Windies 9/2 outsiders to bounce back in one-day series

South Africa are firm 1/3 favourites to win the first match of the five-match series against West Indies, and a miserly 1/8 to follow up their Test-series win with a one-day series victory. West Indies are firm outsiders - they are 9/4 to win the first game, and 9/2 to win the series.

In recent times, West Indies' wretched Test form has not been reflected in the one-day arena. A thrilling 4-3 win in India in 2002 and a 4-3 defeat by Australia at home shows that Lara's men should be more competitive in the shorter format of the game. Punters should also remember that it was West Indies who put the first nail in South Africa's coffin in World Cup 2003. However for this series, morale is low, and the side is ravaged by injuries - Wavell Hinds, Marlon Samuels, Omari Banks and Jerome Taylor are all absent.

Lance Klusener returns to the fold on the strength of his bowling form, but punters who remember his punishing batting in the 1999 World Cup may be tempted with odds of 22/1 for him to be leading batsman in this five-match series. Herschelle Gibbs is a sound choice in this market at 11/2, narrowly behind Brian Lara and Jacques Kallis (both 4/1), and Graeme Smith (5/1).

In the first match, Gibbs and Smith are both 100/30 to be the top South Africa batsman, narrowly behind favourite Jacques Kallis (3/1). Given the ease with which South Africa played the West Indies bowlers in the Tests, punters should not look much past the top three.

The West Indies top batsman market is a lot less predictable - behind Brian Lara (2/1) are a host of fine batsmen, and any one of them could fire on the day. Ridley Jacobs is 25/1 - often the man for a crisis, the wicketkeeper could be the bet of the day - while destructive Ricardo Powell may also catch the eye at 10/1.