The Oval hosts the second test between England and New Zealand, the game gets under way on Wednesday and there has been plenty going on since England took a 1-0 lead in the series.
This is a 3 match series with Trent Bridge Nottingham hosting the third and final match. The first test was staged at Lords from 4th to 8th June and England won it by 115 runs.
Although rain was a constant factor we didn’t need an awful lot of play to see a result. New Zealand won the toss, asked England to bat first and bowled them out for 140. Harry Brook made 56 and no other England batsmen made it to the 20’s. Jamieson took 5 wickets, Nathan Smith claimed 3 and Orourke 2.
In reply New Zealand were bowled out for just 113.At one stage they were 29/6 and down the order Glenn Phillips made 34 and Kyle Jamieson was 38 not out. Ollie Robinson took 5 wickets, Tongue took 3 and Atkinson 2.
England made 226 in their second knock with Emilio Gay top scoring with 57 on his debut. Jamie Smith made 39 and despite 6 wickets for Nathan Smith the hosts built a match winning lead.
New Zealand were all out for 138 in the fourth innings (Phillips 44 not out, Conway 41) and Gus Atkinson took 5 wickets with 2 a price for Robinson and Tongue.
This was how the teams lined up in the first test.
England: Emilio Gay, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Ben Stokes (c), Gus Atkinson, Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir
New Zealand: Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, William Orourke
Team News
Following the first test victory skipper Ben stokes and bowler Gus Atkinson have been left out of the squad following an incident at a nightclub which is under investigation by the ECB. Joe Root will take the captaincy and Jordan Cox and Jofra Archer have been called up. Henry Crocombe is cover for Ollie Robinson should he fail a fitness test.
Also after the first test Kane Williamson announced he would be retiring from international cricket with immediate effect. Will Young has been added to the squad for the remainder of the series.
The Venue, Kennington Oval, London
Over the course of the last decade England have played 9 test matches at The Oval, winning 5 and losing 4
The most recent test at this venue came in July 2025 and it saw India (224 and 296) beat England (247 and 367) by 6 runs.
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2nd Test Betting
Prices quoted from Sportingbet are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change.
England are 0.77/1 to win the match with a draw at 23/4 and New Zealand can be backed at 31/20
The Verdict
There is plenty to digest and consider coming into this second test and let’s hope for a decent surface after the shambles Lords served up.
Harry Brook got a 50 in the first innings and a ton in the second of England’s thrilling defeat to India at this ground last year. He also came through for me with a 50 in the first innings at Lords but his price to repeat that is on the short side and I’ll look elsewhere in this game.
Jacob Bethell is my choice as top England batsman in the first innings. He wasn’t alone in getting out to an unplayable delivery at Lords and presuming he remains at No 3 I consider his price attractive.
New Zealand’s top bat market looks competitive to me but I’ll stick with Rachin Ravindra to score a 50 at the first time of asking.
Bets: Top England 1st Innings Bat Jacon Bethell at 27/4 with Sportingbet
Rachin Ravindra to score a 50 in the first innings ? yes at 12/5 with Sportingbet