South Africa vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has arrived in South Africa for a two-match Test Series and, make no mistake, the Lions face a mountainous challenge.
The series gets underway at Kingsmead in Durban on Wednesday, and to most SBOBET cricket fans, the 1st Test South Africa vs Sri Lanka looks like a hugely one-sided affair. Only India is higher than South Africa in the ICC Test Rankings and the Proteas are in fine form, but the Sri Lankans have suffered a dreadful year in the long game and desperately need to find their roar.
Talking Points
South African pacemen are a formidable force
The Proteas have recently battered Pakistan 3-0 in a Test Series, winning each match at a canter and showing no mercy. Skipper Faf du Plessis leads a side full of batting talent including the experienced Hashim Amla, Dean Elgar and Quinton de Kock.
But it’s the bowling line-up which will be licking its lips as an inexperienced Sri Lankan batting line-up comes to town. Quickie Duanne Olivier was the most successful bowler against Pakistan and he has muscled himself into a pace attack already feared throughout the world. The raw speed of fast bowling legend Dale Steyn, the explosive aggression of Kagiso Rabada and the clever swing and seam of Vernon Philander are enough to send a shiver down the spine of any batting line-up.
Sri Lanka selectors have wielded the axe
The visitors have a rich tradition in the one day game, putting England to the sword in the final ODI in autumn, though they did lose that series to the World Cup favourites. But their form in the five day game has been wretched over the last year and skipper Dinesh Chandimal has suffered the consequences, being axed as captain and dropped from this tour; and that’s big South Africa vs Sri Lanka news coming from the visitors’ camp.
Sri Lanka is ranked sixth by the ICC, as a test nation, and under Chandimal they lost a recent series in Australia, by and innings in the First Test and a 366 run drubbing in the Second Test in Canberra. That followed a 3-0 Test Series defeat to England and a 1-0 reversal to New Zealand.
Former skipper Angelo Mathews is injured, so the Lions’ selectors have named opener Dimuth Karunaratne as stand-in captain, and he will hope attacking left-hander Niroshan Dickwella can help him to lead a counterattack against the powerful Proteas.
History
While the hosts are overwhelming favourites to win this series they certainly haven’t had it all their own way in meetings with the Lions in recent years. In the 22 matches played in all formats since 2015 South Africa has won 14 to Sri Lanka’s eight.
So is there anything to persuade us, in our South Africa vs Sri Lanka betting tips,
that the Lions can possibly spring a major surprise? Well, South Africa was humbled by Sri Lanka in a series last year, losing two Tests by big margins.
And the Proteas have a terrible record in Test matches at Kingsmead, winning one, drawing one and losing six of their last eight five day games in Durban. They were thumped by Australia at this venue last year, and on Sri Lanka’s tour of South Africa back in 2011, the visitors took the spoils with a big 208 run victory.
So history is fairly kind to the Lions.
Betting Tip
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South Africa vs Sri Lanka | Sri Lanka 1X2 10.40 |
| February 13, 16:00 (GMT+8) |
But we are living in the present and the hosts are at odds of 1.14 to win the game, with the draw at 6.00. Conventional wisdom tells us that the South African attack will have far too much for such an inexperienced and out of touch opposition.
Hang on though. We cricket fans and pundits thought England would triumph in the current Test series in the West Indies but they were blown away in the first two matches, before making a game of the current Third Test. The Windies were widely written off but have played with passion and no little skill. The Lions can take hope from that.
Shocks happen all the time, who will ever forget Leicester City’s 5001.00 Premier league triumph? We’re not looking for that kind of uproar…this is 11 against 11 over five days.
So, I don’t see much value in South Africa’s odds with a £5 bet, and I’m going with heart over head!
| A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR () BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
 = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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