After an exciting T20 series South Africa and Sri Lanka embark on a five match ODI series which begins on Saturday. Sri Lanka’s win in that series might have added to the competitiveness of this upcoming series and potentially the credibility of it too.
Schedule
1st ODI: Jan 28 at Port Elizabeth
2nd ODI: Feb 1 at Durban
3rd ODI: Feb 4 at Johannesburg
4th ODI: Feb 7 at Cape Town
5th ODI: Feb 10 at Centurion
South Africa
There has long since been a feeling that South Africa have flattered to deceive in this format of the game and I think that is true to an extent. With that in mind this is a big year for them. Time is running out for this golden age of South African cricketers to win something but you would think they will go to the Champions Trophy in the summer with a leading chance.
In order for them to get there with spirits high and confidence good series like these need to be won and if they are going to win the series as dominantly as they should do then they have to put up runs a lot better than they did in the T20 series which recently concluded. That said they don’t lack for bowling or batting firepower.
Sri Lanka
It is five ODI series on the trot away from home that Sri Lanka have lost now dating back to 2014 and that is a run they will be looking to end over the next couple of weeks. They showed in the T20 matches that they can be competitive over the shorter distance and if they can pace themselves well in this series they might yet cause an upset.
The big issue for them will be their batting depth and putting up the scores required to win in this format. I would imagine their bowling will be ok because they can churn out plenty of overs of spin but that will be no use if they crumble to the new ball on regular occasions.
Head to Head
This will be Sri Lanka’s first ODI series in South Africa since 2012. On that occasion they lost 3-2 having previously lost bilateral series 5-1 and 4-1 in South Africa. They fare much better in matches between the two in Sri Lanka but that is understandable. Their dominance there means the two are level on 29 wins each against each other heading into this series.
Betting
Sri Lanka might have taken the T20 series but I think South Africa will be too strong for them over the 50 over format. I think they have too much quality with the bat and I think Sri Lanka might lack for a genuine batsman or two which they were able to get away with by sticking a couple of sloggers up the order in the T20s. South Africa are no price though so I’ll head to the side markets for a bet.
I don’t normally go near captains in the limited overs formats but I will make an exception for Upul Tharanga for a couple of reasons. Firstly this is a very young Sri Lanka side and his experience could well be vital and secondly because having hit a couple of half centuries on that tour in 2012 we know he can bat long in these conditions. At 5/1 he looks the value in a top Sri Lanka series batsman market which is very open with the absence of Angelo Mathews.
Tips
Back U.Tharanga Top Sri Lanka Series Batsman for a 2/10 stake at 6.00 with Unibet
Back him here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2017
