Tri-Series: India face familiar foes Sri Lanka in do-or-die clash
The Indians, who rediscovered their spark courtesy the crushing victory over the West Indies, will seek to keep the momentum going in the crucial game against the Lankans, who will be equally determined to secure a berth in the final.
- Press Trust of India
- Updated: July 09, 2013 12:53 PM IST
India will have to play to their full potential when they meet Sri Lanka in their last league match here on Tuesday to keep alive their hopes of making it to the final of the tri-nation ODI series.
The Indians, who rediscovered their spark courtesy the crushing victory over the West Indies, will seek to keep the momentum going in the crucial game against the Lankans, who will be equally determined to secure a berth in the final.
It is a must-win situation for the Indians but they may have a slight edge over Sri Lanka as the islanders would not get any rest due to the rain-forced postponement of their game against the West Indies to be completed today.
On the flip side, the Indians will have to wait until at least till Tuesday morning to know the mathematical calculations with regards to the finals berth given that all three teams are in with a chance.
The West Indies-Sri Lanka match, which was into its 20th over, had to be postponed to the reserve day today after rain halted play.
The Indians have no option but to wait for the result of this game to know exactly what they need to do to enter the final.
After losing two of the three matches they have played so far, Virat Kohli's men would need to be clear about the maths during the final league clash against the familiar foes.
The last time India and Sri Lanka came face to face, the islanders sailed past their neighbours with enormous ease.
But the fatigue factor, which incidentally is also setting in on the clashes between the two South Asian rivals due to the sheer frequency, could prove to be Sri Lanka's undoing tomorrow.
The Indians would come into match quite fresh and on a high after beating the West Indies in their previous game, a win that kept them in the hunt for a final berth.
Kohli provided the spark, after twin debacles in the first leg, with an inspiring hundred that was also his first as captain.
The openers -- Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan -- also notched up well-timed knocks as the famed Indian line-up got its act together after a couple of botched up outings.
But the Lankan line-up is no less stronger with old warhorses -- Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara -- being the key batsmen.
The two teams are evenly-matched on the bowling front as well even though the Lankans successfully stifled India in their previous game.
While the Indians would be hoping that the likes of Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma bowl a disciplined line, the islanders would expect consistency from the well-performing duo of skipper Angelo Mathews and Nuwan Kulasekara.
Teams (from):
India: Virat Kohli (capt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Suresh Raina, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay, Vinay Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ambati Rayudu.
Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (C), Kusal Perera, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, Lahiru Thirimanne, Mahela Jayawardene, Jeevan Mendis, Ajantha Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lasith Malinga, Sachithra Senanayake, Rangana Herath, Dilhara Lokuhettige and Shaminda Eranga.
Match starts at 7 pm (IST).