Pakistan v Sri Lanka Test Series ..... The Show Is Back On The Roads

Starts 21st February, Karachi 05.00 GMT

Weather

After nearly sixteen months in the wilderness, Test cricket finally returns to Pakistan with this two match series that starts on Saturday. The games are to be held at Karachi and Lahore, grounds which are generally batsmen’s paradises. In fact not just roads, but the M25, M6 and M1 rolled together!

This series is also a tale of two captains.

Mahela Jayawardene has announced that he will step down as the Sri Lankan captain after these two Tests. He has been one of the best modern day captains and oversaw Sri Lanka’s continued their success following on from the good work by his predecessor and mentor Arjuna Ranatunga. He has always carried himself with dignity and became one of the most respected figures in world cricket. He will be a hard act to follow indeed.

Younis Khan is the new captain of Pakistan. He has taken over from Shoaib Malik after a string of disappointing results, culminating in the recent loss to Sri Lanka in the ODI series. Younis Khan has turned down the role in the past but feels this is the right time for him. He is a much-respected figure in the dressing room and I believe his appointment could be the start of better things to come for Pakistan.

So how will this series pan out?

Will it be a dream start for Younis Khan, or a dream ending for Jayawardene?

As I said earlier, the pitches at Karachi and Lahore will suit the batsmen of both teams. I expect high scoring affairs and the draw to come into the picture most of the time. The batting of both sides is strong, but there has been a tendency recently for Sri Lanka to rely heavily of their two big guns Sangakarra and Jayawardene. Pakistan slightly edge the batting department as they have a stronger middle and late order, especially with Akmal batting at no7.

The major difference between the teams, and key to a result in these games could be the experience of bowling on these tracks.

Karachi has a close proximity to the sea and usually offers swing assistance to the bowlers in the first couple of hours of play. It becomes hard slog for the bowlers in the afternoon however and it’s important to have a decent spinning option to follow the seamers.

I believe Pakistan have the edge in the seam bowling department with Umar Gul a potential match winner, especially in those early morning conditions. Up till recently I would have given the edge in the spinning stakes to Sri Lanka with the Murali/Mendis partnership. However, after an amazing start in international cricket, Mendis seems to have gone off the boil in recent matches and both India and Pakistan seemed to have got his measure in recent ODI series.

I believe a more potent threat in this series will be Pakistan’s Danish Kaneria. He has a great record on home pitches and along with the aforementioned Umar Gul gives Pakistan the balance in the bowling attack that is needed to win on placid pitches.

So what’s the bet?

Two high scoring bore draws cannot be ruled out and it would be prudent to keep the 0-0 series score onside as a cover bet,  however I believe there will be a result in at least one of the games and that result is likely to be a Pakistan win. I suggest a wager in both the Series Outright and Series Correct Score Markets and so my bets for this series are:

In the Series Outright Market:

BACK Pakistan to win for 3 Points @ 2.75 at Bet365

In the Series Correct Score Market:

BACK Pakistan to win 1-0 for 1 Point @ 3.75 at Bet365
BACK Pakistan to win 2-0 for 1 point @ 10.0 at Bet365
BACK 0-0 Drawn series for 1 point @ 5.0 at Bet365 or Ladbrokes

Join me and hopefully we can all celebrate a profitable journey on the roads for Pakistan.

Bigjoe