T20 WC, England vs Sri Lanka: Shanaka opts to bat
England and Sri Lanka will meet in their respective last Super 12 match in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup. While England can enter the semi-final with a win, SL are officially eliminated. If England lose, Australia will join New Zealand as the other Group 1 team to feature in the semis. SL skipper Dasun Shanaka has won the toss and will bat first.
Pitch report, timing, and broadcast details
The Sydney Cricket Ground will host this contest on Saturday (November 5). The track here has been traditionally good for batting with the average first-innings score being 168. Teams batting first have won 11 of the 17 T20Is here. The match will be telecast live on Star Sports Network (1:30 PM IST) and live-streamed on the Hotstar app (paid subscription).
Here is the head-to-head record
England have dominated the Lankan Lions in terms of head-to-head record in T20Is (9-4). Sri Lanka last defeated the Three Lions in the format in 2014. Meanwhile, England recorded a 3-0 clean sweep when these two sides last met in a bilateral T20I series in 2021. In T20 World Cups, the Brits have four wins and a solitary defeat against Sri Lanka.
Who are the key performers?
Mark Wood has claimed 15 wickets in seven T20Is this year, averaging 10.66. Jos Buttler, who scored 73 in his last outing, is now England's highest run-getter in T20Is with 2,468 runs. Pathum Nissanka has clobbered 646 T20I runs in 2022, averaging a healthy 29.36. With 13 wickets in seven games, Wanindu Hasaranga is currently the leading wicket-taker of the tournament.
Here are the two teams
England (Playing XI): Jos Buttler (w/c), Alex Hales, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Dawid Malan, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha
