The ODI series between Sri Lanka and South Africa continues on Saturday when the two sides once again battle against each other in Colombo not just for this match but very much for the 10 World Cup Super Series points which come with them.
As far as the series is concerned, Sri Lanka have the chance to win it with a match to spare after their success in the opening game. If South Africa want to get their hands on the series they have to win this to force a decider.
Sri Lanka
When you consider that Sri Lanka are in a bit of a slump in this format of the game and are very much a side in transition searching for their best combinations in the 50 over sphere, their opening win was a bit of a surprise but it was a wonderful victory because they produced a very good performance in all departments. It is easier said than done for a side that is used to being unsettled, but if they can produce a similar display in this match it might well be enough to win the series.
The big thing for Sri Lanka was they put up a more than competitive total in that first game. Batting has been their issue but they managed to find someone who scored a ton and then enough players batted around him to get them up to 300, which with their bowling attack in these conditions is always going to be tough to chase down. The other thing which caught the eye which was a bit more of a surprise was their will to win and poise when the pressure was on at the end of the match. That bodes well for them.
South Africa
There is no doubt South Africa will be disappointed not to get over the line in that opening match. They looked to have the run chase well within their range with 20 overs to go but they couldn’t quite hold their nerve and in the end were beaten fairly comfortably. The difference between the two sides was purely the options available to them in these conditions so it will be interesting to see if the Proteas can come up with combinations more suiting this pitch.
The strength of South Africa with the ball is very much their seamers so it is understandable why they relied on them as much as they did in that first game but really they need to find some spinners for when they play in Asia. The other thing they need to do is find someone who can finish the innings at seven or eight because that is a key position these days and if they had someone to do that in the last game it might just have got them home.
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Team News
After one of their best performances for a while in the 50 over game, there is no need for Sri Lanka to make any changes and unless they have an injury towards the end of that match or in the lead up to this one, we should expect the same XI to go into battle once again.
South Africa will be forced into one change with their captain Temba Bavuma ruled out of the remainder of the series. Reeza Hendricks is most expected to replace him while Keshar Maharaj will take the captaincy.
Betting
South Africa made 286 in the opening match but only hit 23 boundaries in that contest and when you consider the pitches are only going to slow up as the series goes along I’m not convinced they are going to hit a whole lot more in this one either. The other reason why they might not hit as many is because there is no guarantee at all that Sri Lanka will put up another score of 300. Their batting is incredibly inconsistent and you would expect the South Africa bowlers to have come up with some better plans now.
Temba Bavuma’s injury probably doesn’t help the South Africa batting either. I’m not suggesting that Reeza Hendricks isn’t good enough or anything like that, but he hasn’t played a competitive game of cricket since a T20 in Ireland in July so he is entitled to be a little rusty, especially in these conditions which are completely different to the ones he faced there. Sri Lanka will probably benefit from those conditions more here so I like under 26.5 boundaries for South Africa here.
Tips
Back South Africa – Under 26.5 boundaries for a 3/10 stake at 1.80 with William Hill
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