3 minute read
Australia retained The Ashes following a rain-effected draw at Old Trafford last week but will be eager to secure their first series victory on English soil in 22 years as the final Test gets underway at The Oval beginning on Thursday, July 27.
The Aussies last won an away Ashes series in the summer of 2001, but they very much have momentum against them in this series. England would have secured a victory, and a 2-2 series scoreline, had the weather not intervened in Manchester – and they'll want to ensure Australia's wait for an away series win is extended at least four more years.
England are favourites to square the series at 13/10 to win the Test. Australia are outsiders at 15/8 and the draw is priced at 11/4. The weather in the UK continues to be suspect so the draw is certainly worth a bet.
Mark Wood and Chris Woakes have been the game-changers for England. Since their introduction into the bowling line-up, they have taken 23 of the 35 wickets by English bowlers over the last two Tests.
While Wood gets the headlines, it's Woakes who could be the pick for Top Bowler (5/1). He excels in English conditions, has a touch more pace than James Anderson, and has been the most threatening of the seam bowlers in the English ranks. He'll also garner more overs than Wood – so more opportunity for wickets.
It's worth taking the Wood Over 4.5 wickets (4/6) bet as he has achieved that feat in both Tests he's played to date. Broad Under 4.5 match wickets (5/6) should also be considered.
The Australian bowling attack was taken apart at Old Trafford by Zak Crawley, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow in particular. All three main bowlers went for over 100 runs. Josh Hazelwood did, however, take five wickets in the contest. The Under 4.5 match wickets for both Mitchell Starc (4/5) and Pat Cummins (8/11) could be considered given the weather situation.
Switching to the batting markets, Marnus Labuschagne and Mitchell Marsh are the form bats in the Aussie line-up – Labuschagne notched a century at Old Trafford and Marsh has been a revelation since his introduction at Headingley.
Marsh is a reasonable price at 18/1 for Top Match Batter, while Labuschagne to notch Over 75.5 match runs (5/6), score 100 in the match (11/4) and hit Over 7.5 fours (4/5) are all in play. Labuschagne to score more runs than Steve Smith (11/10) and Joe Root (Evens) are also good bets.
For England, Zak Crawley was his swashbuckling best at Old Trafford hitting 21 fours and three sixes in his 189 run first innings. He's 10/3 to score the most fours. He is also Evens to beat Ben Duckett to 10 runs in his first innings. Conversely, Duckett not to score a 50 at 5/6 seems a reasonable price.
