India v Sri Lanka, Asia Cup final, Karachi

sriflipflop

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Form guide
(Last five completed ODIs; most recent first)
India WLWWW
Sri Lanka LWWWW

Sri Lanka haven't lost to India in the last six finals between the two teams - they've won four while two were rained out. The last time India won a final against them was ten years ago, in the Singer-Akai Nidahas Trophy.

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sriflipflop

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Watch out for

Sanath Jayasuriya
who loves the big occasion, and he loves batting against India. If he survives the early overs, the Indian bowlers could be in for more tough times.

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Gautam Gambhir
He has been consistency personified in ODIs this year, and his excellence against spin makes him a key batsman for India against an attack featuring Muralitharan and Mendis.

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The battle of the openers: Gambhir and Sehwag have added 319 runs for the first wicket in four innings at an average partnership of 79.75 and a rate of 8.14 runs per over; Jayasuriya and Sangakkara have averaged 88.75 per partnership at seven runs per over. The new-ball bowlers from both teams clearly have their work cut out.

Murali v Yuvraj: Yuvraj has often struggled against slow bowlers at the start of his innings, and if he bats at No. 5, there's a good chance that he'll be confronted by Murali as soon as he comes in.
 

sriflipflop

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Team news
Sri Lanka had rested Chaminda Vaas and Ajantha Mendis for their last round-robin match, against India, but both are certain to return for the final. Two out of Kaushalya Weeraratne, Thilan Thusahara and Dilhara Fernando will sit out. None of them has had tournaments to remember so far, but Fernando's experience might help him retain his place.

Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 3 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 4 Chamara Kapugedera, 5 Chamara Silva, 6 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 7 Chaminda Vaas, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Ajantha Mendis, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Dilhara Fernando.

India's batting has been spectacular throughout the tournament, but the bowling is a worry. The biggest concern has been Irfan Pathan, who, after missing the first three games due to a side strain, has leaked 148 runs in 20 overs for just a solitary wicket. His place could be taken by Yusuf Pathan. Pragyan Ojha will keep his place after two tidy performances, which means Piyush Chawla misses out.

India (probable) 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt & wk), 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 Rohit Sharma, 7 Yusuf Pathan, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Pragyan Ojhan, 10 RP Singh, 11 Ishant Sharma.

Umpires Simon Taufel & Tony Hill. Third umpire Zameer Haider
 

sriflipflop

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Mendis takes centrestage in final

Ajantha Mendis is a major part of that gameplan, not just due to his unique bowling style, but also because he seems to have taken the focus off the other Sri Lankan bowlers, two of whom -Vaas and Murali - are among the best in subcontinent conditions. "It's good that everyone is talking about Ajantha, so other bowlers can chip in unannounced and take three or four wickets," Jayawardene said.
 

sriflipflop

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India won the toss and elected to field first

India team
V Sehwag, G Gambhir, SK Raina, RG Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, captainwicketkeeperMS Dhoni, RV Uthappa, IK Pathan, PP Ojha, RP Singh, I Sharma

Sri Lanka team
ST Jayasuriya, wicketkeeperKC Sangakkara, captainDPMD Jayawardene, CK Kapugedera, LPC Silva, TM Dilshan, T Thushara, KMDN Kulasekara, WPUJC Vaas, BAW Mendis, M Muralitharan
 

sriflipflop

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Pitch Batting wicket, say the experts. If any thing, Rameez Raja believes, it's not as bone dry as some of the other tracks. Marvan Atapattu reckons he would bat first: "It's the final and the wickets have tend to get slower." Ian Chappell too agrees with that sentiment. "India should go with two front line spinners - Ojha and Piyush."


Toss Dhoni calls heads correctly and he will bowl. "We want to put pressure of setting a target on Sri Lanka. I don't think any team is sure of what target to set. Our strength is batting.

Mahela: "We wanted to bat on this pitch and let our slow bowlers get into them later. We got back Vaas and Mendis. The rest stay the same. We just want to enjoy the final."
 

thm14

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Interpol HQ | Lyon, France
DAMN IT SANGA....


I Sharma to Jayasuriya, OUT, Suresh Raina has run out Sangakkara. It was pushed towards short mid-off region and Sangakkara set off for the run. Jayasuriya stays rooted at his position and yells at him to get back. Too late. Sanga is already half-way down and Raina swooped on the ball and under-armed a direct hit.
KC Sangakkara run out 4 (3b 1x4 0x6) SR: 133.33