Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh, 1st ODI, Match Prediction – Weather Report, Pitch Conditions, Playing XIs and Live Streaming Details

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh weren’t amongst the best teams at the World Cup 2019. While these two sides managed to register some impressive wins, they couldn’t really punch above their weights and make it into the knockouts. Now, just a few days after the quadrennial tournament, these two teams will be up against each other in a three-match ODI series.

During the World Cup, a game between them wasn’t possible as the match was washed out due to rain. Thus, it is a wonderful opportunity for both these sides from the subcontinent to display their superiority. Also, this is an emotional game for Sri Lanka as their veteran cricket Lasith Malinga is set to retire from ODI cricket after this game. On the other hand, Bangladesh will miss the services of some of their senior players.

Pitch and Conditions

Sri Lanka last played an ODI game at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo back in October 2018. That match against England was a high-scoring one and the hosts won by a massive 219 runs. Yet again, the stadium is likely to produce a track good for batting. The chances of rain are quite high at the time when the match is scheduled to begin. Thus, we might get to see a delayed start going by the predictions.

Team Combinations

Sri Lanka

Dimuth Karunaratne will continue to lead Sri Lanka while Kusal Perera will be behind the stumps. The hosts will have a lot of hopes of Avishka Fernando and will also want Kusal Mendis and Angelo Mathews to come good. Selection could get quite tricky as it is a 22-member squad. But, they might continue with Thisara Perera and Isuru Udana as the all-rounders. Moreover, Akila Dhananjaya might be back in the eleven while they’ll have to make a choice between Lahiru Kumara and Nuwan Pradeep.

Predicted XI: Dimuth Karunaratne (C), Avishka Fernando, Kusal Perera (WK), Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perera, Isuru Udana, Akila Dananjaya, Lasith Malinga, Lahiru Kumara/Nuwan Pradeep.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh will be without the services of Shakib Al Hasan and Mashrafe Mortaza for this series. Thus, Tamim Iqbal will lead the team and open with Soumya Sarkar. The core of the side pretty much remains the same with Mushfiqur Rahim taking up the wicket-keeping responsibility. While Mustafizur Rahman and Mohammad Saifuddin will be the go-to bowlers, they’ll possibly pick one between Taskin Ahmed and Taijul Islam depending on the conditions.

Predicted XI: Tamim Iqbal (C), Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim (WK), Mahmudullah, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan, Mustafizur Rahman, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed/Taijul Islam.

Probable Top Performers

Avishka Fernando – Sri Lanka | Mushfiqur Rahim – Bangladesh

Broadcast Details

TV – Sony Six and Sony Six HD

Online– Sony LIV

Match Timings – 14:30 IST and local

The prediction is for the team batting first to have a good chance of winning the game.