England v Sri Lanka, 1st ODI - 5 Talking Points

After a grueling encounter in the Test series, England and Sri Lanka played out an entertaining draw in the first ODI at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. A last-ball six from Liam Plunkett saw the gritty Brits escape with a draw. However, despite this, there were a plethora of wonderful performances from different stars on show. Among these was Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews, England wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes. While there were also a number of talking points, we take a look at 5 talking points that perhaps changed the course of the match.

1. England bowlers strike early

While many point the problems with the attitude of the Sri Lankan batsmen, credit must be given to the England bowlers for cashing in at the right time. David Willey struck first as he sent the openers back to the hut before Chris Woakes and Moeen Ali conspired to claim the wickets of Kusal Mendia and Dinesh Chandimal respectively. Before anyone knew it, the Sri Lankan top order was destroyed by some wonderful tactical planning as they found themselves stuttering at 120-4.

2. Angelo Mathews stabilizes with lower order

It wasn’t long before the top order collapse that Angelo Mathews decided to step in. He brought an aura of stability into the scheme of things as he began to play the rotating England bowling attack rather well. He batted with the lower order including the likes of Sekkuge Prasanna, Farvez Maharoof and Dasun Shanaka. He smashed 73 as Prasanna contributed with a well-made 59 while Maharoof was unbeaten after his whirlwind 31.

3. Lankan bowling attack tear through England

Although many wouldn’t have probably expected this, the Sri Lankan bowling attack simply tore the England top-order apart. In spite of the absence of Shaminda Eranga, the Lankan pace attack of Angelo Mathews, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, and Dasun Shanaka simply ran riot at Trent Bridge. Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root, and Jonny Bairstow lost their wickets before the completion of the 10th over. Eoin Morgan’s fighting 43 also came to an end when he nicked Pradeep to Dinesh Chandimal behind the stumps. England were reeling at 6-82 before the completion of the 20th over.

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4. Buttler and Woakes to the rescue

It was 6-82 when Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes made their way out to bat. After initially weathering the storm of the duo began to play their shots in tandem. Buttler played the Sri Lankan attack with the poise and control that he has shown in the later stages of his short cricketing career. They stitched a 146-run partnership before Jos Buttler was snapped up in the deep to Sekkuge Prasanna, seven runs short of his century. Chris Woakes remained unbeaten on 95 as the match moved closer to a close finish.

5. Plunkett seals the draw

Liam Plunkett was brought back into the England team shortly a year ago for his bowling prowess. However, it was his batting ability that made him the hero of Nottingham shortly after the conclusion of the match. With 7 runs to win, he smashed a six of the last ball of the match as England escaped with a draw.

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