Cricket World Cup: Round Eight Predictions!

Round Seven of the Cricket World Cup has been one of the most surprising so far at Superbru, not just because of Sri Lanka's shock win over England, but also the scare that Afghanistan gave India that resulted in just a narrow victory for the favourites. I didn't pick Sri Lanka as you know, but my Pakistan pick coming off against South Africa means this round has been okay for me so far. I'm hoping for Bangladesh to defend their total of 262 'comfortably' against Afghanistan today.

Looking ahead to Round Eight then and each of these games should be great! It doesn't get much bigger than England v Australia tomorrow, especially now that there's a little pressure on England to make sure of their top four spot. Here are my picks.

England vs. Australia

It may just be my heart overruling my head but I still feel that England will beat Australia at Lord's despite their slips so far in this tournament. The Aussies appear to be coming strong at the right time meaning they have a real chance at yet another World Cup title (they've come a long way since England scored 481 against them last year), but the hosts' batting lineup is still far longer than theirs. I'm backing Archer or Woakes to make an early breakthrough against Finch or Warner and if they can get Smith before the halfway stage as well then it looks as though the rest of the batting order may struggle to do enough. Prediction: England (comfortable)

New Zealand vs. Pakistan

This is a very tough pick so I'd welcome your thoughts in the comments! A little bit like Australia, I'm unsure how much New Zealand have when (or if!) we finally get a match where Kane Williamson doesn't score runs. Pakistan are a side you never really feel comfortable picking because of their inconsistency and dreadful fielding but I'm very tempted to side with them again in this one. Surely Williamson can't score yet another century? I'll be waiting to see how things are looking after the toss but for now let's be brave. Prediction: Pakistan (comfortable)

West Indies vs. India

I'm fairly sure everyone other than Kiwis were cheering Brathwaite on to seal the game for the Windies against New Zealand on Saturday after such a fantastic century. Despite the fact I picked NZ, it would have been great to see such an incredible chase come off given that they looked dead and buried in the middle overs but they now face India and I can't see them winning. Afghanistan had a great chance to be the first side to beat India - you won't see the openers removed so quickly very often - and I expect Rohit Sharma to bounce back in this one and help his team to victory. India's fielding and the captaincy of Virat Kohli shouldn't be overlooked either, their intensity is excellent and the pressure they can create when an opponent is chasing is very impressive. Prediction: India (easy)

Best of luck to all in Round 8!