters among you should be able to back Nottinghamshire and Somerset with some confidence.
Both are at home, neither has lost yet this season, but most significantly both will be facing severely weakened opponents.
Early Division One pacesetters Notts look a good thing at home to Kent.
The midlands outfit have already beaten these opponents this season - crushing them by 10 wickets in the opening round of fixtures - and they have quickly put aside any worries about the departure of last year's skipper Stephen Fleming.
Wicketkeeper Chris Read has taken the reins but that doesn't seem to have adversely affected his game - he made 142 against Yorkshire last week in a game the Outlaws would probably have won had it not been for the Leeds rain.
That innings is one of three individual hundreds Notts have managed in two games to date - Mark Wagh and Mark Ealham have the others - while on the bowling front things have been going so well it's been a tough choice who to leave out.
England Test stars Chris Broad and Ryan Sidebottom both impressed at Headingley and play again here, while Charlie Shreck has again been among the wickets.
That means no place for young Darren Pattinson, who took eight wickets in the reverse fixture.
The only negative for Notts is that spinner Graeme Swann has been called up by England Lions, but that is more than levelled out when you look at the selection problems Kent face.
Like Swann, captain Robert Key is away on Lions duty, while all-rounder Azhar Mahmood has a finger injury and his contributions are sure to be missed.
Justin Kemp is finally available after his protracted eligibility wrangle with the ECB, but we feel it will take more than the South African to stop the Notts bandwagon rolling on.
Moving on to Somerset; they opened with a rain-ruined draw against Lancashire and will now look to start their home campaign with a victory over Hampshire.
Taunton was something of a fortress for Somerset last year as they stormed to the Division Two title and another win beckons here.
Marcus Trescothick, Justin Langer and Ian Blackwell all got runs under their belts at Old Trafford, while as in 2007, all the bowlers contributed meaning the injured Andy Caddick wasn't unduly missed.
Hampshire - a weather-affected draw v Sussex and an innings loss to Yorkshire so far - look very weak on the bowling front for their trip west.
Overseas star Shane Bond took nine wickets in his first two games but the injury-prone Kiwi now has a calf problem, Chris Tremlett is away with the Lions and skipper Dimi Mascarenhas is still in India playing Twenty20 and collecting his cash.
Leading batsman Michael Carberry is also on international duty, so the only real plus for Hants is that Kevin Pietersen will make a rare Championship appearance.
If the Taunton track is back to its flat ways, Pietersen could make hay.
But Langer has demanded a more bowler-friendly strip over the past 12 months and even if Pietersen does make a big score, we just don't see how the visitors are going to take 20 Somerset wickets.
The double with Notts pays around 11/8.
In Division Two, Essex and Derbsyhire have both started the season well, but they come up against England stars this week and that could be their undoing.
Essex host a Middlesex side bolstered by Andrew Strauss and the Chelmsford outfit will be without their own star in Ravi Bopara (Lions duty). Given his superb start to the year, that has to be a worry.
Derby face a Warwickshire line-up which includes Tim Ambrose, who hit 156 not out against Leicestershire recently, and Ian Bell.
Themselves without Graham Wagg and Greg Smith, the 6/5 about the hosts is probably best left alone.
(c) Bettingzone.co.uk 2008
Indian Premier League betting reaching phenomenal levels
Interest in the Indian Premier League has probably surpassed anything organisers could have hoped for. But as always seems the way with Indian cricket, talk of corruption is never far away.
Betting on the tournament is reaching phenomenal levels with GBP1 billion wagering on each match. If that continues, total wagering on the event will come close to GBP90 billion.
However, the threat of corruption still lingers, even more so now it has been revealed that officers from the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption unit have left India.
Gambling is currently illegal in India although the IPL has approached the Indian government for the activity to be legalised.
"We have 59 matches in all so by the end of the tournament there will have been about $180 billion bet on the matches. Betting is illegal in India and that doesn't help. We need a regulated legal system rather than something that is underground," said Singh Bindra, senior member of the IPL's governing council.
(c) Jackpot Gaming (UK) Ltd. 2007
Cricket betting racket busted
Police busted an inter-state betting racket that was running on wagers placed on the outcome of the Indian Premiere League (IPL) cricket matches across the nation, including Sunday’s Eden Gardens event.
Five men were arrested in an apartment in Phoolbagan on Monday afternoon, hours before the match between Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings began in Jaipur.
The police seized a TV set and recording gear, a laptop, mobile phones, score-sheets, balance sheets and a telephone-conversation recording machine. All these were used to monitor the matches while taking bets from gamblers over the phone.
The five who were arrested and brought to Lalbazar were identified as Adarsh Mohta, Mayank Damani, Dilip Sharma, Vishnu Mundra and Baldeo Damani. According to records available with the police, Adarsh was earlier arrested in February on the same charges and was let out on bail.
The deputy commissioner of police, detective department, Jawed Shamim said: "They started operating the betting racket from the first match of the IPL schedule. We have recovered balance sheets which will help us assess the exact amount of money that was pumped into the racket in the form of bets."
Copyright (c) 2008 The Telegraph.
West Indies vs Sri Lanka: cricket tips
Shivnarine Chanderpaul has been the hero for West Indies in their three-match series against Sri Lanka. Without him, it is doubtful whether the home side would have had the contest wrapped up before this evening's meaningless final match at Gros Islet.
His extraordinary six off the final ball of the innings to win the first match and his cool and calculated 52 when steering West Indies to their target of 125 off 25 overs in game two in Port of Spain have made him the main target of praise.
However, before you go out to rush to back him for top runscorer honours at 3/1 at the Beausejour Stadium, consider the record of opener Chris Gayle, who has shown he is in decent touch with a half-century in the first match.
The talented left-hander has a fantastic record at the venue and in his last three matches there he has scored 95, 124 and 43, top scoring on two occasions.
The only concern about backing him is that as the match is a dead rubber, Gayle, who doesn't look too bothered at the best of times, may relax too much and play with less care.
As for the match outright, it is surprising to see 4/5 about West Indies and even money Sri Lanka. One would have thought the Windies deserve to be a little skinnier given their dominance so far.
Remember that there is no Muttiah Muralitharan for the tourists and Lasith Malinga is missing as well. Their absence has meant Sri Lanka have now lost all four of the games they have played down the years without two of their best bowlers.
Punters should also bear in mind that there is a slight bias for teams batting second at this venue. Nine of the 15 games played have been won by the side bowling first.
Cricket Betting: Third Test New Zealand v England
ALTHOUGH New Zealand and England clash in a potentially thrilling decider in Napier on Friday night, much of the betting attention will may focus on the top bat markets, rather than the outright.
England are level after an impressive performance in Wellington but that in itself is reason enough to warrant caution when it comes to deciphering which of the two teams, if at all, will take the series.
So inconsistent have Michael Vaughan's team been - they were absolutely dreadful in the first Test in Hamilton - that it would take a brave soul to get with them again.
Instead, the top runscorer lists offer plenty of value and more rewards, to boot because the McLean Park wicket is expected to be a belter to bat on.
Turnover on the market could be high especially with Stephen Fleming, who plays his last game before retiring, certain to see plenty of support at 10-3 with Blue Square to finish as the Kiwis' top first-innings runscorer.
However, there could be too much pressure to perform in the way that the home faithful want him to and two candidates with better credentials are Jamie How and Ross Taylor.
How, who is 5/1 with the same firm, scored a century on this ground in the one-day match between the dies which ended in a high-scoring tie with both teams posting 340.
Taylor has top scored in both New Zealand's two first innings in the series so far and on such a wicket, it is difficult to understand why he is not a bit shorter than the 4/1 available. Also, both players ply their trade on this ground for their domestic teams.
England's top runscorer is perhaps tougher to call. Michael Vaughan and Alastair Cook look in good touch at the top of the order while Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell have both threatened big scores but not gone on. Vaughan, at 4/1, might just have the extra class required this time, however.
Cricket Betting: Series round-up
England are as short as 1/4 to repeat their series triumph over New Zealand when the three Test series gets underway over here in May.
Michael Vaughan's side crushed the Kiwis in Napier yesterday by 121 runs to complete a remarkable comeback having gone into the final Test at 1-1.
The Three Lions roared back from their 189-run defeat in Hamilton in the first Test when they were being traded at as big as 9/2 for the series. It was their first overseas victory in the longer form of the game for three years.
Seamer Ryan Sidebottom did most of the good work and his seven wickets in New Zealand's first innings put the home side on the rack.
Sidebottom finished as England's top bowler with 24 wickets - he was a 9/4 chance to do so - and you can get 2/1 with Skybet for him to be top dog again in the spring. The firm also offer 6/1 that he traps more than 20 victims, which looks decidedly good value.
Surprisingly, given his form going into the series, Andrew Strauss finished with most runs for England after his 177 runs in his sides second innings all but sealed the impressive final victory.
Strauss was a 7/1 chance to lead England's batsmen before the series began, and with a more balanced-looking batting line-up now, Hills look to be in danger going a best-priced 2/5 about England for the return series.
The series starts with the first Test at Lord's on May 15, followed by fixtures at Old Trafford and Trent Bridge.
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