 India and Sri Lanka will face each other in the finals of the ICC Cricket World
Cup 2011 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday. This is the
first time that two Asian teams will be meeting in a World Cup final.
Both the teams started the tournament as one of the favorites to win the coveted
trophy and both have had their ups and downs in the league stage. While Sri
Lanka lost to Pakistan, India tied their match against England but lost
to South Africa that created doubts on their ability to make it to the semi-finals.
However, both the teams answered their critics in style. Sri Lanka handed a
humiliating defeat to England and then overcame a stiffer challenge from New
Zealand in the semifinals to make it to the finals for the second consecutive
time.
Click for Live Score Card of India Vs Sri Lanka
Come Saturday, it will be a new day and a new challenge for these two teams.
India lost in the semi-finals of the 1987 and 1996 editions and now that they
have cleared this hurdle, they are well in chance of bringing the World Cup
back home after 28 years. Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag have been providing
great starts that have provided the cushion against mini middle order collapses.
Tendulkar, with 464 runs, is the second most run getter in the tournament while
Sehwag is yet fire after his epic 175-runs against Bangladesh. Yuvraj Singh
was unlucky to have missed out against Pakistan but it is to noted that he has
bagged four man-of-the-match awards in the tournament for his all-round efforts.
The Indian bowling, as always in the recent past, has revolved around the experience
of Zaheer Khan. Zaheer Khan has been providing the required breakthroughs
at the beginning of the innings and has been unplayable in the middle and slog
overs with his reverse swing bowling. Harbhajan Singh has been decent with his
off spinners.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, never had to really sweat for a win throughout
the tournament. Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga, much like their Indian
counterparts, have been the batting mainstay for their team. Dilshan has 467
runs against his name and is the leading run-scorer in the tournament. The form
and experience of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene will be crucial in
deciding the Sri Lankan fortunes on Saturday.
Muttiah Muralitharan will be playing his final ODI and a victory here would
be a befitting send off to a person who has served the game of cricket with
immense dedication. Lasith Malinga, with his slingers, would be crucial
against the long Indian batting line-up. Sri Lanka might think of replacing
Rangana Herath and bring Nuwan Kulasekara in.
|
