West Indies are led by Kieron Pollard in a side that also includes recent T20I captained Jason Holder
Toss Sri Lanka opt to bat against West Indies
On an overcast morning with some rain in the air, Sri Lanka have won the toss and decided to bat first. In the first of three ODIs, the visiting captain Dimuth Karunaratne said his side was “confident”. Sri Lanka go in with two fast bowlers in Nuwan Pradeep and Dushmantha Chameera, with Karunaratne opening with Danushka Gunathilaka.
West Indies will be led by Kieron Pollard in a side that also includes recent T20I captained Jason Holder and Jason Mohammed, who led the side in the recent Test series against Bangladesh. Wicketkeeper Shai Hope opens the batting with Evin Lewis, while slow left-arm bowler Akeal Hosein keeps his place from that Bangladesh tour.
“This longer format gives you the opportunity to bat a bit longer and see what the opposition spin bowlers are doing rather than being a bit rushed,” Pollard said at the toss. “I’m the oldest guy in the team now. Shai has been brilliant in the last couple of years and hopefully Darren Bravo can get among the runs.”
Sri Lanka: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Danushka Gunathilaka, 3 Pathum Nissanka, 4 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Ashen Bandara, 7 Kamindu Mendis, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Lakshan Sandakan 11 Nuwan Pradeep
West Indies: 1 Shai Hope (wk), 2 Evin Lewis, 3 Jason Mohammed, 4 Darren Bravo, 5 Nicholas Pooran, 6 Kieron Pollard (capt), 7 Jason Holder, 8 Fabian Allen 9 Romario Shepherd 10 Alzarri Joseph 11 Akeal Hosein
Danyal Rasool is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @Danny61000