The Rolling Stone Recalled
Coming into this test match one of the big talking points will be the arrival of Olly Stone to the England bowling attack, after Mark Wood was ruled out through injury. Stone will enjoy coming to Lords after he played well for the London Spirit in the The Hundred this summer. Furthermore, he’s got Test experience, so he should be unphased coming into the eleven.
A Return To The Scene For Atkinson
However, when it comes to England’s leading wicket-taker, I’m looking at Gus Atkinson. He was fantastic at Lords on his test debut, taking seven wickets in the first innings. Since then he has come to cement himself in England’s bowling attack and has probably been their best bowler this summer. I think he’ll be the pick of England’s bowlers again, and at 11/4, I think he’s worth keeping on side.
Brilliant Brook Needs To Convert
As regarding England’s batting line-up, I think Harry Brook could be the way to go. He’s been a little bit frustrating at times this summer getting himself in but then failing to convert. Having said that, he did score a century at Lords against the West Indies back in July. The 25-year-old seems to save some of his best cricket for the Lords, and I can see him being England’s leading light with the bat at 4/1 in the first innings.
Chandimal Has The Class To Call On
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, will look to put up a better performance at the home of cricket. They were disappointing at Old Trafford and never really looked like testing the home side. In the second innings they did perform better with the bat, but they didn’t look like a team. Despite that Dinesh Chandimal was a ray of light for Sri Lanka. He stuck around in the first innings, and tried to put together a score. In the second innings he fared better and was rewarded with a 76 after playing a few shots. He is a former captain of Sri Lanka and has a lot of experience.
Fast And Furious Fernando
Prabath Jayasuriya is probably Sri Lanka’s best bowler, but spin didn’t really come to the fore in the last Test match at Lords, so I’m going to be looking at one of their seamers to be their top wicket-taker. The one that stands out to me is Asitha Fernando. He was the pick of their bowlers at Old Trafford, taking four wickets in the first innings. The 27-year-old has had previous experience in England before playing a few matches for Nottinghamshire last year, so he had some familiarity with the conditions.
He’s been a little bit in and out of their Test side over the years and has only recently cemented his place in the team, but he looks a good option for them moving forward. At 7/2, he appeals the most by being their leading wicket-taker in the first innings.
The weather forecast looks like it’s going to be dry at Lords over the next few days, so there should be no excuses for an uninterrupted Test match.
England v Sri Lanka 2nd Test Tips
Gus Atkinson To Be England’s Top Wicket Taker (11/4)
Harry Brook To Be England’s Top Run Scorer (4/1)
Dinesh Chandimal To Be Sri Lanka’s Top Run Scorer (11/2)
Asitha Fernando To Be Sri Lanka’s Top Wicket Taker (7/2)
