Rain threat points to draw at Sydney

SPORTS BETTIMG: SO it was normal service resumed at the MCG.

After their heavy and unexpected defeat in Perth, England showed their true colours by blowing away Australia to make it 2-1 in the five-Test series and retain the Ashes.

England were magnificent and deserve every credit for the way they dismantled the Australia batting line-up before passing 500 for the third time in the series.

It was a little harder for our bowlers second time around, but who cares? This really was great stuff.

I wish the same could be said about the Australia captain, Ricky Ponting, whose five-minute protest with both umpires over a referral decision was simply disgraceful.

I believe he got off lightly with a fine as this was by no means the first time he had been guilty of dissent against officials.

I have always admired Ponting as a batsman, but I have seen at first hand his petulance when things have not gone as he would have liked for Australia.

For that reason, I will never hold him in the same esteem as the great batsmen I have been privileged to watch, such as Tendulkar, Lara and Richards.

And that’s a great shame as his record is right alongside those superstars.

Anyway, on to next week’s final Test at Sydney . . .

Can the Aussies bounce back as they did after the second Test and England did in the third?

I very much doubt it as the skipper is out injured along with fast bowler Ryan Harris and opening batsman Simon Katich.

And if Phil Hughes and Steve Smith are Test players, then I have been watching the wrong sport all these years.

That said, I won’t be rushing to back England at 6-4 as the weather forecast for Sydney is distinctly moderate and quite a chunk of the game may be lost to rain.

The draw at 19-10 is a real possibility and a much more likely outcome than an Australian win at 12-5.

Jonathan Trott, England’s batting hero in Melbourne, can be backed at 4-1 to be top scorer in Sydney, but that’s a price he shares with Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen and it really is anyone’s guess between the four of them.

Looking further ahead to next month’s seven one-day internationals, Bet365 cannot split the teams, going 10-11 the pair.




JAMES Wade’s shock exit in the PDC World Darts Championship might have opened a clearer path for Phil Taylor, but “The Power” can still be backed at 4-5.



Simon Whitlock, the man he beat in last year’s final, is second favourite at 6-1, with Raymond van Barneveld and the impressive Gary Anderson on 7-1. It’s 18-1 bar these four.




WHITLOCK is a proud Aussie and that’s a nation we can’t seem to get away from this week as the world’s best tennis players will soon be descending on Melbourne for the first major tournament of the season.



The Australian Open gets under way on January 17 and that means another chance for Andy Murray to break his grand slam duck.

The Briton is 6-1 to triumph at the Rod Laver Stadium, but has it all to do with the likes of Rafael Nadal (85-40), Roger Federer (5-2) and Novak Djokovic (8-1) looking in superior form.




MANCHESTER United might have squandered two points at Birmingham on Tuesday night, but they continue to contract in the Premier League betting market.



The Reds are down to 11-10, while Chelsea – who fell over the winning line against Bolton last night – have been cut to 3-1 from 7-2.

Arsenal, whose lack of a decent goalkeeper seems likely to count against them, are available at 9-2, while Manchester City are a best-priced 7-1 following their 4-0 rout of Aston Villa.

Tottenham have been in good form of late and, following fighting talk from boss Harry Redknapp, are a season’s-low 25-1 to win the title.




RECOMMENDATION: Fifth Test to end in a draw, 19-10 (Bet365).