England were almost faultless at Old Trafford. The series lies at 1-1 after Joe Root and Chris Woakes demolished Pakistan in Manchester last week. Now both teams will travel to Edgbaston where England will be looking to carry on where they left off...
Lets start with the visitors, or how very little we know about their 11 to play tomorrow. Misbah Ul-Haq has opted not to release the details of his team, but we can guess that the key men so far will be involved. One thing Pakistan will be needing to address is their batting, which proved a lot of experts right at Old Trafford. Shan Masood and Mohammed Hafeez are yet to cause England any trouble, while the usually reliable Younus Khan has never once looked comfortable at the crease.
Bowling-wise, you'd expect Pakistan to stick with their current bunch. Yasir Shah had nowhere near the impact he did at Lords on the Old Trafford surface, but you simply can't write a leg spinner off, especially against England. Mohammed Amir will be looking to gain some more momentum as he eases back into Test Match cricket.
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The story for England is a lot less settled. Again, Stokes will miss out due to a calf injury. That will pave way for Steven Finn who has looked short of confidence since the tour of South Africa. James Vince and Gary Ballance are yet to score big, but the lack of ready replacements will most likely result in them keeping their place. Joe Root and Alistair Cook have averaged well this series, but England will be search for an extra run scorer if they were both to fail.
Chris Woakes is the series top wicket taker and will be licking his lips at the thought of bowling on his home ground. Adil Rashid misses out again, meaning Moeen Ali will retain his position as the front line spinner in England's bowling attack.
So, not much change overall. England have the momentum, but if Pakistan can find a way to dislodge Cook and Root, they may well enjoy similar success to that of the first test. England should be confident though, with Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad yet to peak given Chris Woakes' current form.
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Last time out it was England's batting that won them the game. At Edgbaston, I can see England's and Pakistan's bowling wreaking havoc. Weather permitting, we should have a result.. And I expect England to take a 2-1 lead in a tightly contested affair, it's 8/15 at bet365.
Best Bets
- Joe Root - Top England Batsman at 11/4 with Betway
- Younis Khan - Top Pakistan Batsman at 5/1 with SkyBet
- Stuart Broad - Top England Bowler at 3/1 with bet36
- Mohammed Amir - Top Pakistan Bowler at 5/2 with BetVictor
Words By: @stuart_fagg
