Daijiworld Media Network

Chittagong , Mar 27: Sri Lanka have had a very smooth journey in the tournament so far with wins over South Africa and Netherlands. Will they be tested tonight by the 2010 Champions? Hello and a warm welcome to the second game of today's Group 1 double-header. England will be keen to open their account in the tournament after their heart-breaking loss against New Zealand. Life will not be easy for them though as Sri Lanka have been quite comprehensive as a unit. Their bowling is doing very well with almost every bowler getting his name in the wickets column so far. Kusal Perera has been quite amazing to watch, while the rest of the batters have had a decent hit leading up to today's encounter. We saw in the first game, Netherlands v South Africa, that it was quite humid and as a result there is some heavy dew predicted in the evening. We can't take a chance with the weather though and it will be interesting to see if it influences the captain's decision at the toss.

Pitch Report: 'Expect the England pacers to hit the deck, they should get some extra bounce on this surface. The slower ones will be useful, but it should still be a good track to bat on. There is plenty of dew around, that should affect the Sri Lankan spinners later on, reckons Nick Knight.

England have won the toss and have opted to field

Chandimal: 'We played some really good cricket of late, especially in the last two games and it pleases me as a captain. Now we will have to bat well and put them under pressure. We have good spinners in the side.'

Broad: 'We are feeling pretty fresh, we've had a break and we are looking forward to go well tonight. We will bowl first. Dew is a factor but we have a strong bowling unit so we will try and keep them down to a low total and chase it down. The batting performance was really good the other night but the bowling wasn't tested.'

Teams:

England (Playing XI): Michael Lumb, Alex Hales, Moeen Ali, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler(w), Ravi Bopara, Chris Jordan, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad(c), James Tredwell, Jade Dernbach

Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Kushal Janith Perera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara(w), Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal(c), Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Sachithra Senanayake, Ajantha Mendis, Lasith Malinga

Match Preview

A victory for Sri Lanka against England will in all likelihood confirm a berth in the semi-finals for the Dinesh Chandimal-led side and they will be looking to take England by the throat when they face off in their Group 1 Super 10 encounter. England, who lost a rain-curtailed game against New Zealand, will be desperate for a win to stay in the competition.
England:

England were good with the bat in their opening encounter against New Zealand before rain had the final say and D/L helped the Black-Caps prevail. The performance of Moeen Ali and Michael Lumb was pleasing as their positive intent helped England make a good start while Ravi Bopara and Tim Bresnan scored quick runs in the end to boost the English total. Jos Buttler, who has been in good form of late, also made an useful contribution. The English though have some concerns as Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan failed to come good and it is not just their performance in this match that will worry Ashley Giles and the rest of the coaching staff. Hales was not effective in the T20Is against Australia while he got off to good starts in the series against West Indies, but failed to convert them. Morgan's form is an even bigger concern for the England team as the left-hander, barring a 43 in the practice match against West Indies, has not done anything substantial of late.

The England bowlers only managed 5.2 overs in the game against New Zealand, but that was sufficient to constitute a match. They failed to keep the New Zealand batsmen in check and the Black-Caps raced past the D/L par score with Stuart Broad's 16-run over making the difference in the end. While one cannot read too much into this bowling effort, England's lack-lustre showing with the ball in their warm-up games, barring the performance of James Tredwell, gives a feeling that the bowling department is slightly under-prepared for Bangladeshi conditions. If England are to prove this wrong, they will have to come up with a disciplined effort against Sri Lanka, who at the moment look to be one of the favourites to win the tournament.
Key Players:

England will count on Lumb at the top of the order to give them a solid start while they will be hoping for their key player in the middle order, Morgan to find form. In the bowling department, off-spinner Tredwell will have an important role to play, while Moeen will be useful with his off-breaks.
Sri Lanka:

Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan may not have contributed much in Sri Lanka's recent games, but the form of the rest of the batters augers well for the team, who will be hoping to march confidently into the next round. South Africa recently saw Kusal Perera's devastating abilities with the bat while ODI skipper Angelo Mathews has been in good form as well and has been coming up with vital contributions down the order. Sangakkara has made a lot of runs since setting foot on Bangladeshi soil this year while Thisara Perera's importance in the middle order is also something for England to take notice. Sri Lanka will be hoping for Dilshan and Mahela to come to the party soon while they will be banking on the rest of the batters to come up with a strong showing.

The Lankan bowlers handled the pressure well against South Africa to help their side secure a close win. The Dutch then found them almost unplayable as the Netherlands side were skittled out for just 39, the lowest total in T20Is. Lasith Malinga form has been good while Nuwan Kulasekara and Mathews have also been doing well with the ball. Ajantha Mendis had an off game against South Africa but made up with that with a fine showing against Netherlands. This would have made the Lankan team management happy, while they would also be pleased with Sachitra Senanayake's form. Chandimal will be hoping that the bowlers continue their good job and help Sri Lanka register their third win on the trot.
Key Players:

Over the years, Sri Lanka's batting has revolved around Dilshan, Mahela and Sangakkara, and it will not be any different this time. While they will hope for a fiery start from Kusal Perera, the three experienced players still remain key members of the batting order and will be expected to play a big role. In the bowling department, Malinga and Mendis will be Sri Lanka's main weapons.
Ground Reality:

The England v Sri Lanka game will be the 22nd match of this tournament and will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chitagong. In the four T20Is that Sri Lanka have played at this ground, they have been undefeated and they will be eager to maintain that streak. In the 11 T20Is played at this venue till date, teams batting first have won 5 times while teams chasing have emerged victorious in 6 games.
Ground Reality:

The England v Sri Lanka game will be the 22nd match of this tournament and will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chitagong. In the four T20Is that Sri Lanka have played at this ground, they have been undefeated and they will be eager to maintain that streak. In the 11 T20Is played at this venue till date, teams batting first have won 5 times while teams chasing have emerged victorious in 6 games.
Numbers:

6: The number of runs Eoin Morgan requires to reach the mark of 1000 runs in T20Is. He will become the second England player after Kevin Pietersen to do so in case he gets the required number of runs.

50: In case Angelo Mathews plays this game, this will be his 50th T20I appearance for Sri Lanka. He will become the 5th Lankan after Dilshan, Malinga, Sangakkara and Mahela to have played 50 or more T20I matches.