Written by Rick John Henry for @Hollywoodbets. Follow them both on Twitter and Facebook now!
Sri Lanka vs South Africa | Wednesday 09 July | Kandy | 11:00
The Proteas made an unlikely start to their tour of Sri Lanka with a consummate 75-run victory over the hosts. The win was made all the more extraordinary considering the manner in which South Africa have battled in the subcontinental country and the current form of Sri Lanka. Rewind twelve months to South Africa’s last tour of the nation. The Proteas could not manage a total in excess of 300, failed to produce a centurion in all five matches and lacked a spinner capable of challenging the hosts; they only managed to bowl Sri Lanka out once. In July 2014, the Proteas managed to rectify all of the past tour’s mistakes at the first time of asking. Sri Lanka have had a stellar six months and it was only their third ODI loss from thirteen matches this year. Nevertheless, they enter the fray 1-0 down in Pallekele and will be intent on improving on a relatively lazy first match display.
To Win
Sri Lanka 17/20
Tie 35/1
South Africa 19/20
Sri Lanka
Angelo Mathews is relatively new to the captaincy role and will learn greatly from the mistakes Sri Lanka made at the Premadasa stadium. He is a captain unlike his predecessors in that he prefers aggression to passivity and tactical subtleties. Sri Lanka’s chase, which would’ve been the highest at the ground had they made it over the line, was punctuated with the type of devil-may-care cricket that has come to define this new Sri Lankan era. They began bright and breezy and looked to bat around Kumar Sangakkara, the proverbial genius at work. However, it all started to unravel following the dismissal of their talisman for 88, losing their final five wickets for thirteen runs in a horrid collapse. Sri Lanka would be left to rue chances put down off both Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers in the first innings – the former was shelled on 49 and went on to his century while the latter survived on 17 to make 75. While the old adage of ‘catches win matches’ would surely haunt Sri Lankan dreams that night, Mathews may have spent time awake reflecting on the predictable use of his bowling attack. Overly reliant on the notion that the Proteas would struggle against spin, Malinga bowled just seven overs in the innings (although at 7.42 an over he was proving expensive) while Kulasekara and Mathews himself bowled just six apiece, at less than five to the over. Spinners Senanayake and Mendis bowled out and took four wickets, but eleven overs from part-time turners Priyanjan and Dilshan cost Sri Lanka 78 runs. They’ll be less complacent in Pallekele and were possibly still feeling the after-effects of an emotionally draining tour of England last time out.
South Africa
Much has been made of the Proteas’ shortcomings in Sri Lanka. Sunday’s comprehensive victory will go a long way in dispelling lingering self-doubt from previous disastrous tours but must also serve as a reminder of what is required to win in the country. Given lifelines, Amla and de Villiers prospered but both mistimed a spinner attempting to attack on a slow wicket. Patience is always a virtue on these abrasive surfaces. If either catch had been taken, it would’ve exposed less competent players of spin to the trying middle overs. As it happened, the scoring rate slowly dramatically after Amla and de Villiers were no longer at the crease, leaving Miller and McLaren to escalate at the death. All in all it was a good performance with the bat, but made easier by lacklustre fielding and poor bowling decisions from the Sri Lankan captain. The Proteas will likely find it a lot tougher next time out. The Proteas were also handy with the ball, reverting to their reliable Test attack in the seam department. Steyn, Philander and Morkel all went for less than six an over, along with McLaren, and Duminy played his role as the holding spinner perfectly. It gave Tahir a licence to attack, but the leg-spinner found it difficult to settle during the powerplay overs and his usual nervy collection of full tosses and long-hops were dispatched powerfully by Dilshan. Credit to AB de Villiers who removed Tahir after a two-over spell, picked up Dilshan and then unleashed the spinner against a slightly timid Sri Lankan middle-order. Tahir finished with three wickets but will need to be on song from ball one in Pallekele.
Venue
Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy plays host to the second ODI, a familiar ground for some of the Protea touring party. It was here that South Africa recorded their only victory of the 2013 tour, while they also dropped the next match two days later to an unbeaten Dilshan century, backed up by 91 from Sangakkara. There’s a fairly good chance of rain in the morning, which should subside by the start of play.
BEST: Top Sri Lanka Batsman, Tillakaratne Dilshan 4/1
Despite Sangakkara being the form player at the moment, Dilshan continues to shine in his own moments of brilliance. A quick 40 in the last match bodes well, but it is his extraordinary record in ODIs at Pallekele that leads me to put my faith in him. He’s recorded three centuries in his last four fifty-over outings at the ground. At 4/1, the price is great. Get on.
VERDICT: Sri Lanka 17/20
Kandy is not exactly happy hunting ground for Sri Lanka, but I expect them to right their wrongs from Colombo with a strong showing. It’s been a fantastic six months for Sri Lankan cricket and they will definitely balk at the idea of going 2-0 on home soil. No need to look further than the favourites here.
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