Ashes 2019: second Test betting preview, free tips, team news, weather & TV time

TV: Sky Sports Ashes, 11am Wednesday

England are already on the back foot in their pursuit to regain the Ashes. Joe Root’s men arrive at Lord’s for the second Ashes Test 1-0 down in the series after a demoralising 251-run defeat at Edgbaston and shorn of their greatest ever bowler, James Anderson.

Anderson bowled only four overs in Birmingham due to a recurrence of a calf injury that will keep him out for at least the Lord’s Test and maybe longer.

Step forward World Cup hero Jofra Archer whose meteoric rise from T20 talent to global star continues with a first Test cap a month on from his Super Over heroics against New Zealand in the World Cup final.

England skipper Root will be hoping that Archer’s express pace is the x-factor required to unsettle the seemingly unflappable Aussie Steve Smith after he once again proved himself to be the scourge of England with two chanceless centuries at Edgbaston.

Smith has now scored a century in each of his last three Ashes innings on English soil - not even the legendary Sir Don Bradman managed four in a row.

Dismissing Smith is only one half of the battle for England, however. Lord’s has been a happy hunting ground for Australia in the past with six wins in the last ten Ashes Tests played in St John’s Wood.

And after victory in Birmingham, Australia, who began the series as outsiders to hold onto the urn, are just 4-6 to extend their lead in the series.

England are now 11-4 to wrestle the pint-sized trophy from Australia's grip and the same price to triumph in north London, although with heavy rain forecast on Wednesday and showers punctuating the weekend, both sides could be in a race to beat the weather too.

Best bets

Looking up at the skies and not down at the pitch is often a favoured saying at Lord’s and with grey skies predicted to be in plentiful supply this week, the captains, and punters, could be well served heeding this advice.

When the sun is shining Lord’s can be a batsmen’s paradise but when there is a threat of rain in the area, bowlers come into their own as the Dukes ball begins to swing and swing late.

Anderson is the master of exposing any lateral movement and 103 wickets in 23 Tests at the Home of Cricket is testament to his expertise.

Swing isn’t really new boy Archer’s forte as he will look to bang the ball into the surface and make life uncomfortable for the Australian batters but it is a strength of Chris Woakes, who quite simply relishes playing at Lord’s.

Edgbaston is his home ground but Lord’s is where the Brummie does all his best work in Test cricket with bat and ball.

In four Tests there he has taken 23 wickets at an astonishing 9.75 runs apiece and was seen to devastating effect in last month’s one-off Test against Ireland as he claimed 6-17 in the second innings as the Irish were blown away for just 37.

With the bat Woakes averages 68.50 in seven innings including a magnificent century in last summer’s victory against India.

Woakes was one of England's better performers at Edgbaston, taking four wickets in fairly benign conditions and adding 74 valuable runs from number eight. With Moeen Ali dropped, he should be promoted to number seven which could see him add further runs while his bowling will be vital if England are to get back into the series.

The all-rounder looks set to have a big say on proceedings at HQ so backing him to be England's leading threat with the ball and to go over bet365's player performance line of 111.5 look the way to support Woakes.

Team news

Archer will make his Test debut in place of Anderson who limped out of the first Test with a calf injury. Spinner Jack Leach, man of the match against Ireland at Lord's, replaces the axed Moeen Ali.

An excellent record at Lord's could see Mitchell Starc into the Aussie bowling battery at the expense of James Pattinson, who has been left out of Tim Paine's 12-man matchday squad.

Venue

England are often said to have a shaky record at Lord's but that isn't backed up by the stats. In their last 20 Tests at HQ, England have been beaten just five times with 12 wins to their name.

However, one of those defeats was a 405-run drubbing by Australia in the last Ashes series as Chris Rogers (173) and that man Smith (215) made hay. Overall, the Aussies have a fantastic record at Lord's, losing only three of 30 Tests since 1905.

Weather

Rain is forecast for three of the five days with particularly heavy downpours set for Wednesday.

Recommendations
C Woakes top England first-innings wicket-taker
2pts 10-3 general
Back this tip with Hills

C Woakes over 111.5 performance points
3pts 5-6 bet365

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