England’s cricket stars are in desperate need of some game time. For one, they could use a tune up before next year’s World Cup, and secondly, they need the opportunity to prove they’re a strong collective unit and Kevin Pieterson’s nonsense was exactly that.
KP has dominated cricket discussion since the end of England’s summer of cricket, so the opportunity to showcase skills on the pitch will be welcomed with open arms by their World Cup hopefuls.
They head to Sri Lanka, in the middle of rain season, to compete in seven relatively meaningless ODI’s. The series, which is designed presumably to test combinations, comes just at the right time for both teams.
Sri Lanka need confidence after taking a hammering in India, while England just need more experience for the likes of Ali, Gurney, Jordan and Stokes.
The Last Time These Two Met
The teams actually met relatively recently. In May and June of this year Sri Lanka won a five match series 3-2, playing some quality cricket along the way. The series feature four completed innings scores under 150 and only one of over 300. Alastair Cook was under intense pressure after losing the previous series; it will be interesting if he is if they suffer a first up loss here.
The Teams
Sri Lanka (likely): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wkt), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Angelo Mathews (capt), 6 Lahiru Thirimanne, 7 Jeevan Mendis, 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Dhammika Prasad, 10 Rangana Herath, 11 Shaminda Eranga
England (likely): 1 Moeen Ali, 2 Alastair Cook (capt), 3 Ian Bell, 4 Joe Root, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Jos Buttler (wkt), 7 Ben Stokes, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Chris Jordan, 10 James Tredwell, 11 Harry Gurney
The Key Players
Moeen Ali – Originally entered International cricket as a batsman who could bowl a bit. Now he rightfully commands respect as a front line spinner. Not only will he be a handful on the skidding pitches of Sri Lanka, but also expect him to score big runs. Comfortably one of the better players of spin in the English set-up.
Angelo Matthews – What a year Matthews has had. In both Test cricket and ODI cricket, the Sri Lankan captain has been epic. Often digging his side out of a whole, or if not, accelerating near the end of the innings, his contributions have been stunning to watch. Fresh off a 139 against India he should do well again.
The Odds*
Sri Lanka – $1.55
England – $2.45
*International Cricket odds courtesy of Unibet.
The Prediction
It’s always difficult to predict the winners when Duckworth-Lewis gets involved, and he definitely will at some stage in this series. England look appetizing at that price, so I’m picking them to sneak an early win while Sri Lanka’s Indian hangover continues.
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
