THE ASHES SECOND TEST: Our cricket tipster The Edge previews the Ashes second Test between AUSTRALIA v ENGLAND including a recommended BETDAQ bet.

MATCH OVERVIEW:

We don’t get much rest as the 2nd Ashes Test comes around quickly as the sides move to Adelaide. Australia took an impressive 1-0 lead over England at Brisbane, and England fans have to be worried about the dreaded 5-0 series loss here after seeing the 1st Test. We saw some dramatic moves in-running on BETDAQ Betting Exchange as Australia ripped through England on the opening day and England never recovered. They briefly put a partnership together in the second innings lead by Joe Root, but again the middle order collapsed. Australia have all the momentum, and they are going to be very difficult to stop.

It was pretty much a perfect start for Australia. I know they traded around 1.4 from 1.07 as Dawid Malan and Joe Root batted, but the wicket was very good for batting in Brisbane and the bowlers were never going to be on top for the whole game. For England fans, they will have to clutch at some positives – England generally start tours slowly in recent years and Brisbane has been a very happy hunting ground for Australia with only India beating them there in Tests since 1988. The reality is though England have to bounce back here – another poor batting performance and you can just see Australia running all over them for the whole series.

Rory Burns has almost become a meme at the top of the order for England, and if he can’t turn his form around that always puts England on the back foot and exposes Joe Root to the new ball. For Australia, they don’t have to change much, they batted very well and could even get better. They scored 425 with Steven Smith only scoring 12 – he will improve as the series goes on. They do have one big question though; do they stick with Marcus Harris at the top of the order? His stats are poor – however David Warner scoring 94 will likely ease the selection pressure and Australia will keep the opening partnership.

WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:

Adelaide is a beautiful ground, but it’s fair to say we can have a difficult to read wicket here. Not only that, but this Test is a Day/Night Test so we have the lights to deal with too. With the movement under the lights, we’re very unlikely to see a draw here. That will actually be a boost for England to be honest, because their bowlers could have a golden hour or swinging it under lights. You get the feeling England need something like that to win a Test. Sometimes we would see some spin at Adelaide, but I’m not sure about that in a Day/Night Test. In my opinion, we’ll have a good track for batting but under lights batting will become tricky.

RECOMMENDED BET:

I feel conditions will rule out the draw here. Even if it was to rain, can you imagine the movement under the lights with cloudy/humid conditions? We could easily see a collapse and the game moving on quickly. With the draw ruled out, it’s a straight shootout between Australia and England, and I am happy to be on Australia. Their bowlers looked in great form in the 1st Test while England struggled. As I mentioned above, you feel England need superb bowling conditions to win while it feels Australia are the better side and don’t need good bowling conditions to get wickets. England are under immense pressure, and I don’t see their middle order coping with the swinging ball here. Australia are a confident bet.

The Edge Says:
Four points win Australia to beat England at 1.54 with BETDAQ Exchange.

View the market here -> https://bit.ly/BDQAshes2

IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:

We saw some excellent moves in-running in the 1st Test, and this Test could be very good for trading again. The lights will make batting at night tricky, and that will likely see some swings in-running – even England could use that advantage and take a few wickets. Australia went from 1.07 to 1.4 when Joe Root was batting, but we could see a similar move this time when Australia are batting as England take wickets under lights. I still expect Australia to dominate the Test, but there’s an angle to trade England at times.

I’m happy to be against Rory Burns at the top of the England order. His confidence will be shot to pieces on his tour in my view. I’m also happy to take on the England middle order who looked terrible in the 1st Test and I can’t see them coping with the moving ball here. For Australia, taking on Marcus Harris at the top of the order might be an option. Using the batting at night under lights to your advantage for the whole Test is something to focus on here, I can’t see it being easy and wickets could tumble.