SATURDAY ODI: The Edge previews Sri Lanka v England with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Sri Lanka v England 2nd ODI
MATCH OVERVIEW:
Sri Lanka and England are back in action on Betdaq Betting Exchange as the sides do battle again at Colombo on Saturday. After a disastrous Ashes tour, England are under immense pressure to try and change the narrative but Sri Lanka took a 1-0 lead in the series opener on Thursday. As I said in my preview of that game, on paper most cricket fans will expect England to win this series given Sri Lanka aren’t the force of old; another ODI series loss will pile the pressure on – even if most of the focus will be on the upcoming T20 World Cup.
A lot England fans were calling for Brendon McCullum’s head after the Ashes fallout. The performances were poor, shot selection was outright stupid at times, but the main issue was the stories coming out of the camp. No fielding coach and the players drinking multiple days were the main issues. Rob Key has obviously backed him, and it seems unlikely to change before the T20 World Cup given how close it is. England have had major issues in the ODI format for years though – they’ve brought McCullum in to the white ball set-up to change things but Thursday felt like the same old England.
Batting first at Colombo is an obvious advantage, but England couldn’t cope with the spin in the chase. Obviously we always have the debate about the domestic set up every time England lose an ODI, but the ECB aren’t going to change it now. Sri Lanka don’t need to change much, and now they have two opportunities at a massive series win.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
With all three ODI’s here, it’s hard to see conditions changing much from Thursday. Sri Lanka posted 271/6 and England were all out in the chase for 252. Ben Duckett and Joe Root both got out in the 60’s but they didn’t have much support. The first inning scores in 2025 were 214 all out (won), 281/4 (won), 244 all out (won) and 248 all out (won). The last seven ODI’s now have been won by the team batting first after Thursday. It’s obviously tricky to bat here, and you want to bat first.
RECOMMENDED BET:
It’s no surprise that we have a more even market here and Sri Lanka have come in a little to 2.08 from 2.2. It’s hard to believe England have lost their last eleven away ODI’s but obviously they have been in crisis in this format for a while. McCullum will be feeling the heat but he hasn’t been for that long in the white ball format. We had success with batting the side that bats first in the 1st ODI, and I don’t see why we should change. Batting first here is a big advantage, and will go a long way to deciding the game in my opinion.
The Edge Says:
Two points win The Side Who Bats First (Sri Lanka 2.08 or England 1.91) with Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/SriEng2
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
We were heavy on the team batting first on Thursday, and to be honest I haven’t seen anything to change my mind. You’d have to look at the stats and see batting here is quite difficult. I would suggest perhaps waiting until the innings break here, and then backing the side to defend rather than backing them from the start. You wouldn’t be surprised to see a score posted sub 250, and then actually defended too. Sri Lanka defended 214 all out here last year too. Once again, I feel batting first will go a long way to deciding the game.
