All posts by h716a5.icu

New Zealand’s bowling coach was pleased with the efforts of the left-arm quick, who took three important wickets on day four at Hagley Oval

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Christchurch29-Dec-2018Pitches in New Zealand tend to flatten out after a roaring start, but even though opposition teams struggle to get wickets in the second innings, New Zealand’s own quicks are generally capable of bowling their team to victory. Why? Because they hunt as a pack, according to their bowling coach Shane Jurgensen.There was evidence of that teamwork as they removed four Sri Lanka batsmen on day four – three of those wickets falling to Neil Wagner. The performance left New Zealand four further wickets from victory, with day five to play. In fact they may only need three wickets, if the injured Angelo Mathews does not bat again.”It’s awesome, because I think the bowlers actually bounce off each other,” Jurgensen said after play. “They all get on with each other – they’re really good mates. You’ve got the two left-handers in Neil and Trent Boult, and then you’ve got Tim Southee and Colin de Grandhomme, when there’s a bit more on offer in terms of seam and swing. You’ve got those four guys – two lefties and two righties. Neil’s ability to bowl those bouncers, it just adds another string in the bow for the group.”One of the big things with our bowling is we want to bowl in partnerships and put pressure on from both ends. I think that’s what we did in the first innings and that’s we needed all our bowlers to do in the second.”Having arrived in New Zealand only six days before this series started, following their three Tests in the UAE, New Zealand’s bowlers have also had to contend with a huge workload, having earlier spent six months without any international cricket on their schedule. Boult – New Zealand’s quickest bowler – has played in all five of those Tests, and Tim Southee has played four.”Trent is really fit,” Jurgensen said. “I think that’s what I’ve been really impressed with our bowling group – it’s our fifth test in six-and-a-half or seven weeks, and it’s a testament to their fitness during the winter, how hard they’ve worked, to still keep trucking in. Neil just provides that extra punch that we need, particularly at the back end of the game, and you saw another example of that today. He’s been doing it for a while now for us.”Perhaps the best on-field battle of day five was Wagner v Dinesh Chandimal. In the past, teams have targeted Chandimal with the short ball, on account of his reputation for being an impulsive hooker. Aware of this potential weakness, New Zealand and Wagner bowled a lot of bouncers at Chandimal, without much success for the first two sessions, with Chandimal routinely ducking or swaying out of the way.It was Wagner who eventually got his wicket. Early in the third session, Chandimal could not get out of the way of a delivery headed toward his throat, and ended up fending at it with his gloves, sending an easy catch to short leg. Wagner was ecstatic at having taken that wicket, letting out an almighty scream.”I was a good battle between them,” Jurgensen said. “Dinesh batted very well, he applied himself fantastically. His hook shot is certainly something that we’ve targeted. But one of the things that I was mentioning in the dressing room is that I don’t think he’s playing the pull or hook shot today, so maybe we need to change our fields slightly to suit that. Eventually Neil got him.”

Phil Foden’s latest Manchester City hat-trick means that he now has as many Premier League trebles to his name as Cristiano Ronaldo and Frank Lampard.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

City star claimed match ball against VillaHis third Premier League hat-trickSame return as Man Utd & Chelsea legendsWHAT HAPPENED?

The England international forward was very much the star of the show as City eased to a 4-1 victory over a much-changed Aston Villa side at the Etihad Stadium. Rodri opened the scoring in that contest, but it was Foden that got Pep Guardiola’s side over the line.

AdvertisementTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The 23-year-old has broken through the 20-goal barrier this season, finding the target on 21 occasions across all competitions. He continues to post personal bests that are seeing him become a talismanic presence for club and country.

DID YOU KNOW?

Foden now has three Premier League hat-tricks on his personal CV, with match balls previously picked up against Manchester United in October 2022 and Brentford just a few weeks ago in February. That haul means he now sits level with United legend Ronaldo and Chelsea greats Lampard and Didier Drogba.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

WHAT NEXT?

Among the other players to have recorded three Premier League trebles are Emmanuel Adebayor, Nicolas Anelka, Robbie Keane, Romelu Lukaku and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. City icon Sergio Aguero is the all-time leading marksman in that department, with 12 match balls in his collection.

Michael Neser and Mark Steketee’s brisk 64-run stand left the game evenly poised at the end of day two in Canberra after Nathan Lyon took four wickets

The Report by Alex Malcolm17-Nov-2018Mark Steketee celebrates a wicket with his teammates•Getty ImagesA four-wicket haul from New South Wales spinner Nathan Lyon was overshadowed by a stunning rear-guard from Queensland duo Michael Neser and Mark Steketee to leave the game evenly poised at the end of day two in Canberra.Queensland looked in danger of giving up a significant first innings lead when Lyon had Jimmy Pierson stumped to leave the Bulls 7 for 146.But Neser and Steketee unleashed a vicious counter-attack. The pair put on 64 in just 11 overs to tick the total past 200. Neser struck 10 fours in his 62 before falling caught and bowled to Lyon. He has now scored three consecutive Shield half-centuries. Steketee hammered four sixes and two fours in his 41 before holing out at deep midwicket off Pat Cummins.Earlier, Marnus Labuschagne made a compact half-century as he continued to push to retain his spot in the Test side. He cruised to 52, with six fours, before chopping on off Cummins. Matt Renshaw was one of Lyon’s four wickets, edging behind trying to force square off the back foot for just 21.Blues openers Nick Larkin and Daniel Hughes made it to stumps to give New South Wales a lead of 52 with 10 wickets in hand heading into day three.

USMNT star Ricardo Pepi has featured in a commercial with Mexico's Santiago Gimenez ahead of their CONCACAF Nations League showdown.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Pepi and Gimenez star in commercialUSMNT face Mexico in finalBoth players look ahead to clashWHAT HAPPENED?

Pepi, 21, and Gimenez, 22, both featured in the commercial for 'Bimbo' where they can be seen jokingly arguing about the baked goods while also trying to watch a game of football.

The two are set to go head-to-head in the Nastions League final on Monday at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

AdvertisementWATCH THE CLIPTHE BIGGER PICTURE

The two have already faced off in the Eredivisie earlier in March, as Gimenez was on the scoresheet for Feyenoord during the 2-2 draw with Pepi's PSV Eindhoven.

Pepi was limited to a role off the bench, while the goal for Gimenez was his 20th of the 2023/24 Dutch league season.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR PEPI AND GIMENEZ?

Pepi's USMNT secured a solid 3-1 victory against Jamaica to the reach the final on Monday and will now prepare, while Gimenez and Mexico eased past Panama with a 3-0 win.

Following the final, both players will return to the Netherlands for the return of domestic action after the international break.

ESPNcricinfo’s live blog of the first round of the Ranji Trophy 2018-19 season

Shashank Kishore03-Nov-2018

Arsenal kept their slim Women's Super League title bid alive after seeing off a resolute Aston Villa in a 3-1 comeback win at Villa Park.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Arsenal beat Aston Villa 3-1 at Villa ParkPelova, Wubben-Moy & Blackstenius scoreSalmon on scoresheet for Villa in WSL clashGetty ImagesTELL ME MORE

The Villans scored with their only shot of the game – which was pushed back 45 minutes due to travel disruption – through Ebony Salmon in the 35th minute following a flowing team move as the visitors toiled in the first half. Nine minutes after the interval, Jonas Eidevall's side equalised when goalkeeper Anna Leat could only parry Alessia Russo's strike and Victoria Pelova converted the rebound. It looked like the north London outfit's profligacy would let them down as Leat made a number of vital saves to keep them at bay but a late flurry got Arsenal over the line. Lotte Wubben-Moy and Stina Blackstenius scored in the 84th and 86th minute respectively as the Gunners closed to within six points of joint-leaders Chelsea and Arsenal with five games remaining.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesTHE MVP

Lotte Wubben-Moy: Arsenal were so dominant but until the 84th minute, it looked like they would come away with just a point. Therefore, the defender's all-important goal paved the way to the Gunners' victory, before Blackstenius put more gloss on the scoreline.

GettyTHE BIG LOSER

Rachel Daly: Last season's Golden Boot winner got precious little service in attack for Villa and she was booked for dissent in the second half in what was a frustrating night for the England international. It appears her team are going backwards after a fifth-placed finish last term.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT COMES NEXT?

Arsenal are not in WSL action again until after the international break when they host bottom of the table Bristol City on April 14 but before then they take on Chelsea in the final of the FA Women's League Cup next Sunday. Villa, on the other hand, host Leicester City next Saturday in the league.

We assess the chances of the teams in Group Three in our County Championship preview

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Apr-2021GlamorganTimm van der Gugten gets a congratulatory elbow•Getty ImagesLast season: 6th in Central Group
Director of cricket: Mark Wallace
Coach: Matt Maynard
Captain: Chris Cooke
Overseas players: Andy Balbirnie, Marnus Labuschagne, Michael Neser
Ins: James Weighell (Durham)
Outs: Marchant de Lange (Somerset), Craig Meschede (retired), Connor Brown, Kieran Bull, Charlie Hemphrey, Owen Morgan, Graham Wagg (all released)
After narrowly missing out on promotion in 2019, Glamorgan struggled in the Bob Willis Trophy, finishing bottom of the pile without a win. Their chances of success this season will rely heavily on their two Queensland imports, Marnus Labuschagne and Michael Neser, who will arrive three or four games into the season following the conclusion of the Sheffield Shield: Labuschagne’s 1114-run season in 2019 was the start of his rise to stardom, while the bustling Neser should be a perfect fit for early season conditions.
Andy Balbirnie will fill in for Labuschagne in the early rounds and looked in good touch against Somerset in pre-season, but Billy Root, captain Chris Cooke and the fit-again David Lloyd will have to do heavy lifting with the bat if they are to compete. Marchant de Lange’s departure to Somerset is a significant blow, while Graham Wagg has also left the club: Timm van der Gugten and Michael Hogan remain potent forces, but Lukas Carey and Dan Douthwaite will have important roles with the ball. The promising left-arm spinner Prem Sisodiya should have a chance to impress at some stage.
One to watch: Callum Taylor, 22, is the son of a former Pontypool rugby union player – who gave him the middle name “Zinzan” – and made quite an impression in the BWT. In his first-ever first-class innings, he was on 27 off 46 balls when Glamorgan slipped to 135 for 9 against Northants, and proceeded to hammer 79 from his next 48 in a rollicking stand. He bowls serviceable offspin on top of his punchy middle-order batting, and should play a major role. Matt Roller
Bet365: 66-1KentJack Leaning and Jordan Cox pose in front of the scoreboard after their record stand in 2020•Getty ImagesLast season: 2nd in South Group
Director of cricket: Paul Downton
Coach: Matt Walker
Captain: Sam Billings
Overseas players: Miguel Cummins (April-June), Heino Kuhn
Ins: Nathan Gilchrist (Somerset), Tawanda Muyeye
Outs: Sean Dickson (Durham), Calum Hagget, Ivan Thomas (both released), Adam Rouse (retired)
There’s a feeling among the Kent hierarchy that they have built good depth in their squad and now is the time to start seeing the knock-on effects of competition from within for places. “It’s exciting,” says Matt Walker. “Of course it’s what happens over the next six months that will really tell the whole story. It’s very important that we have that challenge amongst the group. In my experienced that always produces the best cricket.”
The additions of Harry Podmore and Matt Milnes in 2018 and 2019 respectively have bolstered the club’s seam stocks alongside an evergreen and ever-reliable Darren Stevens, who is about to turn 45. But it is the recruitment of West Indies fast bowler Miguel Cummins that could prove a masterstroke and Kent will be keen to make best use of the man who took a five-for against them for Middlesex in the Bob Willis Trophy last year for the first eight Championship games they have him for.
Zak Crawley and Sam Billings will surely miss chunks of the season on England and IPL duty. Their absence should, in theory, be covered by the likes of new vice-captain Daniel Bell Drummond, who enjoyed a strong pre-season and will be captain when Billings is at the IPL, and Joe Denly, whose time with England last summer proved fruitless. Jack Leaning, who joined from Yorkshire last year, and youngster Jordan Cox have also proven themselves more than handy with the bat.
One to watch: Jordan Cox’s 238 not out in an unbroken stand worth 423 with Leaning handed Kent an innings victory over Sussex last August and announced the then 19-year-old Cox as an exciting prospect. If he can kick on this season, it can only mean good things for Kent’s quest for silverware. Valkerie Baynes
Bet365: 10-1LancashireGeorge Balderson was one of a number of young players to come through at Lancashire in 2020•Getty ImagesRelated

Bell-Drummond has much left to achieve after decade at Kent

Parnell to miss Northants opener after quarantine extended

Head, Handscomb turn thoughts to England

Last season (BWT): 3rd in South Group
Director of cricket: Paul Allott
Coach: Glen Chapple
Captain: Dane Vilas
Overseas: Dane Vilas, Jackson Bird
Ins: Luke Wells (Sussex), Jack Blatherwick (Nottinghamshire)
Outs: Brooke Guest (Derbyshire), Toby Lester, Stephen Parry (both released), Graham Onions (retired)
A decade has passed since Lancashire enjoyed Championship catharsis under the captain-coach combination of Glen Chapple and Peter Moores. Since that much-feted title, the club has arguably been better run off the field than on it: three times they have had to bounce back from Division One relegation – most recently, in 2019, when Dane Vilas led the team through an unbeaten promotion campaign in his first season in charge.
Chapple is now head coach, and in 2020 the BWT was all about blooding local talent. Teenage allrounder George Balderson played all five games, while five other players between 19 and 22 made promising debuts; Josh Bohannon and Danny Lamb, in the side for a few years, continued to make strides. And although Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone will miss the first chunk of the season at the IPL, there is core group of established pedigree at Old Trafford – including Vilas, sometime England opener Keaton Jennings, wicketkeeper Alex Davies, former captain Steven Croft, workhorse seamer Tom Bailey and Australia international Jackson Bird (from round three) – to propel a strong Championship challenge. Not to mention Matt Parkinson and Saqib Mahmood, young men champing at the bit after winters spent mulling non-selection by England.
James Anderson is set to miss the opening two rounds as England manage his workload and his availability could make the difference when it comes to pushing for top two – Anderson took 30 wickets at 9.36 in 2019, setting the club up for runaway success. Group Three contains four teams who competed in Division Two two years ago, and Lancashire play six of their first eight games against such opposition.
One to watch: After the departure of the long-serving Stephen Parry, Lancashire have not one but two greenhorn slow left-arm spinners coming through to replace him in Tom Hartley and Jack Morley. Hartley, 22, is the senior man, tall and slender and a feature of both the BWT and Blast sides last year; the pair memorably bowled Lancashire to victory on the final day against Derbyshire at Aigburth.Alan Gardner
Bet365: 9-1NorthamptonshireCharlie Thurston was the find of the season for Northants last summer•Getty ImagesLast season (BWT): 4th in Central Group
Coach: David Ripley
Captain: Adam Rossington
Overseas: Wayne Parnell
Ins: Tom Taylor (Leicestershire)
Outs: Brett Hutton (Nottinghamshire), Rob Newton, Blessing Muzarabani, Tom Sole (all released)
Whether Northants, likes Gloucestershire, will ever get to enjoy the fruits of their promotion to Division One in 2019, after long years stuck in the second tier, remains up for debate. But in what looks a relatively open group, they will once again be aiming to perform above expectations. The departure of Brett Hutton, who re-joined Nottinghamshire after three impressive seasons at Wantage Road, could weaken the attack at Adam Rossington’s disposal, but Ben Sanderson remains a formidable force with the red ball in hand and Wayne Parnell may prove a shrewd overseas recruit – albeit he will miss the start of the season while in quarantine.
The Bob Willis Trophy allowed the introduction of some younger faces, with Charlie Thurston taking his chance to finish as Northants’ leading run-scorer – 357 at 44.62 – and 20-year-old Emilio Gay emerging as a promising top-order option. Ben Curran and Ricardo Vasconcelos look set to start as the opening pair, with Alex Wakely, in his first full campaign since stepping down as captain during 2019, the senior man in a young batting line-up. Tom Taylor, an allrounder with England Lions potential, looks a good signing from Leicestershire, and Gareth Berg is still going strong at 40. The BWT also saw Simon Kerrigan make his comeback after a three-year career hiatus, and the one-cap England spinner could be another feel-good Northants story in the offing.
One to watch: Jack White, a 29-year-old seamer from Cumbria, made his first-class debut last summer and claimed an impressive 13 wickets at 20.00 from four games. Plucked from the club scene in the North West, he is looking to follow in the footsteps of Sanderson and Richard Gleeson as late-blooming talents who proved their worth at first-class level with Northamptonshire. AG
Bet365: 33-1SussexJames Kirtley and Ian Salisbury will split head-coaching responsibilities at Sussex•Sussex County Cricket ClubLast season: 6th in South Group
Director of cricket: Keith Greenfield
Coach: Ian Salisbury
Captain: Ben Brown
Overseas players: Travis Head (Australia – end of April onwards), Stiaan van Zyl (South Africa – full season)
Ins:
Outs: Laurie Evans (Surrey), Danny Briggs (Warwickshire), Luke Wells (Lancashire), Harry Finch, Will Sheffield (both released)
Under new management with Ian Salisbury taking over from Jason Gillespie in the first-class and one-day formats (James Kirtley will be T20 coach), Sussex will be looking to overcome a disappointing couple of years, having narrowly missed out on promotion in 2018 then dropping to sixth in Division two in 2019.
There is a sense that the club is still building towards bigger things, highlighted by the hook for their membership drive: “A New Beginning”. A maiden first-class five-for to left-arm seamer George Garton against Essex last year showed off his promise and he has enjoyed a good pre-season with 3 for 35 and an unbeaten 33 in a friendly against Surrey. Jack Carson, the 20-year-old Irish offspinner and teenage paceman Henry Crocombe were also among the wickets in that drawn match.
Both pre-season friendlies – Sussex also drew at Hampshire – had to be moved after a bug infestation damaged the outfield at Hove. As a result, their opening fixture against Lancashire has also been switched, to Old Trafford. Experienced captain Ben Brown scored heavily in pre-season, as did 22-year-old Tom Haines, who notched a century at Surrey and 72 against Hampshire.
One to watch: With a Test squad place beckoning, Ollie Robinson is focused on taking that next step. With proven wicket-taking ability, amassing 137 wickets across 2018 and 2019 plus another 14 at 12.50 in the Bob Willis Trophy, he’ll also benefit from having spent months training with England’s squads over the past year. VB
Bet365: 12-1YorkshireYorkshire’s Jordan Thompson in his delivery stride•Getty ImagesLast season: 1st, North Group
Director of Cricket: Martyn Moxon
Coach:Andrew Gale
Captain:Steve Patterson
Overseas players:Duanne Olivier, Mathew Pillans
Ins:Dom Bess (Somerset)
Outs: Ed Barnes (Leicestershire), Jared Warner (Gloucestershire), James Logan (released)
Yorkshire topped their group last season, only to be the group winner that missed out to Essex and Somerset for a place in the final. Their chief executive Mark Arthur consoled members at the Zoom annual general meeting by pronouncing that Yorkshire’s squad was the strongest he had known in nearly a decade in the job.
That is tantamount to predicting a Championship win and to get that they initially have to finish in the top two of the opening group without Dawid Malan, who will miss eight matches because of an IPL deal. Joe Root’s presence in the early games will be cheering, but of longer-term significance will be whether Gary Ballance can score heavily after missing 2020 with a stress-related illness. If not, expectations will fall to a large degree on Harry Brook.
The two overseas players are post-Brexit oddities: Duanne Olivier, a one-time Kolpak, carries hostility, but Mathew Pillans’ presence as an overseas player now his ancestral visa is disqualified is a mere convenience. Dom Bess brings spin-bowling quality assuming he puts his India ups and downs behind him and he will aim to get the weight of runs once provided by Tim Bresnan. If three bowling allrounders – Jordan Thompson, Matthew Waite and Matthew Fisher – kick on then spearheads Ben Coad and David Willey should not be short of support.
One to watch: Jordan Thompson, a seam bowling allrounder, made a strong impression in the BWT, averaging 47 with the bat and 16 with the ball, and now has to try to carry such impressive figures forward as the Championship heads back towards normality. David Hopps
Bet365: 7-1

Expect the Khettarama to aid spinners again, but rain could well disrupt the game

Karthik Krishnaswamy03-Aug-20245:07

1st ODI takeaways: India’s casual approach, Rohit’s reliability and more

Big picture – More grip and turn at the Khettarama?Where do ODIs sit on world cricket’s priority list? The answer sits right there in India’s schedule: they only have one more ODI series lined up between their current tour of Sri Lanka and the Champions Trophy in February-March 2025.It’s a weird time for bilateral ODIs, then, and weirder still for a series involving Sri Lanka, who haven’t even qualified for the Champions Trophy. How appropriate, then, that Friday produced an absolute classic of the format, a twisty, slow-burning tie that showed – just as last year’s World Cup did, time after time – that the ODI remains a brilliant canvas for cricket’s skills. It would be a pity if the sport’s future landscape retained no meaningful space for the format.Related

Hasaranga, Asalanka pick up three-fors to force a tie

India, Sri Lanka throw it back to the '90s in Colombo classic

Wellalage turns to Nissanka for inspiration

For now, two more matches of an unexpectedly zany tour remain. After three successive collapses in the T20Is – 9 for 30, 7 for 31 and 7 for 22 – Sri Lanka will take some confidence from how they fought back from 101 for 5 in the first ODI on Friday, and will hope they can push India even further in the next two matches.The third T20I in Pallekele and the first ODI in Colombo both showed that spin-friendly conditions significantly narrow the quality gap between these teams. If Khettarama continues to provide ample grip and turn, then, who can say which way this series will tilt?Form guideSri Lanka TLWLW
India TWLWLIn the spotlight – Avishka Fernando and Washington SundarSince the start of 2023, when he returned from a year-long injury absence, Avishka Fernando hasn’t quite reached the heights he had promised in the early part of his ODI career. He has averaged under 20 over these last 19 months, and while that stretch has included scores of 88 and 91 against Afghanistan, it has also highlighted a tendency for early dismissal, with nine of his 13 innings bringing him single-digit scores. Avishka finished LPL 2024 as its third-highest run-getter, however, with 374 runs at an average of 37.40 and a strike rate of 162.60, suggesting that a return to his international best may also be imminent.In the first ODI, Washington Sundar was easily the most expensive of India’s three main spinners•PTI Washington Sundar began the first ODI promisingly, ripping his first ball past Charith Asalanka’s outside edge. He endured mixed returns thereafter, however; he picked up the wicket of the half-centurion Pathum Nissanka, but was easily the most expensive of India’s three main spinners, going for 46 in his nine overs and conceding 31 off 34 balls to left-hand batters, his favourable match-up. Then he was out for 5 after being promoted to No. 4. None of this would be held against him in the normal course of things, because all cricketers go through such days, but Washington knows he’s third in line behind Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel in India’s hierarchy of spin-bowling allrounders leading up to the Champions Trophy, with Riyan Parag also waiting for a chance to show what he can do in ODIs.Team news – will Khaleel or Harshit get a chance?Wanindu Hasaranga will miss the remainder of the ODI series with a hamstring injury. Jeffrey Vandersay has come into the squad as his replacement. Sri Lanka have the option of lengthening their batting by bringing in Chamika Karunaratne for Mohamed Shiraz, though it seems unlikely they would leave out a young fast bowler after just one game.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Avishka Fernando, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Sadeera Samarawickrama, 5 Charith Asalanka (capt), 6 Janith Liyanage, 7 Dunith Wellalage, 9 Wanindu Hasaranga/Jeffrey Vandersay, 9 Akila Dananjaya, 10 Mohamed Shiraz, 11 Asitha FernandoIndia, meanwhile, could look to give Mohammed Siraj, who has featured in all three T20Is as well as the first ODI, a break, and give one of Khaleel Ahmed and Harshit Rana a go in the pace attack.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Shivam Dube, 7 Axar Patel, 8 Washington Sundar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Arshdeep SinghPathum Nissanka has the best average of the 21 Sri Lanka batters with at least 2000 ODI runs•Getty ImagesPitch and conditionsSpinners took 13 of the 18 wickets that fell in the first ODI, and this was by no means unusual for Khettarama. Since the start of 2022, spin has accounted for as many wickets here (101) as pace, and while fast bowlers have returned a slightly better overall average here (27.04) than the spinners (28.82) in this time, they have also been more expensive, going at 5.28 to the spinners’ 4.67. Expect similar scenes on Sunday, weather permitting: scattered showers are expected through the day.Stats and trivia India had won six ODIs on the bounce against Sri Lanka before Friday’s tie. Their last defeat came in July 2021, when Avishka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa made half-centuries in a successful chase of 227 in Colombo. Virat Kohli is 128 runs away from becoming the third batter, after Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara, to reach the milestone of 14,000 in ODIs. Siraj has an absurdly good ODI record against Sri Lanka: 20 wickets in seven matches at an average of 9.10. Pathum Nissanka has the best average (44.72) of the 21 Sri Lanka batters with at least 2000 ODI runs. He also has the fourth-best strike rate among them (90.47), with only Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera and Sanath Jayasuriya above him.