Today’s Match Predictions and Cricket Betting Tips 

​Cricket betting gets more popular in India every year, but how do you decide what to bet on? How do you avoid the steep learning curve and start betting like the experts? Well, one way could be to check out online cricket betting tips from reputable sites like OCBscores.  

Today's Match Predictions

With a long history of providing the best cricket betting tips on the internet with close to 67% success rate, OCBscores analyses each match and provides tips based on recent form, match conditions, statistical matchups, and more!  

We have plenty of free cricket betting tips for you to check out and they are published well in advance, ​so you won’t​ be rushing around to place your bets on time.  

OCBscores covers every major - or minor - match in the world with our tips for cricket betting, including the jewel in this country's sporting crown: IPL Match Predictions 

Our Recommended Bookmakers | December 2024

​Check out the above cricket betting sites to place your bets on. The selected bookmakers are independently reviewed and hand-picked by our experts based on factors such as their cricket odds, usability, availability of markets and much more. You can take a look at the way we review our betting sites on our review process page.

Popular Cricket Betting Markets in India

Cricket lovers can try different betting markets on the sport, both for major outright competitions and individual matches. Luck will only take you so far in cricket betting. What you need is expert advice and having OCBscores on your side is the easiest way to get that.  

Here are some of the top markets on offer for you:   

Match/Tournament Winner  

When it comes to outright options, the winner of a tournament title is the most obvious one for you to go for. ​Simply pick​ which team will celebrate and lift the trophy into the sky at the end of another thrilling cricket competition.  

Various other outrights can also be found at online betting sites. These include most wickets and top run scorer, the pair of individual awards that are given out at the end of events like the IPL and the Cricket World Cup. It is possible to keep a close eye on the progress of these awards by looking at data on the respective tournament websites too.  

Naturally, you can also just choose to have a bet on the winner of any individual match. This is not just the case for the IPL, but for cricket competitions all over the world, in a range of formats. Test matches, ODIs, T20s, even domestic games ​​- we have top tips right here at OCBscores.  

Player of the Match  

Betting on the player of the match has become one of the most popular cricket betting options.   

Most high-profile matches have a ​​man or player of the match award given out at the end of play, so all you have to do here is predict who will be the winner of that prize.  

Top Run Scorer or Wicket Taker  

You can bet on individual player performances as well with plenty such betting markets available at all betting sites.  

Top run scorer or wicket taker are self-explanatory markets, but what happens if there is a tie?  

Sites pay out on both players as top run scorer if they recorded the same score in a game.  

To Score a Century  

Betting on a particular batter to score three figures in their innings is a popular option.  

Things to consider while betting on someone to score a century should include their past performances against the team, recent form, as well as ground characteristics.  

OCBscores considers these and more stats before recommending a bet!  

Toss Winner

While you might want to delve deep into data and come up with a great value bet, sometimes you just ​want ​a bet on something random, like the simple flip of a coin.  

Cricket betting sites provide the chance to bet on which team will win the toss, which can have a major bearing on which team will come out on top by the end of a game.  

One of the benefits of betting on the toss winner is that the bet will be settled quickly. If you win a toss winner bet, you will likely be able to stake the winnings on another bet on the same game. 

Why Coin Toss Matters 

The result of the coin toss in a cricket match can have a major impact on the outcome. Its impact depends on the format of the game, so let's take a closer look at why the toss matters. 

Impact of Toss on T20 Match 

At the ICC Men's T20 World Cup that was played in the UAE a few years ago, research found that around two-thirds of the matches saw the team that won the toss go on to win the game. 

This demonstrates how important it can be to win the toss in T20, where having control over the decision to set a total or chase down the opponents' score makes a huge difference. 

However, that ICC Men's T20 World Cup is seen as an outlier, as usually there is not much of an advantage. T20 matches played at night or in certain parts of the world often see dew play a part in the second innings, which provides a big advantage to the team that wins the toss. 

Impact of Toss on One Day International (ODI) 

At the 2023 Cricket World Cup, results showed little advantage to teams winning the toss. 

However, as with T20 night matches, ODIs played in the evening do provide an advantage to the team that won the toss. 

Analysis has found that the team winning the toss in day-night ODIs wins 6% more games. 

Impact of Toss on Test Matches 

The longest format of the game sees teams winning the toss have an advantage of around 2.5%. This can be explained by the tricky task of batting last on a deteriorating pitch. 

In 2018 it was proposed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that the traditional coin toss in Test cricket matches should be scrapped to give touring sides a better chance. 

However, the ICC later confirmed that the coin toss at the start of Tests would be retained. 

Coin Toss Math 

It stands to reason that the odds of heads and tails for the coin toss both stand at 50/50. 

One thing some people may not realise is that the coin toss outcome is never affected by previous results. Even if 10 coin tosses in a row come up heads, the chances of tails winning the next coin toss remain at 50/50. 

When browsing for the best toss prediction today, you will notice that the odds available on this market do not add up to 100% when changed into a probability. 

This is because cricket betting sites have a margin, which ensures that they can make a profit. 

Bat Toss in Cricket 

While most cricket competitions have the toss of a coin to start a game, not all of them do. 

In Australia's Big Bash League (BBL) - one of the world's most popular Twenty20 competitions - instead of a coin toss, there has been a bat toss. Captains predict which way the bat will land in order to be given the chance to decide whether they want to bat or field in the first innings. 

For BBL games, the toss prediction is just for the bat toss instead of the normal coin toss. 

How We Produce Our Cricket Betting Tips  

The OCBscores experts take a wide range of factors into account when we produce ​our ​match predictions. Here are some of the key things that are taken into our consideration:   

Player Injuries   

Being up to date with all the latest team news is a must when we compile our tips for cricket betting. It goes without saying that if a team's key player is in doubt due to an injury, this is going to have an impact on whether their side will be able to win.  

Some players still take to the field despite being injured to an extent and this can also restrict how effective they are. For example, a batter who has a sore wrist might not be able to generate as much power in their hitting as usual, perhaps affecting their chances of getting a high​ ​score.  

P​itch Conditions and Weather   

In longer-format games like Test matches, the pitch will see its condition change over the course of the action, sometimes dramatically so.  

Today's match predictions depend heavily on likely pitch conditions and the weather forecast. As cricket fans, you know that the weather can have a massive impact on cricket matches at all levels, around the world.  

Hot and dry conditions can often create a pitch that will be hard and offer little help to pace bowlers. In these situations, spin bowlers can be expected to bowl a lot of overs.   

But when there is a bit of dew in the air, a seam bowler who is capable of finding movement - a classic example is the England legend James Anderson - is likely to be very dangerous.  

Team Stats and Strategy  

Cricket teams never used to make a habit of telling everyone their strategy. But that has changed a lot in the past few years thanks to what is widely referred to as 'Bazball'.  

England's Test team have changed the game with a new aggressive style of play brought in by their coach Brendon McCullum and talismanic captain Ben Stokes. Bazball, or a form of it, has now been adopted by many other teams, who have increased the rate at which they score runs.  

However, there are still some teams out there that prefer a more defensive style of cricket.  

Player Analysis  

Checking out the records of players is a must when we compile cricket match predictions for you to read at your leisure. Players in the middle of a hot streak are expected to be more likely to score a century, while those struggling to find runs will have longer odds for that bet.  

We also identify when players appear to succeed with a particular match-up. For example, some bowlers seem to find it easy to take the wicket of certain batters. It also works the other way, with batters enjoying the deliveries that some bowlers serve up when they approach the crease.  

Free Cricket Betting Tips - Updated Daily 

While following free cricket betting tips can never be guaranteed to result in a winning bet, our experts here at OCBscores have plenty of knowledge and expertise to help you out.   

Detailed statistical analysis helps us to produce today's match predictions and we always explain clearly why we are recommending a particular bet for you.  

And as our cricket betting tips are always free, you really have nothing to lose by reading them. 

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