This is not as popular as other famous rivalries in the cricketing world, but it sure is fun. Most of the times these two teams have met, they have been poles apart in their performance. The last visit was when England was a train wreck, and Cook was sacked as a captain. This time it is the other way round. The most shocking development was that Angelo Matthews, who was the most experienced on-field player, was removed from the team questioning his fitness. This sure will raise a lot of questions for the selection committee of Sri Lanka, removing someone like Matthews just a few months prior to the world cup. England, on the other hand, will want to play good cricket and retain their position as no. 1 ODI team.
Head-to-Head:
Overall Matches – 69
Sri Lanka- 34
England- 33
Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium, Dambulla
The continuous rain will definitely help the seamers. The pitch is green with a lot of grass which is again good for bowling. Sri Lankan record has not been very good on this ground, as they have lost their last seven matches played here. It will be interesting to see what they can do against the bowling attack England has.
| Total Matches | 56 |
| Matches won batting first | 25 |
| Matches won bowling first | 29 |
| Average 1st Inns scores | 217 |
| Average 2nd Inns scores | 182 |
| Highest total recorded | 385/7 (50 Ov) by PAK vs BAN |
| Lowest total recorded | 88/10 (46.1 Ov) by Eng vs SL |
| Highest score chased | 289/4 (46.3 Ov) by SL vs PAK |
| Lowest score defended | 156/8 (50 Ov) by NZ vs SL |
Sri Lanka vs England 1st ODI Ballebaazi Fantasy Cricket Preview
Sri Lanka
They need to work hard on their game now. With Matthews gone they don’t have the experience they used to rely on lower down the batting order or the bowler who chipped in whenever tea needed it. They are going to miss that all-round player. However, the critical question is who will be filling that void. Chandimal as captain is still not experienced enough to tackle a team like England or to play confidently in the world cup. This will impact his game as well. They have a few names in top order that can change the game, but no one has been a consistent performer. The bowling is also average even when Malinga is back in the team. There is no surprise element which has always been a USP for Sri Lanka.
England
They are on a completely different level right now with back to back wins against Australia and India. The confidence of this team is what is making them the best contender for the world cup this time. The team sure has flaws which in tough games become more evident, but they have been trying to improve that in every game. This series will help them come out of their comfort zone, as they have been playing only home games for some time now. They might not have great opposition to fight against looking at the Sri Lankan side right now, but they will have to be careful. Woakes is fir and back to the side which is a relief for the team. They will be playing the strongest hand in the first few games at least.
| Sri Lanka | England |
| Dinesh Chandimal (c ) | Eoin Morgan (c) |
| Niroshan Dickwella(wk) | Jos Buttler (wk) |
| Kusal Perera | Jason Roy |
| Upul Tharanga | Jonny Bairstow |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | Joe Root |
| Dasun Shanaka | Ben Stokes |
| Thisara Perera | Moeen Ali |
| Akila Dananjaya | Chris Woakes |
| Lakshan Sandakan | Mark Wood |
| Lasith Malinga | Tom Curran |
| Dushmantha Chameera | Adil Rashid |
Sri Lanka vs England 1st ODI Ballebaazi Fantasy Cricket Preview
