England bounced back from a disappointing series opener against Sri Lanka with a relatively comfortable five-wicket win in the second ODI. It was of little surprise to see one of England’s greatest ever batsmen, Joe Root, make a measured 75 to cruise past the hosts' modest 219 on a tricky pitch in Colombo.
A change of approach helped, with England bowling a total of 40.3 overs of spin, the most by an England attack in an ODI. The spinners cleaned up seven Sri Lankan wickets, spearheaded by the brilliant Adil Rashid, whose masterful control of the white ball returned two wickets for just 34 runs from his 10 overs.
With the third ODI set to start on Tuesday, 27 January, we’ve looked ahead to see where the value lies in the early betting markets.
Sri Lanka vs England Bet Builder Tips
There are two reasons that we’re using bet365 for our Sri Lanka vs England bet builder. One, they offer an odds boost of 25% for the game, and two, you can stream the full match for free if you place a bet on the game. This is why we’ve rated them as one of the best online betting sites.
| Market | Bet | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Total Match Sixes | Under 9.5 | 10/11 |
| Match Result | England | 8/13 |
| Top Runscorer | Joe Root | 5/1 |
| Total Odds | 18/1 (Includes 25% bet boost) |
*Odds correct at 11:30 GMT on 26/01/2025. Odds subject to change.
No Expiry Date
Bet 1: Total Match Sixes – Under 9.5
England’s Harry Brook and Joe Root have made no bones about how they feel about the tracks in Colombo, with Brook citing the one used in the second ODI as “probably the worst” pitch he’s played on.
It’s made six hitting very tricky, with eight scored in the first ODI and just three in the second. Given we’re at the same venue and the likelihood that the track won’t get any easier after a three-day turnaround, getting 10/11 for under 9.5 sixes looks a no-brainer.
Bet 2: Match Result – England
The decision to pick six spinners last time out proved successful. It’s the most that have bowled for England in an ODI, and they were able to suffocate the Sri Lankan middle order, which was impressive to watch, given they’d had almost the exact same tactics executed on them in the first ODI.
Momentum feels like it’s swung in England’s favour, and moving Rehan Ahmed to open the batting in place of Zak Crawley, not only allowed England to cram even more depth to their spin attack, but also freshened up the top order that’s struggled for the last 12+ months.
Even though England players have been vocal about their concerns about the track, some will be hoping things remain as is for this ODI, given how quickly they worked out not only how to bowl but also how to chase with the bat.
Bet 3: Joe Root Top Match Runscorer
Joe Root continues to flourish in Sri Lanka. Scores of 61 and 75 in this series make him the only batter to make back-to-back 50s, and he’s the series top scorer across the board as a result.
Harry Brook pointed out just how good Root is at playing spin, and while others struggle in conditions foreign to a lot of the England batting lineup, Root seems to flourish. His average of 64.9 in ODIs in Sri Lanka is the highest of all-time (min 500 runs) by opposition batsmen, with the vast majority of these runs coming against some of the best spinners in the world on tracks that have the highest average degrees of spin.
He's a massive 5/1 to see out the series in style and be top runscorer, which is a price that we just can’t ignore.
