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Sri Lanka vs England 2nd ODI Predictions - Duckett to drive England level in the series

Simon Lewis

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Last updated: 23 Jan 2026

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Simon Lewis 23 Jan 2026

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Ben Duckett scored 62 off 76 balls in the 1st ODI against Sri Lanka.
Kusal Mendis hit 11 boundaries in his 117-ball 93* against England.
Can England end their four-match losing streak by squaring the series?

Expired

Ben Duckett sweeps against Sri Lanka (Getty Images).

Sri Lanka vs England Predictions

Sri Lanka pulled the rug from under England with a dazzling display of spin bowling, along with a strong batting performance from a top-order that has been under-performing. I’m backing England’s star-studded line-up to bounce back with a winning performance in what is likely to be a tough match-up.

Sri Lanka vs England Predictions
Head-to-Head
Sri Lanka Form
England Form
Sri Lanka vs England Team News

England’s Ben Duckett has scored three ODI centuries in 32 innings (ave 41.90).
England’s Joe Root scored 61 off 90 balls in the 1st ODI.
Sri Lanka’s Kusal Mendis has scored 23, 30 & 9* in his last 4 innings.
Sri Lanka’s Janith Liyanage hit two sixes in his 53-ball 46 against England.

Head-to-Head

England have won two and lost two of their last five ODIs against Sri Lanka. One match was rained-out.

Sri Lanka Form

Sri Lanka bounced back from a 3-0 series defeat to Pakistan to beat England by 19 runs in the 1st ODI of their series.

Kusal Mendis scored a brilliant 93* off 117 balls with 11 fours. He was well supported by Janith Liyange (46 off 53 balls). Pramod Madushan was Sri Lanka’s star with the ball in defending their target, taking 3/39 at 7.31 runs per over.

Madushan had incredible backup from the rest of the attack who kept a tight line, with Dhananjaya de Silva (econ 2.75), Dunith Wellalage (econ 4.10), Charith Asalanka (econ 4.71) and Jeffrey Vandersay (2/39, econ 3.90) all bowling superbly to contain England’s top-order.

England Form

England slipped to a fourth ODI defeat on the bounce when they failed to chase down Sri Lanka’s 271/6 in the 1st ODI.

Adil Rashid (3/44, econ 4.40) knocked over half of Sri Lanka’s top-order, conceding just five boundaries in his 10 overs. Sam Curran (econ 5.00) kept a tight line, but Liam Dawson was one of the stars of the innings, picking-up 1/31 off his 10 overs (econ 3.10).

Ben Duckett (62 off 76) and Joe Root (61 off 90) put England on track for victory with a second-wicket stand of 117 before England lost five wickets for 36 runs. Rehan Ahmed (27 off 21) and Jamie Overton (34 off 17) kept their side in the hunt but couldn’t prevent their side from losing by 19 runs.

Sri Lanka vs England Team News

Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka was delighted to start the series with a win: "It was a good win but there are a few areas we need to improve. We knew that in the first 25 overs it wasn’t going to spin, then suddenly it started to spin around the 30th over," said Asalanka.

England captain Harry Brook commented that the toss had been a crucial factor in the match. "The toss was very crucial, but Sri Lanka played a good game and deserved the victory. They got hold of us in the last over and that's part of one-day cricket. They're a good side, got some good spinners that made us miss the ball. They challenged us in lots of departments," said Brook.

Sri Lanka (possible XI): Nissanka, Mishara, Mendis, De Silva, Asalanka (c), Liyanage, Wellalage, Hasuranga, Fernando, Madushan, Malinga.

England (possible XI): Crawley, Duckett, Root, Bethell, Brook (c), Buttler, Jacks, Curran, Overton, Dawson, Rashid.

Verdict

Sri Lanka v England

I am backing England to win, with Ben Duckett to top score.

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