England vs Sri Lanka: 1st ODI Preview
The action will shift to 50 overs cricket for the first time this English summer and for the first time for both teams since the World Cup. It will be a hot day at the Oval on Tuesday as England won the Test series, Sri Lanka won the T20 and so everything will be at stake in the ODI series.
England have a new man at the helm in Alastair Cook, and the prolific run getter in Tests will be looking to replicate his form in Tests into the coloured clothing form of the game. At the top, that will be the only change for England, and the strong middle order will feature Trott, Pietersen, Bell, Morgan and Tim Bresnan. Samit Patel could be the man missing out as Stuart Broad will look to put his dismal Twenty20 match and focus on his bowling. Chris Woakes could also miss out as James Anderson returns to the squad. Home boy Jade Dernbach could be in line for his first one day international as a new era begins for English cricket looking ahead to the 2015 World Cup.
Sri Lankan captain Tillekeratne Dilshan returns to the team after a finger injury sidelined him for the last Test match. This means that he will open the batting with Sanath Jayasuriya , who will be playing his last one day international at the ripe old age of 42. He has been at the heart of the Sri Lankan renaissance during the mid nineties and served the team well for the best part of 20 years. His often underrated bowling has accounted for almost 300 scalps and is an important asset to the Lankan team. Sangakkara, Jayawerdene and Mathews form a potent middle order and the return of the all-rounder will serve Sri Lanka well. Lasith Malinga should also return and they could go in with a three man seam attack with Suraj Randiv, handling the spin department.
Tags: 1st ODI, Cricket, England, ODI Series, Preview, Sri Lanka
