England vs West Indies second test preview

England have the opportunity to wrap up their three-match series against the West Indies this week when both sides take to the pitch at Trent Bridge on Thursday.

While the first Test at Lord’s was largely overshadowed by James Anderson’s departure from international cricket, England were totally dominant with both bat and ball across the two days and one hour of play, and will be looking to wrap up a convincing series victory between now and Monday.

We preview the action below.

England v West Indies – Thursday 11:00

England return to Trent Bridge for a Test match for the first time since their five-wicket victory against New Zealand in 2022 – widely considered as the birthplace for their ‘Bazball’ approach in chasing down big totals. While they enjoyed an impressive period of dominance in Nottingham between 2008 and 2015 – winning six and drawing one of their seven Tests – the fortress has somewhat been breached in recent years and England will be seeking just their second victory in five attempts since 2017.

Having said that, it doesn’t appear Ben Stokes’ men will have too many problems here if last week’s first Test at Lord’s is anything to go by. England romped to an innings victory against a West Indies outfit that predictably showed skill and promise with the ball but a lack of ideas at the crease. The Windies are no stranger to taking hidings against England – three of their five lowest ever Test scores have come against them – and last Wednesday’s first innings score of 121 was their ninth-lowest total on English soil.

England were trading at roughly 1/6 to win the first Test but will open tomorrow’s fixture even shorter at 1/9, with the West Indies a big 10/1 to pull off their first Test victory at Trent Bridge since 1991.

Wood will worry Windies  

England’s one change from the Lord’s Test sees James Anderson phased out of the side for the final time and replaced by fast bowler Mark Wood, whose inclusion in the third Test in last summer’s Ashes series alongside Chris Woakes was a big catalyst in England mounting a stirring fightback. His express pace will cause issues for a West Indies side who evidently struggled with the extra clicks against Test newcomer Gus Atkinson – who picked up an astonishing 12 wickets on debut last week.

Wood sits third in the England top bowler betting at 15/8, behind the aforementioned Atkinson and Woakes at 7/4 apiece, while new frontline spinner Shoaib Bashir is 5/1 to deliver his first impactful Test bowling spell on home soil.

From a batting perspective, Joe Root leads the market at 29/10 to top the England scoring charts in the first innings after a handsome half century last week, but we like the look of Ben Duckett’s price of 4/1 on his home turf. The left-hander has been in relatively lean form given his impressive start to Test life, but the short Trent Bridge boundaries will suit his ability to manipulate the field and score at a quick rate.

Phil Tufnell’s Pick for this Test sees the former England spinner place his faith in vice-captain Ollie Pope, with the Surrey man boosted from 11/2 to 13/2 to score the most runs in the first innings alongside an England victory.