Sri Lanka, England take ODI digression in bid for revived fortunes

There are wounds that require licking, averages that need correcting, and reputations that need restoring. This is true for both teams, who have arrived at this curious little ODI series in varying states of dysfunction.

England are wallowing furiously in post-Ashes misery. In his first press appearance in Sri Lanka, captain Harry Brook struck a sublimely regretful tone as he recounted, in some detail, the Eldritch horrors of nightclub-bouncer altercations in Wellington, and midnight curfews on this tour. Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka meanwhile, who was sacked from the T20I job only last month, is also attempting to pick himself and his team up. He is being asked to do this without his most reliable seam-bowler, Dushmantha Chameera, who is being rested for the heavy T20I schedule coming up. Neither side's confidence seems at a high point at present.

And yet these ODIs carry some value. These teams have essentially to stay within the top-nine ranked sides (provided hosts South Africa continue to stay in the top nine), to qualify for next year's World Cup without having to play qualifiers. Sri Lanka are currently fifth on the rankings table, and England are eighth. Neither is in huge danger of missing out just yet, but will feel much better with some rankings points from the series.

To impose themselves in Khettarama, both teams will need strong spin options. Sri Lanka will feel they have the stronger spin attack, with Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, and Dunith Wellalage - who has an excellent record at this venue - in their ranks. But Sri Lanka's batting has been susceptible to high-quality spin from the opposition too. Adil Rashid, for example, is exactly the kind of wily legspinner Sri Lanka's white-ball top orders have succumbed to over the past several years.

Sri Lanka: LLLWW
England: LLLWL

Through no real fault of their batting in ODIs, neither Harry Brook or Charith Asalanka seem to have a firm grasp of their respective captaincies at present. Both are attacking middle-order batters with burgeoning bodies of work. Asalanka has the better foot-hold in this format, averaging 42.88 with a strike rate of 91 after 72 innings. That he has made five hundreds and 17 fifties from a tricky No. 5 position makes him even more valuable. He also bowls important overs, and tends to find wickets on spinning tracks.

Brook, meanwhile, hasn't quite nailed this format the way he has the others, averaging 36.56 with a strike rate of 103, after 35 innings. While the unforgiving Ashes spotlight exposed some vulnerabilities, it is not as if Brook has arrived in Sri Lanka desperate for form. He had scores through the Ashes, and opened England's last ODI series in New Zealand with a brilliant lone-hand hundred. Asalanka in fact has the leaner recent spell - he hasn't hit an international fifty since August.

Khettarama tends to favour spin at all times of the year, but an especially wet north-east monsoon has perhaps freshened up the square. As usual, there are chances of afternoon showers in Colombo, but January tends to be among the driest months.

England have named their XI for first ODI, and it's an Ashes reunion, with six of the top seven having featured in the Sydney Test earlier this month. Jos Buttler is the notable exception to that red-ball rule.

England 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Joe Root, 4 Jacob Bethell, 5 Harry Brook (capt.), 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Will Jacks, 8 Sam Curran, 9 Jamie Overton, 10 Liam Dawson, 11 Adil Rashid

Sri Lanka will likely have to pick between Kamil Mishara and Sadeera Samarawickrama in the top order. They also have decisions to make around their attack. Asitha Fernando seems the likeliest seamer to play.

Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kamil Mishara, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Dhananjaya de Silva, 5 Charith Asalanka, 6 Janith Liyanage, 7 Kamindu Mendis, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Pramod Madushan/Eshan Malinga/ Milan Rathnayake, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Asitha Fernando

"[The decision on] the T20 captaincy it has been made by selectors and I respect that. I'm just focusing on my game, to develop as a batsman, and win games for my country. I agree the last couple of months it's not been the great for me. But I'm looking forward to do my usual things."
Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka

"I want to say sorry to my team-mates, to all the fans that travel far and wide and spend a lot of money on coming out to watch us play cricket, and to the ECB for putting them in a tricky situation, and it'll never happen again. I'm extremely sorry."
England captain Harry Brook dives headlong into an apology for the incident in New Zealand, in his first media appearance in Sri Lanka.