Ashes betting pointers for England v Australia in the second Test at Lord's

Australia beat England by two wickets in a thrilling first Ashes Test at Edgbaston and the hosts are 7-2 to come back and win the series against the 1-2 tourists. Here are three reasons why England backers should be fearful going into Wednesday's second Test at Lord's – and three reasons for them to be cheerful.

Reasons to be fearful

Creaking bowlers
England's record Test wicket-taker James Anderson struggled on a flat pitch at Edgbaston, taking just one wicket in 38 overs. Spinner Moeen Ali bowled a couple of beauties to dismiss Cameron Green and Travis Head but also sent down plenty of full tosses and half-trackers as a finger injury restricted him to 14 overs in the fourth innings.

And it was concerning that Ben Stokes didn't feel he could come back on to bowl in the final hour, having claimed the huge wickets of Steve Smith in the first innings and Usman Khawaja on day five. A fully-fit Stokes would surely have fancied dislodging Nathan Lyon or Pat Cummins with the second new ball but, just one Test into a five-match series, England's attack is already creaking.

Australia's batting depth
Australia will have been delighted to have won a match in which Marnus Labuschagne and Smith, who average 55 and 59 in Test cricket, contributed just 35 runs in four innings.

They are unlikely to be seen off so cheaply in the next four Tests but opener Khawaja, whose Test average in England was just 18 before his 141 and 65 at Edgbaston, and number eight Cummins, with 38 and 44 not out, stepped up impressively at opposite ends of the batting order.  

Bairstow's wicketkeeping
Jonny Bairstow took a brilliant one-handed catch to dismiss Labuschagne for a first-innings golden duck but his wicketkeeping display will be remembered more for a couple of dropped catches and a fluffed stumping that let Green off the hook.

The decision to drop Ben Foakes, an impeccable keeper with a higher Test batting average than Zak Crawley, was a difficult one and the early signs suggest England are asking too much of Bairstow, who suffered a horrific broken leg last autumn.

Reasons to be cheerful

Joe Root
The former England captain was sensational at Edgbaston, holding together the first innings with an unbeaten 118, scoring 16 runs off Scott Boland's first over on day four, and striking what appeared to be the crucial blow on the final day when he took a sharp catch off his own bowling to dismiss Alex Carey.

Aussies unsettled by Bazball
Stokes's first-innings declaration was a divisive moment but, combined with his inventive field placing and bowling changes, it helped take England to the brink of victory despite a placid pitch and significant rain interruptions.

Australia were 8-1 in-play when Cummins and Lyon came together and the Aussie skipper's batting heroics deflected attention from his ultra-defensive tactics in the series opener.

Bairstow's batting
The number seven didn't get a bat in England's first Test of the summer against Ireland but picked up where he left off in 2022 with a thumping first-innings knock of 78 off 78 balls. He is arguably England's second-best batsman after Root and is 10-1 to be the hosts' top series runscorer, although backers would be keen for him to give up the gloves and play as a specialist batter.

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