England To Secure Series Win Over Sri Lanka

England eased their way to victory in the third one-day international against Sri Lanka and can now secure the series with a win in Kandy on Saturday.

Rain reduced the match to a 21-over contest, with the visitors winning the toss and electing to field first. Niroshan Dickwella took the attack to the England bowlers, allowing Sri Lanka to bring up their fifty in the fifth over.

However, Tom Curran managed to halt the home team’s progress, removing Dickwella before he could inflict further damage. Adil Rashid then took control of the innings, claiming four wickets, while Curran notched a further two to limit Dinesh Chandimal’s men to 150 from their 21 overs.

The Three Lions lost Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root early in their reply, but a good opening burst from Jason Roy put the visitors on the path to victory. Eoin Morgan then took over to notch his second fifty on the bounce, once again highlighting his importance to the team in the middle order, guiding his team over the line.

England can now press for another series win in the 50-over format, which would be their 11^th series victory over the last two years, suffering only a loss in India.

Sri Lanka’s Top Batsman

After a poor performance in the second match of the series, Dickwella highlighted his talent at Kandy. He used his power and timing at the top of the innings to put England on the back foot inside the opening five overs. Chris Woakes and Olly Stone both struggled to contain the left-hander. Dickwella blasted eight boundaries in his innings of 36 off just 20 deliveries. The Three Lions were forced into a change in their bowling attack to remove him from the crease as Curran managed to prise him out.

The 25-year-old provided an excellent platform for his team, although the rest of the line-up was unable to capitalise on the momentum. Despite the failure of the lower order, Dickwella cannot be deterred from playing in the same aggressive manner. England have power almost everywhere in the batting line-up. To combat this, Sri Lanka need their main man to continue to fire in the early stages. He seemed to have picked Woakes and Stone from the second match therefore Dickwella could be in line for a larger score at odds of 4.50Bet €100 to win €4507/2Bet £100 to win £450+350Bet $100 to win $4503.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$4503.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp450-0.2857Bet RM100 to win RM450  with Bet365.

England’s Top Batsman

Bairstow and Root’s early dismissals put England under a little bit of pressure in Kandy. However, Roy and Morgan both held their composure to keep their side on course for the victory. Morgan played the holding role, allowing his partner at the other end to attack. The England captain suggested that he was more than willing to drop himself if it would benefit the team. Based on his performances recently it would be a foolish proposition for the left-hander to miss out. He along with Root provide a sense of calm in the team with the power players around them, although Morgan is more than capable of blasting the ball around the ground.

The 31-year-old allowed Roy to tee off to put England in control. Roy has been up-and-down in his career especially against spin, but displayed his power by scoring 41 with a number of fine strikes down the ground. The opener looked on course for a big score before he was trapped lbw after review. It would be unusual for England’s top two to struggle to reach fifty in a series, therefore back him to lead the run column in Kandy at odds of 4.50Bet €100 to win €4507/2Bet £100 to win £450+350Bet $100 to win $4503.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$4503.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp450-0.2857Bet RM100 to win RM450  with Bet365.

Sri Lanka’s Top Bowler

After his impressive performance in the second match of the series Lasith Malinga struggled during his four-over spell. The veteran seamer was smacked around the ground for 39 runs as England were able to capitalise on his pace, scoring eight fours and a six. Akila Dananjaya and Amila Aponso offered a semblance of a threat with the ball. Aponso struck twice with the ball to dismiss Bairstow and Root, which at the time looked to have opened the way for Sri Lanka to get into the tourists’ batting line-up.

Dananjaya was able to remove Roy with the aid of a review, although it was the final wicket to fall in the innings. The home side have to get more out of their spinners to take the initiative away from the Three Lions’ power hitters. They’ve done a decent job against Bairstow, who looks short of rhythm. Dananjaya was the big hope ahead of the series to confuse the England batsmen with his variations. He may be able to offer enough to lead the wicket column in Kandy this time around at odds of 3.50Bet €100 to win €3505/2Bet £100 to win £350+250Bet $100 to win $3502.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$3502.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp350-0.4000Bet RM100 to win RM350  with 888Sport.

England’s Top Bowler

The Three Lions received contributions from Rashid and Curran to hit back at the Sri Lanka batting line-up after their bright start. Rashid has been England’s go-to-man for wickets in the middle overs, and although the contest was reduced to 21 overs, he was still dominant claiming figures of 4-36. Curran was outstanding, not only taking three wickets, but keeping runs off the board. He went for just 17 runs in his four overs. The Surrey seamer displayed all the variations needed in the sub-continent to stifle the home side late in the innings.

He may have well have played himself into contention for the rest of the series and the tour going forward, although Liam Plunkett and Mark Wood are also lurking for the spot. Rashid is still the man for England and expect him to continue to thrive. He had Sri Lanka in all sorts of trouble with his googly. The 30-year-old has become one of the best bowlers in the world in limited overs cricket. Back him to continue his good form at odds of 4.00Bet €100 to win €4003/1Bet £100 to win £400+300Bet $100 to win $4003.00Bet HK$100 to win HK$4003.00Bet Rp100 to win Rp400-0.3333Bet RM100 to win RM400  with Bet365.

Match Verdict

England are not operating at the peak of their powers, but are still playing more than well enough to win their matches in the sub-continent. Sri Lanka do not have the strike bowlers or the power hitters in their batting line-up to stop the Three Lions. Back Morgan’s men to clinch the series in Kandy with their third triumph on the bounce at odds of 1.30Bet €100 to win €1303/10Bet £100 to win £130-333Bet $100 to win $1300.30Bet HK$100 to win HK$130-3.33Bet Rp100 to win Rp1300.3000Bet RM100 to win RM130  with Bet365.

Tips Summary

England To Beat Sri Lanka
Saturday 20^th October 2018 05:15 BST
Odds: 1.30Bet €100 to win €1303/10Bet £100 to win £130-333Bet $100 to win $1300.30Bet HK$100 to win HK$130-3.33Bet Rp100 to win Rp1300.3000Bet RM100 to win RM130

Niroshan Dickwella To Be Sri Lanka’s Top Batsman
Saturday 20^th October 2018 05:15 BST
Odds: 4.50Bet €100 to win €4507/2Bet £100 to win £450+350Bet $100 to win $4503.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$4503.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp450-0.2857Bet RM100 to win RM450

Akila Dananjaya To Be Sri Lanka’s Top Bowler
Saturday 20^th October 2018 05:15 BST
Odds: 3.50Bet €100 to win €3505/2Bet £100 to win £350+250Bet $100 to win $3502.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$3502.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp350-0.4000Bet RM100 to win RM350

Jason Roy To Be England’s Top Batsman
Saturday 20^th October 2018 05:15 BST
Odds: 4.50Bet €100 to win €4507/2Bet £100 to win £450+350Bet $100 to win $4503.50Bet HK$100 to win HK$4503.50Bet Rp100 to win Rp450-0.2857Bet RM100 to win RM450

Adil Rashid To Be England’s Top Bowler
Saturday 20^th October 2018 05:15 BST
Odds: 4.00Bet €100 to win €4003/1Bet £100 to win £400+300Bet $100 to win $4003.00Bet HK$100 to win HK$4003.00Bet Rp100 to win Rp400-0.3333Bet RM100 to win RM400