The Ashes 2025 Second Test tips and predictions: England face the twin-threat of a pink-ball Test at the Gabba!

The Ashes: State of play

Don’t let anyone tell you that Ashes cricket is boring - it’s not. And if the First Test in Perth is anything to go on, this 2025/26 series is going to be entertainment on fast-forward.

Not only did the opening contest end before the start of day three, the first two-day Ashes Test since 1921, but we also saw 19 wickets fall in one day - the most since 1909!

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With totals of 172, 132, 164 & 205/2, only 847 balls were bowled, that’s the third lowest in Ashes history. Australian pacer Mitchell Starc produced a ten-wicket haul in just 123 balls, again a record.

So with the hosts 1-0 up, and taking their home Ashes streak to 16 Tests without defeat, England must now attempt to level the series at the Gabba, a venue where they last tasted Ashes success in 1986.

And an added complication for the tourists could be the pink-ball which is used in these day-night Tests. Australia’s bowlers have excellent records with this ball in hand and as a team have won 13 of their 14 ‘day-nighters’, including all three against England.

The 2025 Ashes series odds

Second Test - Brisbane: Key talking points

With captain Pat Cummins and pace bowler Josh Hazlewood injured, while England had a fully-fit squad to select from, it was Australia who were said to be up against it ahead of the first Test.

That didn’t stop them achieving an eight-wicket victory, and although both Cummins and Hazlewood remain unavailable at the Gabba, England now have injury problems of their own with speedster Mark Wood out with a knee problem.

Having Wood on the sidelines is not the only issue for England, they must find a way to occupy the crease in this Test after they batted as a team for only 67.3 overs in Perth. One way they should be able to improve this is through Wood’s replacement, batting all-rounder Will Jacks who lengthens the batting order and will come in at number eight.

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With Zak Crawley becoming the first England opener to get a pair since 1999, having Jacks at number eight, with his four first class centuries, could make a difference. 

But the tourists will have to find a way to avoid a repeat of their collapse in Perth when they went from 65/1 to 88/6 across nine overs in their second innings!

Australia will not be unchanged themselves, their experienced opener Usman Khawaja has been ruled out with back spasms and all eyes will be on whether they promote Travis Head to the top of the order again, as he did to such good effect in the first Test chase.

FIRST.com top tip - Second Test

Pick: Mitchell Starc to be Australia's top bowler - 3/1 with Highbet

After becoming the first Australia pacer to take a ten-wicket haul in an Ashes Test since 1991, while producing his career best of 7/58 in the first innings, Starc will now have the pink ball in his hand, arguably his greatest weapon.

Across his 14 day-night Tests, the 35 year old has taken a whopping 81 wickets at an average of 17.08. 

At times in Perth, it looked as though he had the red ball on a piece string with England’s batters having no answer, so do not be surprised if he causes the tourists even more trouble at the Gabba - and you can find the best cricket odds with Highbet. 

Second Test - Brisbane: Things to consider

Australia may be the masters of pink ball contests and went undefeated in all Tests in Brisbane from 1988 until 2021, but they were beaten by West Indies at the Gabba in January 2024, a day-night Test, and could only draw here against India 12 months ago.

There is also the suggestion that surely England can’t perform as badly with the bat as they did in Perth - the pitch in Brisbane will have pace and bounce but it will not be as pronounced in either as it was in the first Test.

The tourists also proved that when rested, their bowling attack can cause this inconsistent Australian batting line-up problems - Jofra Archer took 2/11, Brydon Carse 3/45 and skipper Ben Stokes 5/23 in the first innings of the opener.

And well rested this bowling attack will be, albeit without Mark Wood, but the unit sent down only 65.4 overs in Perth and have had ten days off since!

The addition of Jacks to the batting, someone who has hit five centuries at a strike-rate of 155.72 in T20 cricket, suggests England will go even harder with the bat this time, it’s a high-risk strategy though and could see them racing to defeat once again.

Extra tips

Pick: Ben Stokes to be England’s top bowler in the 1st innings - 15/4

There may be question marks against England’s approach but one thing which is not up for debate is the quality of Stokes’ bowling in recent times.

The captain took 5/23 in the first innings in Perth, while picking up another first innings five-wicket haul in his previous Test in July. When you throw in his 6/50 in the Ashes warm-up fixture, again in the first innings, last month, he really is England’s lead pace bowler at the moment.

Pick: Marnus Labuschagne to score a fifty in the match - 23/20

Batting in pink-ball Tests in Australia is supposed to be tough but the number three batter does not make it look so!

Across his career, Labuschagne has passed 100 four times in day-night Tests and averages 63.86 in these games.

Pick: Harry Brook to be England’s top batter in the 1st innings - 15/4

Sometimes skittish, but with immense self-belief in his method, the 26 year old hit 52 while top scoring for England in the first innings of the Perth Test.

His was the only half-century in the opening three innings of the first Test and in away Tests alone he averages an impressive 74.85.

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Odds correct at the time of writing.