Trent Bridge, Nottingham hosts the third and final test between England and New Zealand, the game gets under way on Thursday and any winner here will also take the series.
This 3 match series is all square at 1-1 and we now have the proverbial decider.
The first test was staged at Lords and the wicket was a nightmare for batting with England winning the game by 115 runs. New Zealand won the toss, asked England to bat first and bowled them out for 140 and in reply the Black caps managed just 113. England made 226 in their second knock and New Zealand were all out for 138 in the fourth innings.
The Oval was the venue for the second test and New Zealand ran out very comfortable winners by 253 runs. Batting first NZ made 391 (Glen Philipps 100) and England were 100 runs short in their reply with Matt Henry taking 5 wickets. New Zealand’s second innings closed on 362 with Henry Nicholls making 121. Joe Root with 77 fund some form but England were all out for 209 and it’s all square with one to play.
This was how the teams lined up at The Oval.
England: Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root (c), Harry Brook, James Rew (wk), Jordan Cox, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Matthew Fisher, Sonny Baker
New Zealand: Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, William ORourke
England were without skipper Ben Stokes and Gus Akinson for the second test. Following an incident at a nightclub which was under investigation by the ECB they were omitted from the squad but both have since been named in the squad for this test. A reminder that after the first test Kane Williamson announced he would be retiring from international cricket with immediate effect.
The Venue, Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Since 2017 England have played 6 test matches at this venue, losing the first two of those to South Africa and India, drawing the third against India and then reeling off 3 straight wins over New Zealand, West Indies and Zimbabwe.
That game against the Black Caps came in June 2022 and England 539 and 299/5 beat New Zealand 553 and 284 by 5 wickets
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3rd Test Betting
Prices quoted from Sportingbet are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change.
England are 17/20 to win the match with a draw at 6/1 and New Zealand can be backed at 14/10
The Verdict
I’m open minded about which way the match result will go but I’m happy enough to go with Joe Root to be England’s top 1st innings run scorer. Elsewhere I’m hoping its third time lucky for a Ravindra 1st innings 50.
Bets: Top England 1st Innings Bat Joe Root at 31/10 with Sportingbet
Rachin Ravindra to score a 50 in the first innings ? yes at 21/10 with Sportingbet
Prices are subject to change