England will be aiming to continue their perfect start to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 when they face Sri Lanka in Sharjah on Monday.
Sri Lanka await for in-form Group 1 leaders England, as Eoin Morgan’s side target a win to effectively guarantee a semi-final spot.
England have been in stunning form so far in the tournament, demolishing West Indies first up and comfortably beating Bangladesh, before cruising to an emphatic win over Australia on Saturday to make it three from three.
Jason Roy starred with the bat in the win over Bangladesh, but his half-century was overshadowed by an extraordinary knock by his opening partner Jos Buttler against Australia, who slammed 71 off 32 balls in the innings of the tournament so far.
With Buttler in that sort of form, and England’s bowling attack looking in fine fettle, it will take an impressive performance to stop them.
But Sri Lanka certainly have the calibre to trouble the group leaders.
Wanindu Hasaranga took a hat-trick in the loss to South Africa on Saturday, and has the quality to really trouble England. And the entire Sri Lankan outfit is much improved from the squad that were whitewashed 3-0 by Monday’s opponents earlier in 2021.
Sri Lanka know they need a win too, with only one more game against West Indies to come, and South Africa and Australia to overhaul if they want to snatch a qualification spot for the semi-finals.
Fixture details
- The match: England v Sri Lanka, Match 29
- Time: 18:00 local time, Monday 1 November 2021
- Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium
The teams
Both teams are expected to be unchanged for the fixture in Sharjah. Sri Lanka’s combination of top-class spin and high pace has been an impressive feature of the tournament so far, while England’s dominance in their three matches to-date has allowed them to absorb the injury issues of Mark Wood.
Probable England XI: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan (captain), Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Tymal Mills.
Probable Sri Lanka XI: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Avishka Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dasun Shanaka (captain), Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara.
Key players
Jos Buttler, England: The opening batter’s dismantling of Australia last time out underlined his potential to dominate a match single-handedly. Sri Lanka will know that if Buttler bats long then he’ll hit them out of the game, so the right-hander remains the most prized wicket in England’s strong batting line-up.
Wanindu Hasaranga, Sri Lanka: High-quality spin bowling is the best way to beat the world’s top-ranked T20I side, and Sri Lanka have one of the very best in the tournament in the shape of Hasaranga. If Sri Lanka’s main man with the ball can weave his way through England’s top order then he can put the group leaders under real pressure for the first time in the tournament. His aggressive hitting with the bat could also be a feature against England’s death bowlers.
Expert Dream11 Fantasy Tips
Top Captaincy pick – Jos Buttler
The wicket-keeper batsman has to be the top captaincy pick of the match as he is proving to be unstoppable at the moment having scored 113 runs in 3 games at a strike rate of 156. Adding to his impressive form, he has a phenomenal average of 64 in 7 T20Is played against Sri Lanka.
Must-have – Wanindu Hasaranga
You just can’t keep him out of the game with bat or ball in hand, he is coming into the game on the back of a hat-trick against South Africa. He is the joint highest wicket-taker alongside Shakib in the tournament with 11 wickets from 6 matches. His consistency and Sri Lanka’s heavy reliance on him makes him a must-have against England.
Ladder situation
Victory for Sri Lanka would put them right back into the mix for qualification, but a third Group 1 loss would all-but wipe out any chances of progression.
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England’s strong net run rate means they are already in an extremely strong position to qualify, but victory against Sri Lanka underline their dominance of Group 1 and effectively secure their spot in the semi-finals as group winners.
What they said
Sri Lanka coach Mahela Jayawardene, who promoted him to opener at Mumbai Indians, on Buttler: “When you have the option of the scoop, the bowlers are always under pressure with which field to go to. At the same time, he’s probably one of the best players through the off side as well: he opens himself up and the hands come through. He’s a good player of spin: he has the reverse-sweep, he comes down and hits – we saw the way he controlled Zampa [and how] he never let him settle into that line and length.”
Liam Livingstone on Buttler: “I’ve said it all along: he’s the best hitter of a white ball in the world, and when he gets on a roll like that (against Australia), there’s no stopping him. That was pretty much the perfect innings, a clinic of white-ball power hitting. It was a pleasure to just sit there and watch a genius at work.”
(Source and courtesy: https://www.t20worldcup.com/)