It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Wankhede Stadium, India and Sri Lanka have something to do with the number 2. 2 April 2011, India and Sri Lanka played ODI World Cup Final. 2 November 2023, India and Sri Lanka all set to play in Wankhede. Both teams are standing at very different points in the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup currently. Sri Lanka occupies 7thposition on the points table while India comfortably sits on 1st position.
The last time these two teams met in an ODI game, Mohammad Siraj wreaked havoc and was able to run through Sri Lanka’s batting order quite easily. Sri Lanka team managed to score mere 50 runs in a 50-over game in Asia Cup Final which raised many eye balls around their capacity of handling pressure. With the World Cup, Sri Lanka saw themselves to be bit unlucky again as few of their star players got injured before the start and between the tournament.
For India, 14 off their 15-member team are fit and raring to go. Just the unavailability of Hardik Pandya is the question. However, Mohammad Shami and Suryakumar Yadav haven’t let his absence felt in the past 2 matches.
Weather and Pitch:
The weather in Mumbai is expected to see a temperature of 35 degrees with 0% chance of precipitation. The pitch is expected to be a batting paradise and once again, the team which wins the toss, is expected to bat first and score runs.
Head-to-Head:
India and Sri Lanka have played against each other as many as 9 times, of which 4 have won by Indian team and as many by Sri Lanka with 1 game resulting in no result.
Team Analysis:
India
It is highly unlikely that Indian team is going to make any changes to their playing 11 from the last game that they played against England. With Hardik Pandya unavailable for the game, Suryakumar Yadav is once again expected to occupy number 6 position in the batting line up while Mohammad Shami will certainly feature in playing 11.
Probable 11:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammad Shami, Mohammad Siraj, JaspritBumrah, and Kuldeep Yadav.
Sri Lanka:
The last defeat against Afghanistan would have hurt Sri Lankan team badly. Their coach Silverwood mentioned that team is very much aware about the Champions Trophy 2023 qualification and will give their best against India to be in scheme of things.
Probable 11:
Pathum Nissanka, Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Mathews, Theekshana, Rajitha, Chameera, and Dilshan Madhushanka.
Who is likely to win?
It’s fair to say that Indian team will dominate the game against Sri Lanka. The balance that team India carries for now, they are expected to dominate the game on 2 November 2023. We hope our 8thprediction in the tournament goes right.
image source- www.icc-cricket.com
