INDIA vs SRILANKA (FINAL MATCH)
Tri-series final, Dhaka
(Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan check out the pitch, Dhaka, January 3,
2010
Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan are the key men in Sri Lanka's attempt to win some silverware)
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With all due to respect to Bangladesh, the teams with the more commanding records were always expected to meet in the final. After going at each other for the past two months, Sri Lanka and India clash at the Shere Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, and if recent encounters are any clue, India are the favourites.
That's not a tag they have ever been comfortable with. Finals of multi-team tournaments have long been India's dreaded bogie, but against Sri Lanka there will at least be the comfort of familiarity - they have played each other 22 times in the last 19 months, with India winning 13 and losing seven times.
Since MS Dhoni took over the leadership India have reached four finals and won two. Those two losses, against Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the summer of 2008, left a sour taste and India will be keen to impose their strength.
Yuvraj Singh picks up some batting tips from Gary Kirsten on the eve of the Tri-series final against Sri Lanka in Dhaka ©
Inaccurate bowling at the start and during the death overs hampered both India and Sri Lanka in the limited-overs series before the New Year. India's fast bowlers were lukewarm in their first two games of this series, failing to defend a total of 279 against Sri Lanka and allowing Bangladesh to post 296 after that. The rookie Sudeep Tyagi has impressed in two games but is not a certainty for the final, Sreesanth has been wayward and expensive, and most of the responsibility has been shouldered by Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra. Both have had more off days than good ones.
13 Jan 2010
India vs Sri Lanka
Final Match, Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur (D/N)
Live action starts from: 08:00 GMT (13:30 IST)
