Sri Lanka opt to bowl first against England in opening T20I

Sri Lanka have opted to bowl first after captain Charith Asalanka won the toss in the opening T20I against England at the Utilita Bowl.

Asalanka chose to back his bowlers against a strong England batting line-up, with the pitch appearing dry ahead of the match.

England captain Harry Brook was not concerned about being asked to bat first, saying he expected the surface to offer some assistance to the bowlers later in the evening.

The match marks the international debut of Aneurin Donald, who becomes the first Glamorgan player to represent England since Simon Jones in 2005. At 29, Donald is also England's oldest T20I batting debutant since Dawid Malan in 2017.

Jordan Cox and Josh Tongue also return to the England T20I side following the Test series against Pakistan. Tongue will be replaced by Jofra Archer for the second T20I on Thursday.

Sri Lanka have left out ambidextrous spinner Tharindu Ratnayake, despite his impressive performances in the recent warm-up matches. They have nevertheless selected three specialist spinners for the opening game.

England have won their last 12 T20Is against Sri Lanka and will be looking to extend that dominant record.

England XI

Aneurin Donald, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (capt), Tom Banton, Jordan Cox, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Josh Tongue, Sonny Baker, Adil Rashid.

Sri Lanka XI

Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara (wk), Kamindu Mendis, Charith Asalanka (capt), Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Danish Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga.