Cricket opinion: Five players to look out for in England’s ODI series against Sri Lanka
With the 2025/26 Ashes series wrapped up, England’s attention has turned to the upcoming T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
Ahead of the competition, the white-ball side led by Harry Brook will play three ODIs and three T20s against Sri Lanka, so which players are eyeing up a big tour?
Here, Sports News Blitz’s Jacob Howson looks at five potential key performers for England against Sri Lanka.
Harry Brook (Yorkshire)
After a disappointing Ashes tour, which ended in reports that he had been involved in a nightclub altercation ahead of an ODI in New Zealand, Harry Brook will be looking to prove his critics wrong by having a good series and subsequently leading the side he captains to a T20 World Cup win.
The Yorkshire batter has a decent record in one-day international matches, having scored 1170 runs at an average of 36, with two hundreds on the way after 35 innings.
Brook has scored 1012 runs from 44 innings in T20I matches at an average of 30, with a strike-rate of 151, proving he is a player who can change the outlook of games very quickly, but his style also comes with high risk.
Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire)
Jacob Bethell has emerged this winter as England’s next breakthrough sensation after impressing with an important second innings of 40 and a mature-looking hundred towards the back end of the Ashes series.
The 22-year-old has also proved to be a real threat across all formats in his short career so far, with one hundred and four fifties in his 16 ODI innings, as well as 392 runs and two fifties in T20Is.
Bethell also spent time in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru IPL squad, which went on to win the most recent edition of the coveted tournament, adding some more T20 experience for the young player.
READ MORE: Cricket news: Time for change? Evaluating Brendon McCullum as England head coach
Rehan Ahmed (Leicestershire)
Rehan Ahmed is a young bowling-all-rounder who will be looking to force his way into the squad for the T20 World Cup, but he will need to impress hugely to make that happen.
The 21-year-old has taken 10 wickets from five bowling innings in ODIs, with best bowling figures of 4-54 against Ireland, and has also taken 13 wickets in T20Is from 11 bowling innings.
The tour of Sri Lanka will be a good chance for Ahmed to showcase his skills, but it is probably too early for him to play in the World Cup, however the experience gained around the squad will be priceless.
Jos Buttler (Lancashire)
Jos Buttler will be heading into the series and World Cup as one of the elder statesmen in this England squad, and he will have the peace of mind to focus on his own cricket this time around after losing his captaincy last summer.
The Lancashire player brings immense white-ball experience to the team, with over 5000 runs in ODIs at an average of 39, as well as 11 hundreds and 29 fifties.
Buttler also has 3869 runs at an average of 35 from 132 T20I innings, and has recently featured in Durban’s Super Giants side in South Africa’s T20 competition, so he is well-prepared for the upcoming tournament.
Sam Curran (Surrey)
Sam Curran has become one of the best white-ball cricketers in the world with both ball and bat in recent years, and his role in the England squad will be pivotal to their chances of going all the way in the World Cup.
With a deadly signature slower ball, the 27-year-old all-rounder can fool the world’s best batters and provides fantastic death-bowling qualities.
Curran has taken 57 wickets in his T20I career and is a handy option with the bat lower down the order, with 450 runs from 38 innings in T20Is.
READ NEXT: Cricket news: Where does Jacob Bethell’s Ashes ton rank among his best moments as a pro?
