Sri Lanka vs India – 1st One-Day International Match Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Sri Lanka vs India taking place? Sunday, July 18th, 2021 – 10:30 (UK)
Where is Sri Lanka vs India taking place? R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
What is the expected weather for Sri Lanka vs India? 28-30c with a chance of thundery showers and light winds
What channel is Sri Lanka vs India on? The match will be televised live on Foodxp (Sky Channel 712) in the UK
Where can I stream Sri Lanka vs India? SonyLIV subscribers will be able to stream the match live both online and via smart phones.
LAST MEETING
India beat Sri Lanka by seven wickets.
THE TEAM NEWS
SRI LANKA
- After coming out of self-isolation this past week following an outbreak of Covid-19 within the Sri Lankan camp, the hosts have been able to get outdoors and practice as a team ahead of this three-match ODI series.
- Sri Lanka will be without top order batter Kusal Perera, who has been ruled out for an estimated six weeks due to a shoulder injury and when combined with the continuation of Niroshan Dickwella’s suspension, Sri Lanka are without two of their first-choice wicketkeepers.
- The suspensions of both Kusal Mendis and Danushka Gunathilaka alongside Dickwella will see them also miss out, meaning that Sri Lanka’s batting line-up looks incredibly fragile heading into this series.
INDIA
- With the India red ball side in England ahead of their five-match test series commencing this coming August, India have named an alternate 20-man squad for the three ODIs vs Sri Lanka, with opening batter Shikhar Dhawan set to captain the side.
- Six uncapped players are among the squad, including 21-year-old Devdutt Padikkal who plays alongside Virat Kohli for RCB in the Indian Premier League and spin-bowler Varun Chakravarthy who has hugely impressed when playing for both Tamil Nadu in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.
- Top order batter Shreyas Iyer has not recovered in time from the shoulder injury he sustained against England earlier in the year to feature on this tour, whilst regular white ball starters such as Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and of course regular skipper Kohli are all on test match duty.
THE PREDICTION
Both these sides head into this first of three ODIs significantly weakened for very different reasons. Indian fans however, will be excited to get a glimpse of the young talent expected to be afforded opportunities to feature here with the absence of many of their usual stars. Sri Lanka however, have been in an absolute mess with ill-discipline seeing three senior players sent home from England after deserting the team’s bio secure bubble in a tour that saw them beaten in two of the three ODI fixtures played, with the weather preventing England from securing the sweep. Even without numerous big-name players, India have more than enough quality among their squad to outplay Sri Lanka and the fearlessness of their young talent, combined with the experience of players such as Dhawan should lead the tourists to a win in this first ODI.
