Ashes
Ashes Fourth Test Preview: England favourites to tie series at Old Trafford
England and Australia lock horns for the fourth time this summer on Wednesday after another captivating encounter in Leeds.
The hosts know only a win will keep the series alive, whilst Australia will be bidding to replicate their last trip to Old Trafford in 2019 where they successfully retained the urn for the first time in England since 2001.
We preview the action below.
England v Australia – Wednesday 11:00
England roared back into the series with a tense 3-wicket win over Australia last weekend, with the introduction of Mark Wood adding some much needed spice to an evidently ageing bowling attack. The addition of Chris Woakes – a genuine all-rounder at number 8 – was also an inspired decision, and it was ultimately fitting that those two were the final players at the crease to lead the hosts over the line at Headingley.
Despite Ben Stokes’ men undoubtedly harvesting some momentum after last Sunday’s win, they will be very conscious of the remarkable fact that they haven’t beaten Australia at Old Trafford since 1981. It’s a ground Australia like to play on – exemplified by their 185-run win in 2019 where they only lost 14 wickets across their two innings.
Selection will be a big factor here. England have already announced their squad, with James Anderson replacing Ollie Robinson to play on his home turf in the hosts’ only change from last week’s triumph. For Australia, there will be increasing pressure on the selectors to address David Warner’s form at the top of the order. Josh Hazelwood will likely come in for Scott Boland, whilst there is also an issue of how best to shoehorn Cam Green back into the XI after Mitch Marsh’s brilliant display in the third Test.
It makes for another tantalising contest in what is already shaping up to be one of the best Ashes series of all time. England will start as the 11/8 favourites to level the series at 2-2, with Australia 8/5 to win their first away Ashes series since 2001. A quick glance at the weather forecast suggests that a fair few overs will be lost over the course of the five days, so don’t rule out the draw either at 3/1.
The Phil Tufnell Pick for this Test includes James Anderson to take over four wickets in the first innings at his home ground, which has been subsequently boosted from 8/1 to 10/1. Tuffers is also backing England to win and Harry Brook to be the top run scorer in the first innings, which has likewise been bumped up from 11/1 to 14/1.
From an individual perspective, Joe Root leads the top England run scorer market for the hosts at 11/4, despite a lean return on his home patch in Leeds last week. Ben Stokes is second in the betting at 4/1 after his heroics with the bat in two of his last three innings, whilst Jonny Bairstow – despite his poor form – is very generously priced at 8/1.
Steve Smith is predictably the favourite for the tourists at 5/2 to rack up the most runs in the first innings, whilst David Warner has slipped all the way down to seventh in the pecking order at 6/1. Mitch Marsh may be worth a punt at 11/2 – England’s tendency to dismiss the top order early but allow middle-order partnerships to gain traction once the ball softens allows batsmen at 5 or 6 to really flourish.
