England vs India, 2nd Test, Match Prediction – Who will win the match England or India?

England found themselves in a rabbit hole in their second innings of the first Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham, but the likes of Sam Curran and Ben Stokes pulled them out of the pits to help their side beat India by 31 runs. The visitors have had several moments to rejoice at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Stadium and they would be desperate to recollect themselves and put up a resolute show in the second Test.

Out of 17 Tests at Lord’s, India have emerged victorious in merely a couple of them, their latest triumph coming back in 2014 when Ishant Sharma’s awe-inspiring spell comfortably took the visiting team over the finishing line. England’s record at the venue hasn’t been impressive in the last six years as they have lost five of their last 12 matches. The Brits last slumped against Pakistan at Lord’s earlier in May.

Pitch  

The first look of the pitch suggests that it’s going to be a seam bowling paradise. However, Nasser Hossain, the former English cricketers, mentioned that the leather won’t seam around much and the Indians would wish for his comments to come true. In the last match at the venue, the pacers helped their teams bowl their oppositions out without much difficulty.

Team Combination

England

The Poms are likely to resort to a couple of changes despite their clinical show. Ollie Pope, who has been remarkable for Surrey, will replace Dawid Malan and make his debut in international cricket. Ben Stokes won’t play the next match and Chris Woakes, who recently recovered from a quad and knee injury, will take his place. Jos Buttler and Alastair Cook couldn’t perform at Edgbaston and would be keen to make amends.

Predicted XI

Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Joe Root (C), Ollie Pope, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, James Anderson

India

After the defeat, India are expected to revamp their top order. KL Rahul, who batted at number three last time, may open along with Vijay. Shikhar Dhawan may make way for Cheteshwar Pujara. The likes of Ajinkya Rahane and Dinesh Karthik would also want to contribute. In the bowling department, the onus will be on the pace trio of Ishant, Umesh and Shami with Ashwin being the lone spinner.

Predicted XI

Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Chetweshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav

Probable top performers

Alastair Cook- England, Virat Kohli- India

The prediction is for India to win the match and draw level in the five-match series.