West Indies v Sri Lanka, 5th ODI Preview: Sri Lanka eyes a berth in the final

Sri Lanka takes on West Indies in the fifth ODI of the Zimbabwe tri-series at the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo as the tri-series has now enters its decisive stages. While West Indies has two games left to seal a place in the final and most importantly only one win out of those two games, Sri Lanka will be under pressure in the upcoming match as it happens to be their last chance of getting through to the final.

Sri Lanka is coming into the clash after a washed-out match against hosts Zimbabwe where heavy and persistent rain led to the match being cancelled. With seven points to their name in three games, a win for the Lankans will ensure that they book a spot in the finals. A loss, however, would put them at the mercy of West Indies as they would only qualify if the Caribbean Kings beat the hosts in the final game by a huge margin. Weather will also be a huge concern for both the teams as rains seems to be lurking around the corner.

West Indies:

The West Indies come into this game on the back of an exciting tied result against the hosts. Shai Hopes form is a great boost. He almost helped his team win the game a few days back. Opener Kraigg Brathwaite also looks in a good touch of form. The middle order, however, needs to make sure that there are no collapses. They seem to have nothing to worry in the bowling department, though. Led by Jason Holder, the bowling attack is far more experienced and gave good performance in last game. Off-spinner Ashley Nurse and Sulieman Benn will also get a purchase from the wicket and could enjoy bowling. Their bowling attack surely has more firepower than the opposition they will meet.

Sri Lanka:

Sri Lanka also has a similar batting worries. There have been no standout performers in the Tri-series so far. Their middle order is yet to prove their mettle. The first match against Zimbabwe didn’t really put anything challenging in front of the Lankan batting order. In the second game against West Indies, they were rocked by the combined bowling effort from the West Indies bowlers. The batsman needs to be cautious against the Windies fast bowlers as a poor performance would directly put them on a verge of elimination.

Speaking of the bowling attack, they have the likes of Dasun Shanaka and Nuwan Kulasekara play a huge role on the slowish track which will on offer. If luck goes their way and Tharanga wins the toss, then perhaps bowling first will be the best choice as it gives his seamers a chance to exploit the early morning conditions.

Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella(w), Kusal Mendis, Upul Tharanga(c), Shehan Jayasuriya, Asela Gunaratne, Sachith Pathirana, Nuwan Kulasekara, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal

West Indies (Playing XI): Johnson Charles, Kraigg Brathwaite, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope(w), Jonathan Carter, Rovman Powell, Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Holder(c), Ashley Nurse, Sulieman Benn, Shannon Gabriel

Stats and trivia

• With 148 runs from two innings, Shai Hope is the leading run-scorer of the tri-series as well as the only century-maker.
• Shannon Gabriel, Carlos Brathwaite and Nuwan Kulasekara top the wickets table with five each, although Kulasekara has played one more (albeit truncated) game than the two West Indians.
• West Indies have played six ODIs at Queens Sports Club, winning three.
• In eight ODIs against West Indies, Kulasekara has taken 12 wickets at 22.08.