Key Points
- England hammered inside two days in first Test
- Stokes eager to respond
- Jacks in to replace Wood
2025-26 Ashes Betting Tips
As an Englishman, the first Test of
The Ashes series
was an absolute disaster. I still wake up with hot sweats. How can a Test match in 2025 end after two days? - it is unacceptable.
The first day saw 19 wickets fall and the Test looked evenly matched, until the old England batting line up turned up and looked petrified at every single they faced.
England were bowled out for 172 with Harry Brook and Ollie Pope the only Englishmen putting up any fight as they made 52 and 46 respectively. Zak Crawley and Joe Boot were both dismissed by Mitchell Starc without scoring with Starc ending up with figures of 7-58.
Australia failed to capitalise on a poor start from the tourists as they were then dismissed for 132. They lost nine wickets themselves on day one, before Nathan Lyon was the last man to fall at the start of day two. Ben Stokes claimed figures of 5-23 off six overs.
It now looked like England had the upper hand as they led by 40. Many presumed England would put in a decent batting performance and get a healthy lead.
That did not happen, Crawley got a pair and first innings hero Brook was out for a duck. Gus Atkinson top scored with 37, while Scott Boland was the pick of the bowlers with 4-33, while Starc and Brendan Doggett took three wickets apiece.
From what looked like England set for a big lead, they were only 204 runs in front and Australia made no mistake in knocking them off.
They lost just two wickets and reached their target in under 29 overs as Travis Head moved up to opener and smashed 123 off 83 balls to put the Aussies 1-0 up and in control of the Ashes series.
The Ashes Second Test Preview
England need to regroup and fast after a horrible opening Test match in Perth. If they do not find a solution quickly, this series could be over.
Before the Ashes series started and before any Ashes betting tips were revealed, the Aussies claimed that Joe Root was ‘average’ and he would not trouble them at all.
After scoring just eight runs in two innings, you could say they were right. Root needs to stop thinking about scoring his first Test century in Australia and just relax and play what is in front of him.
I have no doubts that Root is the best batsman in the world today, he needs to shut out the outside noise and get back to doing what he does so well - scoring big runs.
England’s bowling attack in the first innings was fierce and accurate, the same cannot be said for the second innings. They seemed to play with fear - which some players get at the start of an Ashes series - but they need to snap out of it and level the series.
Starc was the pick of the bowlers for Australia in the first innings - which I predicted at 9/4 - and Australia will need him firing on all cylinders when he faces a wounded England team.
England have been criticised after deciding against naming some senior players in the England Lions two-day match against the Australian Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra.
I agree with the decision. There is plenty of cricket to be played and no knee jerk reactions like playing more cricket will help with preparations for the second Test in Brisbane. They need to train as a team and iron out their problems together.
Australia vs England Ashes Second Test Team News
Australia are still hopeful that captain Pat Cummins will be fit to return for the second Test following a back problem. However, he has not yet been named in the squad.
England have made a big decision by leaving out pace bowler Mark Wood and replacing him with off-spinning all rounder Will Jacks. This means that Josh Tongue and Shoaib Bashir have missed out on selection as they were the other candidates to come in.
A lot of pressure will be on opener Zak Crawley to score runs after his pair in Perth. He needs to score runs in both innings to ensure he remains a part of the Ashes team going forward.
Australia Vs England The Ashes Second Test Betting Tips & Predictions
Call me optimistic or blinded by loyalty, but I am backing England to level up the series in Brisbane. I do not have any good reason to back that up, but I feel a wounded Ben Stokes is a very dangerous one.
The England captain will be hurting from their performance in the first Test and he will be going all out to drag his team back into this Ashes series - remember Headingley?
I expect Stokes to score more than 50 runs in England’s first innings to breathe fire into the England team. Someone needs to take a stand and make a statement score and Stokes is the man to do it. I am backing him to be England’s top scorer in their first innings.
If Stokes performs like we know he can do, then it takes the pressure of someone like Joe Root. I have mentioned that Root needs to look after himself and the runs will come.
When it comes to the Australian bowling attack, I backed Starc to take the most wickets because he is dangerous and is not very fond of Englishmen.
He ran through the England batting line up with seven wickets in the first innings and a further three in the second. That was no coincidence. I am backing him once again to take the most wickets when England bat.
When it comes to Australia batting, I am backing Travis Head to top score for the hosts. It would not be a surprise to see him open the batting again. The way he guided Australia to victory was sublime, and I expect him to perform in Brisbane.
Jofra Archer took two wickets in the first innings, and although I expect him to trouble the Aussies, I am not sticking with my first Test prediction of him being England’s best bowler.
I am putting that pressure on Stokes. He is the key to an England win with both the bat and ball. He was born in New Zealand and is the England captain, that means he really does not like the Aussies.
He will be determined to prove a point and carry his team to victory - hopefully that will be the case or this series could be a damp squid.
Check out my wide range of betting tips for the second Test and see if I am on the money or miles off. In the
first Ashes Test, I ended up with two correct from six - hopefully I will do better this time.
- England to win second Test - 2/1 @
BetMGM
- Zak Crawley to score under 22.5 runs - Evens @ BetMGM
- Ben Stokes to be England’s top scorer (1st innings) - 13/2 BetMGM
- Travis Head to score a half century - 8/5 BetMGM
- Mitchell Starc Australia top wicket taker (1st innings) - 7/4 BetMGM
- Ben Stokes England top wicket taker (1st innings) - 3/1 BetMGM
The Ashes Welcome Betting Offers
The Ashes is one of the biggest sporting events in the world and the betting interest will be through the roof.
There will not be many specific welcome offers aimed at The Ashes, but that does not mean you cannot take advantage of the current welcome bonus offers on the market thanks to a wide range of
cricket betting sites.
BetMGM – Bet £10 & Get £40
BetMGM
UK has a “bet £10 and get £40 in free bets” welcome bonus offer for its sportsbook new customers in the UK.
All you have to do is sign up for an account on the BetMGM platform and deposit at least £10. Then, within seven days, place a qualifying sports bet at the required minimum odds to receive £40 in Free Bets, paid as four £10 Free Bets that include two Bet Builder Free Bets and two Sports Free Bets.
All Free Bets must be used within seven days and cannot be used on esports or on horse racing outside the United Kingdom and Ireland. This promotion is only available to customers who are at least 18 years old.
The free bets will be distributed as follows - 4 x £10 Free Bets (2 x £10 Bet Builders & 2 x £10 Sports bet).
QuickBet - Bet £10, Get £10 Free Bet
Betway - Bet £10, Get £40 In Free Bets
This welcome offer at
Betway
is similar to the one at BetMGM. New customers have to register, deposit and wager £10 in order to activate the Betway welcome offer.
No bonus code is needed, but there are certain stages to claiming the offer. You will receive four bet tokens and they are as follows:
- Token 1 - £10 bet on any sport
- Token 2 - £10 football bet builder
- Token 3 - £10 horse racing acca
- Token 4 - £10 football acca
Only one of the free bets is available to be used on The Ashes. It is still a decent offer, you can use the £10 bet on who you think will score the most runs in the first Test or take the most wickets.
