Here are four cricket betting tips that Guy Giles thinks you should consider for the first Test between Sri Lanka and England at the Galle International Cricket Stadium, starting on Thursday.
England to win
England come into this series undercooked, having last played a Test in August and hosting just one intra-squad warm-up match, but they hold a distinct edge over Sri Lanka in recent years.
They are unbeaten in six Tests against their hosts – including a 3-0 whitewash in Sri Lanka in 2018 – and last lost to the Lions in 2014.
Any player to score a century in the first innings
There has been at least one first-innings ton in eight of the last 10 Test matches at the Galle International Cricket Stadium.
Ben Foakes did so for England on their last visit to the ground, while a Sri Lanka player has reached a century in five of those eight contests.
Joe Root to score over 33.5 runs in the first innings
Root looked in lovely touch during England’s intra-squad warm-up, ending his innings unbeaten on 74.
He has passed this mark in two of his three previous first-innings efforts in Sri Lanka.
Lasith Embuldeniya to be Sri Lanka top bowler in the first innings
Embuldeniya will be one of Sri Lanka’s primary threats with the ball during this series, with his left-arm off-spinners set to test a right-hand-heavy England lineup on a spinning pitch at Galle.
He has taken at least four first-innings wickets in his last three Tests, so looks worth backing in this market.
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