Second Ashes Test Odds: Travis Head 7/2 With BoyleSports For Top Gabba Scorer

England head to Brisbane hoping for a much improved performance in the day-nighter Test against Australia.

The Aussies, without skipper Pat Cummins and pace bowler Josh Hazlewood, defeated the tourists inside two days in Perth and are 1/4 with BoyleSports to win the series on home soil for the fourth successive time.

Hopes were high that Ben Stokes’ team could stop the rot this winter, especially after they took a 40-run first-innings lead, but they succumbed to an eight-wicket defeat on the back of another poor performance with the bat.

England are now 9/2 to launch a stunning comeback and beat Australia over five Tests, while a third draw in the last four Ashes series can be backed at 12/1.

That said, the prospects of England squaring the series next week look bleak, considering they have only won twice at The Gabba since the end of the Second World War.

Their last victory at the famous ground came 39 years ago, yet they are 2/1 to end that terrible run, with a draw priced at 12/1.

Another Whitewash On The Cards?

England have failed to win any of their last 16 Tests in Australia, 14 of which were defeats, so could they be heading for another whitewash?

That was the case in the 2013/14 series when Mitchell Johnson tore through England’s batters with 37 wickets at an average of 13.97 to be crowned player of the series.

A 5-0 victory for Australia is 11/4 with BoyleSports, but they have won the last two series 4-0 on home soil which looks a tempting proposition at 11/2.

For those of you looking at a safer option, the bookmaker offers the choice of combining the two outcomes at 7/5.

Who Will Shine With The Bat In Second Test?

Looking specifically towards the second Test, BoyleSports has a wide range of markets for The Gabba and we have picked out some of the options that catch the eye.

Australia’s stand-in skipper Steve Smith made just 17 in the first innings in the opening Test, but he is the 11/4 favourite to score the most runs in the first innings in Brisbane.

Smith was the Aussies’ second highest run scorer with 373 in the last Ashes series in England, 123 behind Usman Khawaja, but he was only sixth in the 2021/22 series Down Under.

Travis Head, who hit one of the greatest Ashes innings off all time at the Optus Stadium to win the opening Test, was the overall top run scorer four years ago and player of the match for his 152 off 148 deliveries at The Gabba.

Head smashed a 69-ball century on a difficult pitch last week and looks a solid pick at 7/2 to top the scoring charts again.

Joe Root was the favourite to score the most runs for England in this series, but he has never hit a century in an Ashes series Down Under and made just eight over the two innings in Perth.

Root is 3/1 favourite to get back on track as the tourists’ highest scorer from the first innings, but Harry Brook – the only England player to hit a half-century in Perth – can be backed at 10/3.

Ollie Pope fell four runs short of a 50 on day one and looks a decent shout at 13/2, but opener Zak Crawley looks friendless at 7/1 following his pair in Perth.

Ashes Second Test Bowling Odds: Starc Reality

Mitchell Starc’s sensational 10-113 in the first Test means the Australian quick is the 15/8 favourite to take the most wickets at The Gabba, but skipper Pat Cummins could make a return.

Cummins missed the opener with a back injury, but he has been spotted training with a pink ball that will be used in the day-nighter and is 2/1 to take the most wickets for Australia in the first innings, just as he did at The Gabba in 2021 with 5-38.

Josh Hazlewood is 9/4, but he missed the first Test with a hamstring injury and although he made his return in the nets in Sydney, he was practising with a red ball which suggests he won’t be ready for Thursday.

Scott Boland did not take a wicket in the first innings, but bagged four in the second, so he looks a better prospect at 5/2. 

For England, Jofra Archer removed openers Jake Weatherald and Marnus Labuschagne in the first innings and leads the way at 5/2 as the tourists’ chief battering ram.

But, it was captain Stokes that shone with the ball, taking 5-23 off six overs and he is available at 10/3 to be England’s chief wicket-taker in the first innings.

Brydon Carse took three first-innings wickets and dismissed both openers in the second innings, so he has to be considered at 7/2, while pace aces Gus Atkinson and Mark Wood are both 11/4.

However, The Gabba favours swing bowlers - especially under the lights - so it may be worth keeping an eye on whether Josh Tongue (3/1) is selected at the expense of one of the other seamers.

Tongue only played in one match during the 2023 Ashes series, taking five wickets on his debut in the second test at Lord's, including Smith and David Warner in both innings.

The top four in the player of the match markets are all Australian.

Smith and Head are both 8/1, while Starc and Cummins are available at 9/1. Stokes and Root are England’s best hopes at 10/1.