Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

Wed, 21 Aug '24
1st Test • Manchester, August 21 - 25, 2024, Sri Lanka tour of England
England
Sri Lanka

Thu, 29 Aug '24
2nd Test • Lord's, August 29 - September 02, 2024, Sri Lanka tour of England
England
Sri Lanka

Fri, 06 Sep '24
3rd Test • The Oval, September 06 - 10, 2024, Sri Lanka tour of England
England
Sri Lanka

Feels like a very long time since SL were over here.

Good luck to the new captain, Ollie Pope.

SL haven't toured England since 2016.

But England were in SL in Jan 2021.

England won both series 2-0.

There's a case to be made for Lawrence to bat 6 and Cox to open IMO....neither make sense to open but I think that way round makes more sense

Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir

Not a side I can imagine Andy Flower sending out.

Arthur Crabtree wrote:SL haven't toured England since 2016

Sri Lanka seem like the perfect symptom of the damage caused by the "Big 3" era. This is the first time in 5-6 years they play more than 2 tests in a series, and the first time in a while they play a side that isn't one of the minnows at the bottom. They have been relegated to mostly playing Windies/BD/ZIM/Ireland and Afghanistan nowadays.

I guess thats the future of the game. Sri Lanka look like a cricketing nation that is a miles away from the teams it had in the 90s, 00s and early 10s.

The scheduling for the WTC is so unbalanced as to be ridiculous. Sri Lanka are currently 4th on the table on the basis of 2 test wins at home v Bangladesh. They haven't won a single away test in a WTC game against anyone other than Bangladesh since the WTC started.

They play 2 test series v West Indies and away v Bangladesh, while England go through 5 test tours to Australia and India. Yet the points for thrashing a minnow at home in a 2 test series would be more than the points for a 3-1 away win in Australia. So Sri Lanka are routinely finishing mid table despite not winning a series against anyone other than Bangladesh or the West Indies for 7 years.

To be fair, the big 3 have only got themselves to blame for scheduling long difficult tours as that's where the money is. I doubt it's Sri Lanka or New Zealand's boards' fault that no one will schedule much against them. And England would be ahead of Sri Lanka but for points deductions for over rates. Will they ever learn?

In theory this should be a very one sided affair with 3-0 threatened only by the weather. Even the BBC trying to hype it up couldn't come up with more than 'maybe Sri Lanka will sucker punch England into a collapse and sneak one game'.

SL to bat. Should be a handy toss to win at the back end of summer.

Cloud cover expected today though, and showers over the last four days. It is Manchester after all.

Only one D/N Test in UK ever, seven years ago. It's good they never caught on. From a sustainability POV.

Early wicket for Atkinson.

We'll have the Durham attack after the opening bowlers have had a puff.

Woakes picks up the second opener... 6/2...

Make that 6/3...

Two in an over.

Wonder if England will forget everything they know and take Woakes to Australia!

SL scoring more freely against the Durham bowlers, but Wood gets a wicket.

Cox and Stone can play for their counties.