England vs New Zealand: 3rd Test odds, preview & prediction

• Ladbrokes brings you its preview of the third and final Test between England and New Zealand

• Captain Ben Stokes returns to the England team

• Series is level at 1-1

England face New Zealand at Trent Bridge in the third and deciding Test of their series, with England captain Ben Stokes returning to lead the side after he missed the second Test.

New Zealand levelled the series with a comprehensive victory in the second Test at The Oval, after England convincingly won a rain-affected first Test at Lord's. England are the favourites to win the third Test and series at odds of 4/5, with New Zealand priced at 6/4 and a draw odds of 13/2.

Match details

• Fixture: England vs New Zealand

• Venue: Trent Bridge

• Date: Thursday, June 25 - Monday, June 29

• Time: 11am BST

England captain Ben Stokes returns to the team along with pace bowler Gus Atkinson, after they missed the second Test following an off-field incident. It's a welcome boost for an England side that looked lacking in ideas with Joe Root as interim captain, as New Zealand comprehensively beat England by 253 runs to level the series at 1-1.

Emilio Gay has made an encouraging start to his Test career with two fifties in two games, but Ben Duckett and Jacob Bethell have struggled at the top of the order against New Zealand's quality pace attack. Joe Root and Harry Brook remain England's premium batters, with Jamie Smith and Stokes coming in for James Rew and Jordan Cox.

Shoaib Bashir returns to the side after not bowling a ball at Lord's, but Ollie Robinson has failed to recover from an injury sustained in the first Test. Sonny Baker and Matty Fisher drop out, so England will go with a pace attack of Atkinson, Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue with some help from Stokes.

England XI

1. Ben Duckett

2. Emilio Gay

3. Jacob Bethell

4. Joe Root

5. Harry Brook

6. Jamie Smith (wk)

7. Ben Stokes (c)

8. Jofra Archer

9. Gus Atkinson

10. Josh Tongue

11. Shoaib Bashir

New Zealand made the perfect response to a 115-run defeat in the first Test by outplaying England in all phases at The Oval en route to winning by 253 runs. After Kane Williamson's shock retirement following the first Test, his replacement Henry Nicholls rose to the occasion by scoring a superb second-innings hundred, to back up Glenn Phillips' ton in the first innings.

Both top orders have struggled against the new ball and New Zealand's highest opening partnership in the series is just 14, but skipper Tom Latham will continue to open with Devon Conway. After a horror first Test, Rachin Ravindra bounced back with 76 at The Oval, with Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell also returning to form with half-centuries. Phillips has provided crucial runs throughout the series at seven.

The Black Caps quick bowlers have constantly threatened Englad's batters, with Matt Henry the star at The Oval with an 11-wicket haul in the match. That was after Nathan Smith and Kyle Jamieson both took five-for's at Lord's, with Will O'Rourke also having a knack of picking up wickets at crucial times.

New Zealand predicted XI

1. Tom Latham (c)

2. Devon Conway

3. Henry Nicholls

4. Rachin Ravindra

5. Daryl Mitchell

6. Tom Blundell (wk)

7. Glenn Phillips

8. Nathan Smith

9. Kyle Jamieson

10. Will O'Rourke

11. Matt Henry

England vs New Zealand 2nd Test prediction

An inexperienced England side struggled at The Oval without the direction and leadership Stokes provides, and they should be much better for his presence in the decider at Trent Bridge. Archer and Atkinson will take the new ball together for the first time in the series, with England's bowlers much better equipped to match New Zealand's than they were last time out.

The Kiwis showed their typical grit and fighting spirit to level the series and are chasing just a second series win in England since 1999. Their top order has struggled but their middle order returned to form at The Oval, while there is no weak option in their bowling lineup.

With all that said, England have a strong record at Trent Bridge, losing just two of their last thirteen Tests in Nottingham (W9, D2). That included a win back in 2022 against New Zealand that won England the series, and we're predicting for that to happen once again.

Prediction: England to win the third Test

View the latest cricket odds here.

All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.