After coming out on top in a Test series against Bangladesh, Sri Lanka now host the Tigers in a three-match ODI series which gets underway in Colombo on Wednesday with both teams looking to go one up with two to play.
These matches don’t quite carry the context they might in a year from now but once the T20 World Cup has been and gone in the early part of 2026 the attention will turn to the 50 over World Cup and this is a chance to begin to build for that.
Sri Lanka
These will be the first ODI matches that Sri Lanka have played since they hosted Australia in the format back in February. They were far too good for the Australians in those two matches and will be looking for a similar success here as they bid to get their white ball cricket back to a situation where it is feared across the world like it was a couple of decades ago. Sri Lanka have moved themselves up to fourth in the ICC ODI rankings so are looking good for a World Cup spot.
They have been very good with the bat in this format of the game recently. That is a positive because it is that department which probably let themselves down when they were in a bit of a slump. Moving towards 2027 they will want to find a seam attack which can do some damage because spin isn’t likely to win the day in South Africa and Zimbabwe but for now it is about maintaining their place in the rankings to ensure they qualify for the World Cup.
Bangladesh
This is a big series for Bangladesh. We might be more than a couple of years away from the next World Cup but as the rankings currently sit, Bangladesh would have to go to the qualifying tournament. The venue for that hasn’t been decided but were they to go to that event and it not be in Asia then as it stands there would be a very real chance that the Tigers wouldn’t be at the next ODI World Cup which would be a huge blow.
They are probably the opposite to Sri Lanka. Their batting has let them down in this format for the last period whereas their bowling has generally gone well. Some of that is down to the fact that they have produced wickets which suit their attack at home and they will be encouraged by having similar conditions here in Sri Lanka. If they are going to pick up the wins they need here then their batting is going to need to come good for all three games.
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Team News
Sri Lanka are largely a settled side in ODI cricket these days but there are still a couple of selection issues for them to decide on. The first is whether Nishan Madushka keeps his place as opener or they go with Avishka Fernando and whether Asitha Fernando or Dilshan Madushanka partners Eshan Malinga in the seam attack.
There is a bit of a transitional look to the Bangladesh side these days with Mahmudullah and ushfiqur Rahim the latest big name pair to have retired from ODI cricket. Mehidy Hasan Miraz will be captain for the first time with Mohammad Naim coming into the top three.
Betting
This isn’t the highest scoring ground known to man so I’m not expecting an avalanche of runs here. We have one of those clashes where the Sri Lanka batting is the strongest suit of the two but the Bangladesh bowlers probably have the edge in that battle which can keep the runs down. The first thing to note is that of the last 12 ODIs on this ground we haven’t had a single score over 300 and many of the second innings have been on the very low side so the bottom falls out of the pitch.
The run line for this one is at 530.5 which based on recent history looks a little on the high side. Bangladesh generally don’t get involved in high scoring matches because their batting doesn’t really hold up at this level. The other thing to consider here is that the track tends to spin and both of these sides can load up with spinners. The last thing to factor in is neither have played 50 over cricket for a while and might need to get up to speed so when you put it all together I like the under here.
Tips
Back Under 530.5 runs for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
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