With several of its batters and bowlers securely positioned among the top 10 of the rankings, England, ranked third in the world, have checked the most of their boxes ahead of next month’s T20 World Cup.
The three-match Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka, which will begin on Friday at Pallekele, is more about fine-tuning in preparation for the format’s main event, which the island nation and its neighbors, India, will co-host.
England has settled into the shortest format since their heartbreaking elimination in the semi-finals of the last World Cup in the Caribbean, winning four series, drawing two, and losing only one.
“We have a good record over the last couple of years and we need to carry that momentum into the World Cup. The key for us is a series win here. Any series win away from home is valuable and we are really looking forward to the first game,” AFP quoted England opening batter Phil Salt as saying.
Salt, ranked number two in the world, has been one of the most destructive powers in T20 cricket, striking at 168 with four hundreds and seven fifties in a brief but spectacular international career. However, the right-hander was keen to draw focus away from particular skill by highlighting England’s depth as their true advantage.
“The middle order is never the easiest place to bat, but we have versatile guys with very high strike rates who can take the game away from the opposition,” Salt said.
“If you look at someone like Harry Brook, he showed everyone what he’s capable of in the last game,” Salt added, referring to Brook’s unbeaten 136 in the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Tuesday.
England’s recent success in the ODI series, where they played up to six spin options and bowled 40 overs of spin out of 50 in one match, was largely due to their covert strengthening of their spin bowling supplies.
“It’s a huge bonus for us. We play our first-round games in Mumbai and Kolkata (in India) and sometimes you need different options depending on conditions. Having that variety is important because we know spin will play a big role in this part of the world,” Salt said.
Even though earlier stating that opening batter Kusal Perera was not in their World Cup plans, Sri Lanka have recalled the left-hander. In addition to offering cover behind the stumps, Perera has one of Sri Lanka’s greatest strike rates.
“Although he didn’t play the recent T20 series against Pakistan, given his ability to bat anywhere in the top six, we know his value to the team. Hopefully he can do a job for us. His experience is vital,” Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka said.
Fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera, who was rested for the ODI series against England, is also back. Shanaka downplayed the worries voiced by leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, who labored late in the third ODI and missed the first two, over a persistent hamstring problem.
“Chameera, with his pace, can trouble batters and he’s accurate, which makes him hard to hit. Hasaranga was just having cramps, nothing serious. With both of them in the squad, our bowling looks strong,” Shanaka said.
