Sports Betting: Drawn Test series best betting option

WITH RAIN forecast in the Birmingham area both tomorrow and on Saturday, the draw at 5-4 looks the best bet in the First Test in the four-match series between England and New Zealand, which gets underway at Edgbaston this morning.

There was a time when the Birmingham venue offered a batting strip second only to The Oval in friendliness, but those days seem long gone. And, if the weather forecasters are wrong, the unpredictable Edgbaston wicket could produce a result, particularly as more Test matches than ever seem to be reaching conclusions nowadays.

However, if the forecast bad weather does produce a stalemate in the Midlands, bearing in mind the fact that - after encounters at Lord's and Old Trafford - the final Test in the series is to be conducted at that Test draw-producing machine of a venue, The Oval, a drawn series will then look a fair bet at 12-5 with Stanley.

FIRST TEST

C H L S T

England 6-5 6-4 6-5 5-4 11-8

Draw 5-4 10-11 5-4 5-4 evens

New Zealand 3-1 4-1 7-2 4-1 4-1

Over round 115 112 112 109 112

Over round at best prices (in bold): 104.

TEST SERIES

C H L S T

England 5-6 10-11 8-11 4-6 4-5

Draw 5-2 5-2 5-2 12-5 5-2

New Zealand 5-2 11-5 3-1 7-2 5-2

Over round 112 112 111 112 113

Over round at best prices (in bold): 104.

C Coral, H William Hill, L Ladbrokes, S Stanley, T Tote

Suggested bet: pounds 1 on a draw in the First Test at 5-4 (Coral, Ladbrokes and Stanley); pounds 1 on a drawn series at 12-5 (Stanley). (pounds 2 staked).