England vs India 2018: Nasser Hussain predicts Test series scoreline

Former skipper Nasser Hussain has predicted a 3-2 series scoreline in favour of England. Despite their abject batting performance in the Edgbaston encounter, the 50-year old has backed India to remain competitive in the upcoming Test matches as well.

Speaking to India Today ahead of the second match at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground, Hussain affirmed, "3-2 is what I had predicted before a ball went down, (it will still be) 3-2 in favour of England. I don't think there'll be any draws."

Even though they found themselves in a serious quandary on a number of occasions, England managed to eke out a thrilling 31-run triumph in the series opener at Edgbaston. Contrary to Birmingham wherein they are undefeated against all Asian teams, their record at Lord's does not paint a pretty picture.

From their ten previous Tests at the de facto home of cricket, England have won five and lost as many matches. While Pakistan triumphed on successive occasions, India registered a memorable victory at Lord's during their 2014 tour.

With London experiencing a major heat wave, all eyes are on the pitch. The curators are battling against the scorching weather by refusing to cut the grass and covering the surface diligently. Hussain opined that the Indian batsmen would find it much easier than at Edgbaston.

The erstwhile right-handed batsman felt, "It will be a good pitch at the Lord's. I don't think ball will do as much as it did at Edgbaston so that will help the Indian batsmen a little bit. But, there's the slope at the Lord's and there's always a little bit of movement. It will also spin a little bit. The side playing better cricket would be important."

He elaborated, "Conditions play a part but if India had been a little smarter and taken their catches in the first game, you would be talking about one-nil down for England and everyone will be nailing England at the moment. So both sides have their problems."

Terming the visitors as an 'undercooked' unit, Hussain questioned their decision to reduce the sole warm-up match to three days instead of the scheduled four. He asserted that lack of preparation as well as the team management's dubious decision to exclude Cheteshwar Pujara resulted in their struggles against the moving ball in Edgbaston.

Having obtained a taste of the conditions on offer, Hussain foretold a much better showing from the Indian batsmen when the second Test begins at Lord's on Thursday.