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England vs Sri Lanka 2016, 2nd ODI, Edgbaston: Angelo Mathews vs Chris Woakes and other key battles

The second ODI between England and Sri Lanka is expected to be a high-scoring game. Let's have a look at the key battles that will set the Edgbaston stadium on fire.

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Woakes and Plunkett helped England tie the game © Getty Images

The first contest of the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series between England and Sri Lanka was a spectacular cliffhanger, resulting in no one’s favour. In the pursuit of 287 runs, the hosts lost 6 wickets for 82 runs. However, the record 138-run stand between Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes for the seventh wicket turned the tide towards England. With 7 needed from the last ball, tail-ender Liam Plunkett bludgeoned a six down town to level the scores. The second match, which will be played at Birmingham, is expected to produce a high-scoring game. Let’s have a look at the key battles that will set the Edgbaston stadium on fire: FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: England vs Sri Lanka, 2nd ODI at Edgbaston

Dinesh Chandimal vs Moeen Ali: Before heading into this ongoing ODI series, Chandimal scored a stunning hundred against Ireland last week. Even in the first contest, he played a watchful 37-run innings despite losing early wickets. He struck three lovely boundaries before he was dismissed by the English all-rounder Moeen.

Chandimal is an exceptional player of spin, and Moeen has the knack of putting the opposition on the back foot by taking wickets at crucial junctures. Thus, the battle between these two players is likely to spark the middle overs.

Seekkuge Prasanna vs Liam Plunkett: It was Prasanna’s fiery 28-ball 59 that helped the islanders post a respectable total on the scoreboard. His staggering innings was studded with eight fours and four sixes. Had he continued the rampage, Sri Lanka might have even surpassed 300 runs. Plunkett, on the other hand, was as clinical with the ball as he was with the bat. He scalped two crucial wickets of Angelo Mathews and Upul Tharanga, but was hit for four consecutive boundaries by the rampant Prassana. On a batsman-friendly track, it will be interesting to see if Prasanna manages to dominate Plunkett yet again. Read – Sri Lanka’s likely XI

Jason Roy vs Suranga Lakmal: Roy’s blistering 78-run knock against New Zealand in the semi-final of ICC World T20 2016 took the cricketing world by storm. Though he was trapped in front on just 3 runs in the previous contest, a big score is due from him. Lakmal, who was taken to the cleaners, will play a key role in keeping Roy’s onslaught at bay in the mandatory powerplay.

Jos Buttler vs Nuwan Pradeep: Buttler was yet again in the forefront of a rescue mission, plundering 93 runs off just 99 balls. He displayed nerves of steel, anchored the innings along with Woakes and took England out of the woods. Hence, the onus of keeping the scoreboard ticking in the middle overs will be on him at Edgbaston. For that to happen, he’ll have to face Sri Lanka’s young gun Pradeep.

Pradeep dismissed English captain Eoin Morgan and brought Sri Lanka back in the game. In today’s contest as well, he’ll be expected to emulate the same and provide crucial breakthroughs. Read: England’s likely XI

Angelo Mathews vs Chris Woakes: It’s the battle of the all-rounders. While one has been bringing Sri Lanka to the brink of victories time and again, the other is still emerging at the international level.

While Mathews churned out 73 runs and bagged two vital wickets of Roy and Joe Root, Woakes smashed an unbeaten 92-ball 95 and took two wickets.

Such was the dominance of these two swashbuckling all-rounders in the last contest! Today’s contest promises to be a run fest, and these two will play a key role in their team’s success.

(Kaustubh S. Mayekar, a reporter at CricketCountry, played cricket at U-16 level. Like his idol Rahul Dravid, he often shadow-practises cricket shots. His Twitter handle is @kaumedy_)

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