England tour of Sri Lanka this month

  With the ICC Cricket World Cup approaching this winter, England’s team are not among the favourites. At present they are ranked fifth, below India, Australia, South Africa and their imminent opponents, Sri Lanka.

Of course, there is time for that to change, with more one-day cricket to be played in Australia before the World Cup - which is played there and in New Zealand - takes place. This is a chance for players to prove the doubters wrong and for new stars to emerge.

The challenge of playing the seven-match series in Sri Lanka, which begins on November 26th, is not an easy one and the playing conditions will be different to those of the World Cup, with the island in the Indian Ocean being extremely hot and humid, while the pitches are slow, low dusty turners, different to the fresh green pitches of New Zealand and Australia’s bouncy surfaces.

What will make a difference is if England can get some momentum and confidence, key ingredients that can help a side deal with whatever conditions or opponents come their way. Key issues for any successful one-day team include scoring rapidly in the early powerplay, keeping wickets intact in the middle overs, having the temperament to come through in tight finishes and the bowling skill to hit the stumps frequently in the later overs when the opposition batsmen are swinging.

Sri Lanka’s own ability to do these things has been in doubt of late, after suffering a 5-0 whitewash this month away to India. These matches were repeats of the 2011 World Cup final and the result was the same as it was that day in Mumbai. The defeats included some humiliating moments, not least Rohit Sharma’s world record score in a 50-over international of 264 in the third match, when India piled up 404-5.