Sri Lanka vs West Indies, Second Test: Fantasy Preview

Sri Lanka will look to seal the series when they take on West Indies in the second and final Test at the Galle International Stadium on Monday (November 29). The hosts smashed West Indies by 187 runs in the first Test and took a 1-0 lead in the series. West Indies have played 12 Tests in Sri Lanka but haven’t won a single game in this country. They have lost eight of those 12 encounters and have managed to draw four of them.

Head-to-Head

Total – 23 | Sri Lanka – 10 | West Indies – 4 | Drawn – 9

Last five H2H games: Sri Lanka - 2 | West Indies - 0 | Drawn - 3

Venue

Since 2020, the Galle International Stadium has hosted three Tests and the batters here have scored runs at an average of 29.4 and have lost a wicket every 59.4 deliveries. In the bowling department, it’s a no-brainer to have at least three-four spinners in your team. Even in the first Test, spinners took 31 of the 34 wickets.

Suggested Teams

While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.

Captain

Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne is currently one of the best Test openers in world cricket. The left-hander has slammed almost 1000 runs in his last nine Tests at an average of 61.56. No other opener has scored more runs than Karunaratne since 2020. In fact, amongst openers who have scored at least 500 runs in this time frame, the 33-year-old has the best average. In the first Test, Karunaratne managed scores of 147 and 83 and has now hit six consecutive 50-plus scores in this format.

Criclytics predicts that Dimuth Karunaratne will score 151-226 runs in this match.

X-Factors

Ramesh Mendis picked up eight wickets in the first Test and troubled almost every West Indies batter with his offspin. The 26-year-old has only played three Tests so far but already has two four-wicket hauls. Mendis didn’t do much with the bat in the first Test but has a pretty solid record in first-class cricket. The middle-order batter averages more than 40 in first-class cricket and also has a triple century to his name.

Criclytics predicts that Ramesh Mendis will pick up 6-8 wickets in this match.

Praveen Jayawickrama has only played two Tests but has picked up 16 wickets at a stunning average of 15.38. The 23-year-old left-arm spinner scalped 11 wickets on his debut against Bangladesh and claimed five more in the first Test against West Indies. Sri Lanka have another left-arm spinner in Lasith Embuldeniya and you could expect both of these two to be amongst wickets.

Criclytics predicts that Praveen Jayawickrama will pick up 8-9 wickets in this match.

Nkrumah Bonner has scored 498 runs at 41.5 in his eight-match Test career so far. No other West Indies batter has a better average than him this year. Three of those eight Tests have come in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and the right-hander has managed scores of 17, 86, 90, 38, 1 and 68 in his six innings in Asia. West Indies were reduced to 18/6 in the second innings in the first Test and it was him and Joshua Da Silva who put on 100 runs for the seventh wicket and propelled their team to a respectable total.

Criclytics predicts that Nkrumah Bonner will score 53-80 runs in this match.

Probable XIs

Sri Lanka - Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Pathum Nissanka, Oshada Fernando, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera, Lasith Embuldeniya, Praveen Jayawickrama.

West Indies - Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Shai Hope, Roston Chase, Kyle Mayers, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva (wk), Rahkeem Cornwall, Jomel Warrican, Shannon Gabriel/Kemar Roach.