England v Sri Lanka preview, player tips & predictions

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MATCH INFO
England v Sri Lanka
Venue: Headingley, Leeds, Friday, June 21, 10.30am (British time)
Head to head odds: England $1.08; Sri Lanka $7.50
Last time they met: Sri Lanka 6-366 (50 overs) d England 132-9 (26.1 overs) in Colombo, October 23, 2018.

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England will be looking to atone for its disastrous last-start performance against Sri Lanka when they lock horns in their Cricket World Cup match at Headingley on Friday.

Despite the flogging in their latest clash in Colombo, England won the five-match series on the road 3-1 and will go into their World Cup clash as hot favourites.

England defeated Afghanistan easily on Tuesday to make their records at this event 4-1, while Sri Lanka has a win and two losses, after a gutsy last game loss against Australia.

England is likely to start at $1.08, while Sri Lanka should be out over $7 for the win, which looks about right given the respective talent levels and form at the cricket World Cup.

While it looks more than likely England will record another victory, there is still some value to be found in other betting markets, including the top batter and bowler categories, which most bookies are running on each match of the tournament.

This England v Sri Lanka betting preview will run you through betting options for match 27 of 48 of the ICC World Cup 2019.

England v Sri Lanka odds:

For full markets visit the William Hill website.

HEAD TO HEAD BETTING:
England $1.08, Sri Lanka $7.50
Prediction: England will be too strong in this one with a better bowling attack and superior bowlers than their Sri Lankan counterparts.

TOP RUN-SCORER BETTING:

England:
Top five in betting: Joe Root $3.75, Jason Roy $3.75, Jonny Bairstow $3.75, James Vince $4.33, Eoin Morgan $6.50.

Top scorers from past five ODIs:
v Afghanistan: Eoin Morgan 148
v West Indies: Joe Root 100no
v Bangladesh: Jason Roy 153
v Pakistan: Joe Root 107
v South Africa: Ben Stokes 89

Sri Lanka:
Top five in betting: Dimuth Karunaratne $4.50, Kusal Mendis $5, Kusal Perera $5, Angelo Mathews $5.50, Lahiru Thirimanne $5.50

Top scorers from past five ODIs:
v Australia: Dimuth Karunaratne 97
v Bangladesh: Match abandoned
v Pakistan: Match abandoned
v Afghanistan: Kusal Perera 78
v New Zealand: Dimuth Karunaratne 52no

Top batter prediction: Sri Lanka’s clash against Australia showed their opening bowlers’ inability to take wickets, with Aaron Finch dominating and David Warner facing plenty of balls, before Steve Smith came in at three and also batted for a long time. What we’re saying is that it’s likely one of the England opening batsmen will make a big score here. I’m taking Jason Roy in this one, with the big hitter as destructive as any batsman. Have a little saver on Joe Root – the England captain does not score as fast as some, but he looks very unlikely to get out. After successfully plunging on Dimuth Karunaratne in Sri Lanka’s game against Australia, we’re going to go with him again. The veteran opener looked magnificent against Australia and if his team is any chance against England, he needs another big score.

TOP WICKET-TAKER BETTING:

England:
Top five in betting: Jofra Archer $3.50, Adil Rashid $4.50, Mark Wood $4.50, Chris Woakes $5, Liam Plunkett $5, Tom Curran $5.

Top wicket-takers from past five ODIs:
v Afghanistan: Jofra Archer 3-52, Adil Rashid 3-66
v West Indies: Jofra Archer 3-30, Mark Wood 3-18
v Bangladesh: Jofra Archer 3-29, Ben Stokes 3-23
v Pakistan: Chris Woakes 3-71, Moeen Ali 3-50
v South Africa: Jofra Archer 3-27

Sri Lanka:
Top five in betting: Lasith Malinga $4, Suranga Lakmal $4.50, Isuru Udana $5.50, Nuwan Pradeep $5.50, Thisara Perera $5.50, Jeffrey Vandersay $5.50, Jeevan Mendis $5.50.

Top wicket-takers from past five ODIs:
v Australia: Isuru Udana 2-57, Dhananjaya de Silva 2-40
v Bangladesh: Match abandoned
v Pakistan: Match abandoned
v Afghanistan: Nuwan Pradeep 4-31
v New Zealand: No wicket-taker

Top bowler tip: While the odds on Jofra Archer taking wickets are far shorter than they were earlier in the tournament, the big quick has been sensational all tournament and we think he can do the job against Sri Lanka. Archer has been equal top wicket taker in England’s last three matches and the Headingley wicket should offer plenty of assistance for him to do well again. Sri Lanka has really struggled to make inroads with the ball in England and Wales, with most of their wickets coming in junk time, when teams are trying to score quickly. This does mean many of their bowlers could top the wickets tally. We liked what we saw from Isuru Udana against Australia, so we’ll have a small something on him.

England v Sri Lanka prediction

England’s batting line-up is the most destructive in world cricket, while Sri Lanka’s bowling attack could only be deemed pedestrian. We all saw what Eoin Morgan did the other night belting 17 sixes to prove it’s not just Roy, Bairstow and Buttler you have to watch out for. Keeping this in mind we predict England will defeat Sri Lanka easily.

ALSO READ:
ICC World Cup 2019 betting guide
ICC World Cup 2019 leading wicket-taker
Cricket betting sites
ICC World Cup 2019 leading run-scorer
ICC World Cup 2019 player of tournament

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