England vs. India 2nd Test – Thursday 12 August 12:00
England vs. India 2nd Test – Thursday 12 August 12:00

At the end of Day 4 at Trent Bridge India were very much on course to take the first test comfortably, but luckily for the English the weather got involved and the final day of the test was abandoned. If it wasn’t for the weather and Joe Root the English would have most likely been down 1-0 in the series, but instead both sides go into the test at Lord’s looking to take get the first win of the series.

England

The batting line-up is a major worry for England right now. With only 183 runs in their first innings and 303 runs in the second innings last week there is a lot of room for improvement. The top order struggled against the fast bowlers of India and nobody managed to kick into gear. Haseeb Hameed will be replacing Zak Crawley at Lords alongside Burns and Sibley with the hopes of providing the top order with some much-needed stability. Although Joe Root showed his class with an excellent 64 and 109 in the middle he is going to need some support from up top for England to have any chance at setting competitive totals in the second test.

Bowling wise things don’t look too bad for the hosts. Seamers Anderson and Robinson did about as good as they could given the low total they had to defend and managed nine wickets between the pair of them. Unfortunately England will need to do without Anderson in this one and Broad will need to step up to the mark and put in a much better performance with the ball than what he did last week if he is match fit. The track at Lord’s is usually a bit slower and this has prompted England to include Moeen Ali to keep the pressure on the Indian batsman. The spinner looks to bring in his excellent form from the Hundred tournament and can provide the home side with some extra firing power in the lower order should the openers struggle again.

India

Let’s be honest, India was the far better team and with just 157 runs to chase down on the final day with 9 wickets in hand they looked well on their way to victory until the weather interfered. Their batting did more than a decent job in the first innings and had they had the chance to bat out the second innings they would have most likely gone all the way. Sharma and Rahul gave the visitors a solid start, while all-rounder Jadeja added a handy 56 at number seven. Once again Virat Kohli failed to impress with a golden duck and will have a lot to prove in this test. I do feel that it’s only a matter of time until he breaks his poor form and I will once again back him to post a big total for his side.

The bowlers did an excellent job at restricting the English and Bumrah was the star for the Indians, narrowly missing out on a 10-wicket haul. I don’t see any reason why he won’t be the top bowler again at Lord’s unless Kohli decides to bring in Ashwin for the slower track. Leaving out Ashwin in the first test did raise a lot of eyebrows but appears to have been the right decision as the likes of Bumrah and Shami got the job done and the extra batting power of Jadeja proved valuable.

Prediction

After the first test I am going to make a complete U-Turn and back India in this one. Yes, it’s Lord’s and yes it’s England’s fortress, but England are simply not on the same level as India right now and they were very lucky to sneak a draw in the first test. I don’t see much of an improvement in the English top order with the inclusion of Hameed and I see the Indian fast bowlers wreaking havoc once again. Joe Root might be solid in the middle order but it won’t be good enough if he doesn’t have others around him contributing as well. Although I see Moeen Ali making an impact with the bat and ball for the hosts, the Indian batting will still be too much for England to compete with – especially if Kohli finally finds his form.

BetOlimp Best Bets

India to win – 2.31

Top Away Batsman 1st Innings – V Kohli - 3.00

Top Home Bowler 1st Innings – M Ali – 5.50

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