Sri Lanka v England 4th ODI: Morgan to inspire tourists to win
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England managed to gain a vital foothold in the one-day series with Sri Lanka by pegging the hosts back to 2-1 in Hambantota and heading to Colombo under the captaincy of Eoin Morgan they can build on that success.
With regular skipper Alastair Cook banned for the fourth ODI thanks to England’s snail-paced over rate during their victory in the third ODI, we’re expecting Morgan to relish the responsibility in his absence.
Here are three wagers for the latest instalment of this now finely-balanced seven-game series.
England to win @ 11/8
There was plenty of encouraging performances with bat and ball in Hambantota to suggest the tourists really can make a fist of winning this series and Cook’s enforced absence only looks more likely to help than hinder here.
Alex Hales’ likely bump up the order to replace Cook should play into the Nottinghamshire man’s hands, while Jos Buttler’s quick-fire 55 down at number seven, to back up Moeen Ali’s and Joe Root’s impressive knocks last time, showed the depth of this batting line up.
There was also much to admire about the balling attack led by Chris Woakes, well supplemented by the extra bounce of Chris Jordan and some decent control from Moeen’s spin.
Top England runscorer: Eoin Morgan @ 6/1
The Dublin-born left-hander’s travails with the bat in 2014 have been extremely well documented but there is no doubting Morgan is a hugely talented batsman in the 50-over format.
Interestingly, rather than captaincy bringing unwanted pressure Morgan has actually appeared to welcome the distraction in the past, where he averages 73.00 from seven previous matches calling the shots.
He is certainly due a match-winning knock so this may just be his time to turn the tide.
Top England wicket taker: Chris Woakes at 7/2
The 25-year-old Warwickshire all-rounder is coming of age on the sub continent, where his three-wicket haul in Hambantota went a long way to securing victory for his country.
Woakes has now picked up three more Sri Lankan scalps than any other bowler on this tour and there is no reason he can’t continue in that vein in Colombo.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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