Time: June 29, 3:30 PM IST
Venue: Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street
Pitch report
In the last four games of the ongoing English T20 League at Chester-le-Street, there have been three scores in excess of 180 runs. However, despite the runs, the pitch has been treating the bowlers fairly. The ball swings for a longer period in the ODIs. We might as well see some early hiccups.
The weather, for a change, will be nice and warm on the match day.
Teams
With Jos Buttler already ruled out from the series and Jason Roy yet to recover from the tight hamstring, Dawid Malan will get to open the innings yet again with Jonny Bairstow. Joe Root’s return confirms that he will bat at No. 3.
Probable XI for England: Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (c), Liam Livingstone, Sam Billings/Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid
Sri Lanka have suspended Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Niroshan Dickwella for a bio-bubble breach, and Avishka Fernando has been ruled out due quadriceps tear.
Probable XI for Sri Lanka: Kusal Perera (c & wk), Pathum Nissanka, Oshada Fernando, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Ramesh Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lakshan Sandakan, Dushmantha Chameera, Nuwan Pradeep
Fantasy tips
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Players to watch out for
Jonny Bairstow’s scores in the English T20 League had read 34, 67, 82, and 112. In the T20I series last week, his scores read 13*, 0, and 51. At the venue, he has blasted 268 runs in a mere 3 matches, scoring two fifties and a hundred. There’s no better pick for captaincy in fantasy league for this game.
Dushmantha Chameera ended the T20I series as the highest wicket-taker. His 6 wickets came at an incredible average of 11.6. Against Bangladesh earlier this year, he had taken 11 wickets in 3 ODIs.
Chris Woakes ranks No. 6 in ICC ODI Rankings for bowlers and No. 3 for all-rounders. He hasn’t been playing a lot of competitive cricket of late, but looked in a good rhythm in the final T20I: he ended with figures of 1 for 9 in 4 overs.
In the absence of the key batters, the onus will thus fall on Kusal Perera. Luckily for Sri Lanka, his scores at the venue read 64 and 30. The bigger question, however, is whether he will play his natural game.
Dhananjaya de Silva and Dasun Shanaka will have to hold the fort in the middle-overs. They like taking time to settle, and it shouldn’t be a challenge in the 50-0ver format.
Sam Curran will be the player to watch out for, especially given the format. He will be a crucial player at the death with both bat and ball.
Prediction
Sri Lanka have won both games at the venue – the latest being against West Indies in the 2019 World Cup. However, given the suspension of three key players and exclusion of one due to injury, they are in a spot of bother. They are thin on both numbers and experience, and the 0-3 loss in the T20Is seemed to have further dented their confidence. On the other hand, England look top-notch despite the unavailability of a few star players.
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