Sri Lanka begin their tour of the Caribbean on Wednesday evening when they take on West Indies in the first of three T20 internationals to be played over the next few days. With the World T20 looming large on the horizon both teams will be looking to pick up an initial win.
The winner of this match will go one up with two to play but the bigger aim from the three matches will be to get as much preparation for that global phenomenon later in the year as they can, particularly for the hosts who will defend their crown over in India.
West Indies
You never truly know what you are going to get from a West Indies side but the one thing we do know is that this remains their strongest format and it is the one where they probably have the most depth courtesy of the success of the Caribbean Premier League in recent times. Home advantage puts them in a very good position here and with players playing in these matches that have plenty to prove, you’ve got to think the hosts will go very well.
Usually it is the bowling which can be a little suspect for West Indies so they might well look to utilise their full repertoire of them just to work out who might be best suited later in the year. Where we rarely have any issues with West Indies in this format is in the batting department. They usually bring with them brute power and plenty of depth and we shouldn’t expect any different from their charges here.
Sri Lanka
These are turbulent times for Sri Lanka both on and off the field. Their preparations for this tour were not helped at the last minute when bowling coach Chaminda Vaas resigned over a pay dispute and then quarantines, Covid issues and visa problems have left them without a number of senior figures on the pitch. That all means we will get to see a slightly more inexperienced Sri Lanka outfit than they would have wanted to field.
One of the big problems Sri Lanka have had in recent months, as well as not being able to win many cricket matches, is getting decent performances out of their batting unit and their bowling attack together. Occasionally one or the other will show up with the goods but rarely both. A lot of the reasons behind that is down to constant changing of personnel and that won’t be solved here. Another issue for Sri Lanka is the lack of a warm up match or preparation of any kind for this series so they are playing a little blind here.
Special Offer
Opt in and place 5 accumulators either in a Boylesports shop or online and get an acca free! Click the image below to bet. ALL CUSTOMERS! 18+ T&Cs apply. Gamble Aware.
Team News
Chris Gayle has been named in the West Indies squad for this series, as have the likes of Dwayne Bravo and Jason Holder who haven’t always been seen in this format of the game. Gayle is not expected to open the batting here though.
With Dasun Shanaka unable to get to Antigua because of visa issues, Angelo Mathews will skipper a very youthful looking Sri Lanka side. He will need the likes of Thisara Perera and Niroshan Dickwella to be on their best form.
Betting
I think this assignment is going to be a tough one for Sri Lanka. I say that for the obvious reasons of them being without some key players but probably more importantly the lack of a hit in these conditions which could be just as important. Given that it is the beginning of their international summer and their side has changed for this series, it might be that West Indies don’t hit their very best in this game either.
That makes the match a little harder to bet on than we would like but I think the overall feeling is that this might not be the highest scoring match ever as a result of the issues I have previously mentioned. West Indies don’t tend to be that great playing mystery spin whereas Sri Lanka will be up against it regardless of what comes down. That all makes me think that on a ground which hosted a lot of the 50 over competition in this part of the world, the 317.5 runs line is a little on the high side.
Tips
WON – Back Under 317.5 runs for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2021
