England vs. Sri Lanka 1st Test Location: Old Trafford, Manchester
England vs. Sri Lanka 1st Test Date: Wednesday, August 21 to Sunday, August 25
BetXchange England vs. Sri Lanka 1st Test Odds:
History
England hosts Sri Lanka in a three-Test series beginning with this clash at Old Trafford in Manchester. The tour will move to Lord’s (London) in late August before the third and final Test at The Oval in England’s capital city, beginning September 6.
England seems to be in solid form approaching this series. They just whitewashed the West Indies 3-0 on home soil, and they expect to take a series victory here, too. This is because of the sheer dominance of their performances against the Windies, where they won by an innings & 114 runs, 241 runs, and ten wickets in the three Tests.
Sri Lanka last defeated England in a Test series in 2014. That was on English soil, with the tourists drawing the first match at Lord’s and winning against the odds at Headingly. They are also in good form, albeit against teams of a lower standard than England in Tests. They have won three of their last four series overall, beating Ireland, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
England
The big news for England is that they will be without captain Ben Stokes for the first Test and the entire series. Stokes injured his hamstring playing for Northern Superchargers in The Hundred, ending his summer. This has once again brought up the debate about the amount of cricket played by those who excel in white and red ball games. Ollie Pope will deputies for Stokes, with Harry Brook taking the vice-captain role.
Opener Zak Crawley is also out of the first Test with a fractured finger. Dan Lawrence has been moved up from the middle order to open with Ben Duckett, while Matthew Potts has been handed a recall to give the bowling attack some extra oomph.
Sri Lanka
If white ball to red ball form transfers, Sri Lanka has picked a solid side here. They just won an ODI series against India, their first series win over their neighbors and rivals in that format since 1997.
Six players from that ODI squad have been picked for the more extended format tour, with Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, and Sadeera Samarawickrama among the names to feature. Add in experienced hands like Angelo Matthews and Dimuth Karunaratne, and you have a squad capable of giving England a run for its money.
Best Bets
Gus Atkinson was a sensation for England against the powerful West Indies bats. He took an astonishing 22 wickets across the three Tests, and he is 19/10 to be the top England bowler in the first innings at Old Trafford. Given his form, this one feels like a solid bet, though Chris Woakes, at 41/20, is another bowler with the skills to unlock the Sri Lankan bats.
Joe Root (53/20) and Brook (59/20) can nearly be split in the best batsman market. My lean is on Brook, with one of the younger players in the squad having the attacking intent in his batting to lead from the front in this new role.
