Sri Lanka’s Bold Toss Decision Sets the Stage for a High-Stakes Battle Against England in Second ODI

When Sri Lanka’s Charith Asalanka won the toss again and chose to bat against England in the second ODI, you just knew there was more drama on the way. The first match had England on the ropes—those spinners from Sri Lanka really gave their top order fits, culminating in a 19-run defeat despite some tremors of resistance late in the game from Overton and Ahmed. This time around, with Zak Crawley sidelined due to a knee injury and Will Jacks stepping back in after illness, the lineup shuffles add another layer to the saga. Sri Lanka, feeling confident with their winning spin combo of Wellalage and Vandersay, look to keep the pressure intense during those crucial middle overs. It’s a series alive with tension, and trust me, you’ll want to keep an eye on how these lineups clash today. LEARN MORE

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka won his second successive toss and elected to bat against England in the second one-day international on Saturday.

England top-order batters struggled against Sri Lanka spinners and lost the first game of the three-match series by 19 runs despite Jamie Overton and Rehan Ahmed showing late aggression in the run chase.

Opening batter Zak Crawley was ruled out of Saturday’s match with a knee injury and was replaced by Will Jacks, who missed the first match due to illness.

Sri Lanka continued with its combination that won the first game with spinners Dunith Wellalage and Jeffrey Vandersay troubling England batters in the middle overs.

___

Lineups:

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka (captain), Janith Liyanage, Pavan Ratnayake, Dunith Wellalage, Pramod Madushan, Jeffrey Vandersay, Asitha Fernando

England: Rehan Ahmed, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (captain), Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Adil Rashid.

___

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket