General

Laxman could upset the master

For the first time in a long, long time, Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting are not outright favourites to be their side's top runscorer in a Test series and though that means that Tendulkar, in particular, may be better value than normal, I have a feelin

Simon Cambers
30-Sep-2010
VVS Laxman loves playing against Australia and could be the man to beat in the series batting markets  •  AFP

VVS Laxman loves playing against Australia and could be the man to beat in the series batting markets  •  AFP

For the first time in a long, long time, Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting are not outright favourites to be their side's top runscorer in a Test series and though that means that Tendulkar, in particular, may be better value than normal, I have a feeling that both men could be usurped.
Now that might sound a bit stupid since Tendulkar has been on fire in the last year, scoring six hundreds and averaging 81. He looks in great form and it's not as if his performances against Australia have been worse than against the other nations (in fact it's marginally better).
The reason he's not favourite for the series, which begins on Friday, is surely because there are only two Tests and Virender Sehwag, the 13/5 market leader, may just get more chances at the middle.
Tendulkar is 3/1, with Gautam Gambhir, who has a great record in Mohali where the first Test is to be played, is 4/1 and Rahul Dravid is 5/1. Murali Vijay is 7/1, VVS Laxman 8/1 and Suresh Raina, who has replaced Vijay Singh in the side, is a 9/1 chance.
Now in a two-Test series, as I have already mentioned, those at the top of the order have the best chance but Australia's real problem when it comes to bowling is their strength in depth - they do still take wickets with the new ball, it's after that that they have been struggling ever so slightly.
That offers those a little further down the order the chance to score heavily and no one, not even Tendulkar, has been in better form than Laxman. The elegant stroke-maker averages 84 over the past year and he loves playing Australia, as anyone with memory of the 2001 series will attest to.
Laxman averages 55 against the Aussies in 24 Tests and when you think that most of them were against Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, that takes on an even more impressive look. At 8/1 he could be a good price.
Ponting shares favouritism with Simon Katich, one of the openers, at 3/1, and the skipper must be keeping his fingers crossed that Harbhajan Singh is not passed fit. The spinner has had his number on several occasions and if he plays, I don't see Ponting scoring heavily, especially as he averages only just over 20 in Australia.
Instead, I think the dancing feet of Michael Clarke could be better suited to the Indian pitches and the vice-captain is better value at 4/1. Clarke is a fine player of spin, he's had success in India before and when his mind is in the right place he is a truly world class batsman.
For the record, Shane Watson is 7/2, Michael Hussey 6/1, and both Phil Hughes and Michael Hussey 10/1.
Cambers' Call
VVS Laxman to be India's top series runscorer - 8/1 bet365
Michael Clarke to be Australia's top series runscorer - 4/1 bet365
Please note that odds are correct at time of publication and are subject to change.

Simon Cambers is Cricinfo's betting correspondent