The R. Premadasa Stadium has been a panacea for the overdosing-on-runs high that ODI cricket has found itself in, particularly in the women’s game, in recent times. Even technically adept sides like Australia and India have found the going tough, with intermittent wet weather softening a surface that already tends to play low and slow.
England, with two wins in two games in the tournament, will not take co-host Sri Lanka lightly despite all its coherence problems, as the sides clash in a Women’s ODI World Cup league fixture here on Saturday.
In 20 meetings in the format, two matches didn’t yield a result, and Sri Lanka stunned England only once, in the 2013 World Cup in India – a one-wicket triumph that Chamari Athapaththu’s side will do well to revisit in a tournament packed with comebacks.
ALSO READ | Unexpected contract to World Cup dreams: Bree Illing’s whirlwind rise
England opener Tammy Beaumont was candid about the dearth of left-handers in the batting order, with only Linsey Smith representing the southpaws and therefore being given extra help with technique in the nets. But what England will be wary about is Sri Lanka’s left-arm bowlers, who have a dangerous ability to drop pace on the ball, making life on surfaces like this even harder. In the nets, the side trained with boys from the junior categories, to simulate the action and pace of some of Sri Lanka’s mainstays.
With its ‘home’ World Cup fixture against Australia washed out a few days ago, Sri Lanka will be raring to go as it seeks its first win in the tournament.
The side had an extended fielding session, working on high catches against the floodlights and their reaction times inside the circle. Coach Rumesh Ratnayake revealed ahead of the fixture that there is a palpable excitement among the team. A short spell spent cuddling the resident dogs at the venue ahead of their training block was a visible blessing in disguise.
Published on Oct 10, 2025
