Pakistan vs Sri Lanka – 1st Test Match Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Pakistan vs Sri Lanka taking place? Wednesday, December 11th (5am UK time)
Where is Pakistan vs Sri Lanka taking place? Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium
What is the expected weather for Pakistan vs Sri Lanka? 20-24c with cloudy spells and some rain forecast over the five days that may disrupt play
What channel is Pakistan vs Sri Lanka on? Pakistan vs Sri Lanka will be televised live in the UK on SONY MAX HD (Sky channel 715)
Where can I stream Pakistan vs Sri Lanka? Pakistan vs Sri Lanka will not be streamed live in the
Where can I get tickets for Pakistan vs Sri Lanka? Tickets can be purchased for this match here!
LAST MEETING
Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by 68 runs
THE TEAM NEWS
PAKISTAN
- After more than 10 years without a Test match played in Pakistan due to security concerns, there is huge anticipation as Sri Lanka arrive in Rawalpindi to play the opening Test match and the hosts will be raring to go in front of what should be a sellout crowd.
- Pakistan come straight into this two-Test series that will count towards the inaugural ICC Test Championship following a difficult tour of Australia where they were completely outplayed so they will have to pick themselves off and recover some confidence and form.
- They have handed recalls to veteran Fawad Alam and Usman Shinwari as Misbah-ul-Haq is going with a more experienced look to the team after his decision to field several youngsters in Australia backfired as they look to bounce back in this historic Test.
SRI LANKA
- After plenty of talk surrounding this tour, Sri Lanka arrived in Pakistan on Monday with the status and protection of State Guests as this is the first Test match in Pakistan since the Sri Lankan team were involved in a terror attack back in 2009 in Lahore.
- Mickey Arthur has been named as the new Head Coach of the Sri Lanka team but he will not be in Pakistan for this series, although the new coach will be keenly watching what is virtually a full strength Sri Lankan team as the likes of Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal have agreed to travel after as many as ten players refused to play in the ODI/T20 series a couple of months ago.
- They will have to do without veteran Suranga Lakmal who is suffering from a virus so talented fast bowler Lahiru Kumara is expected to start here in a team that has plenty of confidence right now having won three of their last four Test matches in 2019 against South Africa and New Zealand.
THE PREDICTION
This Test series has attracted plenty of focus given it will be the first to have been played in Pakistan for more than 10 years. The pressure will be firmly on the hosts in front of big crowds and that does not bode well given their recent struggles in all formats of the game. Sri Lanka on the other hand have been in turmoil in recent times off the field but they are actually playing some good cricket on it. They beat South Africa 2-0 as tourists and then drew with New Zealand at home in August, so they have some good results against decent Test teams. They will not be phased by this trip to Pakistan although this opening Test could very well come down to which team is focused more on the game. The hosts will have to adapt back to local conditions quickly after the dismal tour of Australia but they should be able to do that and get a historic victory in Rawalpindi.
