2013 Champions Trophy: Hashim Amla to top score

The 2013 ICC Champions Trophy is fast approaching and the betting indicates that Hashim Amla will have a tournament to remember.

The high-scoring South African has played himself into form ahead of the tournament in England and Wales and as such currently heads the betting to grab the most runs.

Here we take a look at Amla’s chances and run the rule over those who will be jostling for the top runscorer crown.

Hashim Amla – South Africa – 8/1

As mentioned above, Amla is in a good run of form going into the tournament, having notched an impressive average of 42.2 over his last 10 one-day outings.

He may have only smashed one ton during that time, but with only one innings resulting in a duck, the 8/1 for him being top scorer for the competition looks generous.

At 56.5 Amla boasts the highest one-day average of the top four favourites and with 11 one-day 100s he always looks likely to keep the scoreboard operators on their toes.

Virat Kohli – India – 10/1

Kohli boasts the highest one-day score of our four picks at 183, showing that on his day he can mix it with the best of them and with 13 one-day centuries he is a hard man to oppose.

However, the Indian hit-man has notched just one ton in his 10 outings and has been sent packing back to the pavilion for nought twice in that time.

An average of 31.9 over his last 10 is not awe inspiring but at 10/1 and with his pedigree he could attract a lot of attention.

Chris Gayle – West Indies – 10/1

Arguably the most exciting player of the short form of the game Chris Gayle is always going to be a popular pick, especially at 10/1.

No one has more runs in this tournament, with Gayle smashing 695 from his 14 matches so far.

However, the big-hitting Jamaican has struggled for form of late, failing to reach three digits in each of his last 10 innings. While he managed to get on the board in each of those games, a ten-game average of just 10.3 could persuade many to look elsewhere.

Alistair Cook – England – 10/1

With home advantage coming into play, many will be tempted to back Captain Cook at 10/1, despite his duck in the third ODI against New Zealand.

The England captain may have failed to boost his century stats in his last 10 games, but his consistent high scoring has seen him bag an average of 32.4 in that time.

A top score of 137 and five career tons to date will help to boost the Essex man’s popularity, but he will need to play at his full potential to challenge the above-mentioned players in order to secure this particular crown.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing