FANTASY
Follow UsHaving thumped Sri Lanka by seven wickets in the first ODI, India will now look to seal the series when they take on Dasun Shanaka and Co. in the second encounter of the three-match series at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Tuesday (July 20). Sri Lanka have lost nine of their last 10 ODIs against India and will have to come up with something special if they want to keep the series alive.
GROUND DETAILS AND TEAM COMBINATIONS
Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium has been a happy hunting ground for batsmen over the last three years. In six matches in this period, the average first innings score has been 296. Hence, we will advice you to pick a batting heavy side, especially if India bat first.
The venue has had an average of 2.8 wickets per innings for spinners since 2018, the highest amongst all the Sri Lankan grounds to host at least two ODIs. Both sides have some quality spinners which should not be missed out on. In the first ODI, there was enough assistance for the spinners who took eight of the 12 wickets.
Meanwhile, fast bowlers have claimed 4.4 wickets per innings in this time frame.
SUGGESTED TEAMS
While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your own team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Based on your preferences, the platform will guide you to create the ideal fantasy XI.
CAPTAIN
Shikhar Dhawan has always been a consistent performer for India in ODIs. Since 2020, the left-handed opener has scored 545 runs in nine innings at an average of 68.13. He has smashed six fifties in those nine innings and that tells you something about his consistency. In the first ODI, Dhawan crafted 86* off 95 deliveries and emerged as the top-scorer despite the likes of Prithvi Shaw, Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav stealing all the limelight.
Our Criclytics Players Projector predicts Dhawan can score 50-74 runs in this match.
X-FACTORS
Suryakumar Yadav has been in superb form in white-ball cricket for a few years now. After knocking on the selectors' door for a while, he proved he is a player of international quality with an outstanding debut T20I series against England. He walked out to bat at No. 5 in the first ODI and slammed 31* off 20 deliveries to get India over the line. If India do bat first in the second game, Suryakumar could also be the captain or vice-captain of your side.
Our Criclytics Players Projector predicts Suryakumar can score 42-64 runs in this match.
Prithvi Shaw has been in some form of late. The dynamic opener whacked 43 off 24 deliveries and got India off to a flying start in the first ODI. Shaw has been dominating white-ball cricket since 2020. The right-hander has clobbered 1209 runs in his last 16 List-A games at an average of 93 and a strike rate of 137.54.
Our Criclytics Players Projector predicts Shaw can score 49-73 runs in this match.
Wanindu Hasaranga has been the one-man army in Sri Lankan cricket for a while now. He has been at the top of the run-scoring charts for Sri Lanka in ODI cricket since 2020, scoring 411 runs. He has also picked nine ODI wickets in the same time period, the second most by a Sri Lanka bowler. He didn't have a great first game but you would expect a player of his caliber to bounce back in the second encounter.
Our Criclytics Players Projector predicts Hasaranga could score 10-16 runs and pick up 0-1 wickets in this match.
Here are the top-10 picks as per Criclytics projected points-
MATCH-UPS
If Sri Lanka want to keep Dhawan in check, they will have to target the opener with left-arm pace. Since 2019, Dhawan has got out to left-arm seamers nine times and averages just 23.6 against them. Sri Lanka have Isuru Udana in their squad but the left-armer only bowled two overs in the first encounter, thanks to Shaw's early onslaught. You can check out more in-depth projections and key match-ups for this match here.
PROBABLE XIs
Sri Lanka: Avishka Fernando, Minod Bhanuka (wk), Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Isuru Udana/Lahiru Kumara, Dushmantha Chameera, Lakshan Sandakan/Akila Dananjaya.
India: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Prithvi Shaw, Ishan Kishan (wk), Manish Pandey, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav.