Sri Lanka will follow Pakistan’s lead and confront England with spin when the two-Test series starts in the coastal town of Galle on Monday. England, the world’s number one Test side, crashed to an embarrassing 3-0 series whitewash to Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in January and February. Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal caused the maximum damage with 24 wickets, while left-arm slow bowler Abdur Rehman took 19 as England struggled on the slow wickets in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Mahela Jayawardene, returning as Sri Lanka’s captain in a Test match for the first time since 2009, hopes his spinners will also inflict damage on the tourists in helpful conditions. “We have an attack that can trouble the best on our wickets,” said Jayawardene, who replaced Tillakaratne Dilshan as skipper after the tour of South Africa earlier this year.
