Men’s cricket Test match England vs Ireland June 1st: the best betting tips and offers

ENGLAND’s summer of international cricket is very much centred on the Ashes series, which gets under way in just over a fortnight’s time.

But their opening match of the summer must first be dealt with – a four-day Test against Ireland, which starts on Thursday, providing Ben Stokes’ side with a chance to prepare for Australia and the task ahead.

Current odds for England vs Ireland Men’s cricket Test match

• England to win – 1/8 at Unibet
• Ireland to win – 22/1 at bet365
• Draw – 10/1 at Spreadex

Best bookies for betting on England vs Ireland cricket Test match

Before we consider what the best bets for the England v Ireland Test are, let’s first look at which bookies are good for betting on the contest. Also remember to take a look at our overview of the betting apps to find the best apps for betting on sports in the UK.

England Test form

Since the appointment of Ben Stokes as captain and Brendon McCullum as head coach last spring, England look a team transformed.

With their batsmen given the freedom to play their shots, ‘Bazball’ has resulted in 10 wins from 12 Test matches. New Zealand and South Africa were both beaten on home soil last summer and since then England have added a 3-0 whitewash in Pakistan.

They came close to winning in New Zealand too, only a one-run defeat in the final Test denying them.

England went 1-1 at Lord’s in 2022 but that victory (over NZ) is their only win in their last five at the Home of Cricket.

Ireland Test form

COVID halted Ireland’s Test infancy and they only returned to action in April – almost three years after their previous match.

They headed to Asia and lost to Bangladesh and twice to Sri Lanka, meaning they have now been beaten in all six Tests they have played since their debut in 2017.

Playing in such bat-friendly conditions is unlikely to be good preparation for early-summer at Lord’s.

Ireland’s one previous Test at this ground brought a 143-run defeat in 2019, although they famously dismissed their hosts for just 85 on the opening day that year.

England vs Ireland men’s cricket Test match betting tips and odds

Matthew Potts man of the match – 18/1 at BetUK

Potts to be man of the match looks a cracking bet at the price.

The Durham seamer looks ideally suited to the Lord’s conditions – as he showed last summer.

Potts took nine wickets across his two Tests at the Home of Cricket in 2022, grabbing seven in the season-opener on debut against New Zealand. That was the best total by an England bowler in that match, which was also played in the opening week in June.

The 24-year-old has started the domestic season in fantastic form.

While there’s the proviso that he’s been playing in Division Two of the County Championship, the fact remains that no-one has taken more wickets in this season’s competition than Potts, who has 30 dismissals in his five matches so far.

With England heavy favourites to win the match, there’s every chance Potts gets two innings to impress the judges here, whereas the England batsmen may only get one.

In short, 18/1 about one of three England seamers in an early-season Lord’s Test looks a good price in this market.

Lorcan Tucker top Ireland batter – 11/2 at Spreadex

Ireland were dismissed for just 38 in one innings during their last Test at Lord’s (in 2019) and it’s not hard to envisage them struggling with the bat again this time around.

There’s little first-class experience in their ranks these days and the unique Lord’s conditions, not to mention the England attack, will provide a real challenge to their batters.

I’d certainly be wary of backing any of their top order against the new ball here and so Tucker, who will bat in the middle order, looks a decent price.

He arrives off the back of an excellent tour of Asia during which he scored a century in Bangladesh before making scores of 80 and 45 (both in the first innings) in the Tests against Sri Lanka.

Of course, English conditions will likely be less batter-friendly but, that said, Tucker made 97 in the warm-up match against Essex last week so there looks to be some value in his odds here.

Ben Duckett top England batter – 5/1 at Grosvenor

A lot of the England batters are coming in here pretty cold.

Joe Root hasn’t played county cricket yet this summer, while Harry Brook, who has made an excellent start to his Test career, struggled during the Indian Premier League.

Ben Stokes was injured and hardly played in the IPL and my preference in this market is to side with someone who has been playing regularly and is used to the early-season English conditions.

That man is Duckett, who has already made 177 at Lord’s this season for Nottinghamshire. He also has two other half-centuries in the County Championship.

His Test average of 38.62 is the third best in the England team behind Root and Brook (whose figures are based on just six games) and he’ll be facing a pretty inexperienced attack here.

Yes, there’s the obvious new-ball risk which is always a concern, especially at Lord’s at this time of year, but Duckett still looks reasonably priced at 5/1.

How to place a bet on England vs Ireland cricket Test match

So, you want to back one of our selections but are a betting newbie and aren’t sure how to?

1. If you are betting online you will first need to open an account – simply visit the bookmaker site you want to use and register. There will usually be a ‘join’ or ‘register’ button.
2. Fill in your details and register a payment method (ie credit card). You may be subject to some ID and financial checks – don’t worry, this is the industry norm.
3. Once you have a funded account, head to the cricket section – the sport menu is usually located on the left-hand side of the webpage – and then seek out the England v Ireland match, which may be listed under a sub-heading such as ‘Test matches’.
4. Scroll down to the market you want to bet on and then click on the selection in question. This will result in your selection being added to the betslip, usually found on the right or towards the bottom of the webpage.
5. Once the betslip has been filled you can enter your stake (the amount you want to bet). The betslip will then work out your potential returns.
6. Once you have checked your bet – don’t stake the wrong amount! – and are happy with it, click the ‘place bet’ (or equivalent) button. Some sites also have a secondary ‘confirm bet’ stage so you can double-check your bet and don’t make a mistake.
7. Done, you can sit back and watch the action!

Who is playing for England?

England named their team on Tuesday with seamer Josh Tongue the surprise inclusion ahead of Chris Woakes. The Worcestershire man will be making his Test debut.

With the likes of James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Ollie Robinson and Olly Stone injured and Mark Wood attending the birth of his child, Tongue gets his chance to impress.

After an injury-hit IPL campaign, captain Ben Stokes is fit to lead the team. The full England XI is: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (capt), Jonny Bairstow (w/k), Stuart Broad, Matthew Potts, Josh Tongue, Jack Leach.

Who is playing for Ireland?

Andy Balbirnie leads Ireland at Lord’s but it might be worth mentioning who isn’t playing.

Star seamer Josh Little is absent having only just played in the Indian Premier League final on Monday.

And Tim Murtagh, the star of Ireland’s last Test at cricket’s HQ in 2019 and a player well known to county cricket followers, was forced to give up Tests in order to continue his career at Middlesex (active Test players are now considered overseas players in the county game).

The full Ireland squad is: Andy Balbirnie (capt), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Matthew Foster, Fionn Hand, Graham Hume, Thomas Mayes, Andy McBrine, James McCollum, Peter Moor (w/k), Paul Stirling, Lorcan Tucker (w/k), Harry Tector, Craig Young.

What kind of pitch and weather conditions are expected for England vs Ireland cricket Test match?

Lord’s is generally regarded as a seam-friendly pitch with spinners often seeing little action – don’t be surprised if at least one team goes in without one in their XI, especially with this being a four-day Test and so there will be less wear in the surface come the final day.

However, after a dry spell – and no rain expected during the match itself – there is the potential for the wicket to favour the batsmen more.

Temperatures are expected to be around 20C each day.

What bookies offer live betting on England vs Ireland cricket Test match?

Nearly all bookmakers will be offering live, in-play betting on England v Ireland, including Spreadex, BetUK and Grosvenor Sport.

Where you can find boosted bets on England vs Ireland Test match?

Most bookmakers will offer ‘boosted’ prices on an England Test match these days, enhancing the odds on a particular selection.

For example, England to win and Ben Duckett to be clear top England runscorer has been boosted from 9/2 to 11/2 by William Hill.

Another way of boosting your odds is to take advantage of Grosvenor Casinos’ ‘double the odds’ offer.

Their sportsbook will double the odds of new customers’ first bet with a maximum stake of £10.

Once you sign up, you will be automatically credited with a 100% Odds Boost token.

When your selection is added to your betslip this token can then be chosen to double the odds of your bet.

So, if you fancy getting 10/1 about our tip, Ben Duckett, top-scoring for England in the first innings of this match, sign up with Grosvenor now. 

How to watch England vs Ireland Test match

• Location: Lord’s Cricket Ground, London, England
• Time: Thursday June 1 to Sunday June 4 (11am start each day)
• How to watch: Live UK TV coverage on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event

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