The return of the India v Sri Lanka showdown
Match facts
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Start time 1330 local (0800 GMT)
Big Picture
The only thing more clichéd than India v Sri Lanka matches now, are jokes about how clichéd India v Sri Lanka matches are. There was a time when incessant reciprocal tours between these teams had begun to grate, but lately, Pakistan has played more against Sri Lanka, and the six most recent India v Sri Lanka ties came at multi-team tournaments.
It is not quite a storied rivalry, but interesting sub-plots have brewed in recent years. MS Dhoni hit that six off Nuwan Kulasekara to claim the World Cup in 2011, and this year, Thisara Perera got a little revenge for Sri Lanka, when he clobbered R Ashwin over the straight boundary to seal the World T20 final. Virat Kohli rarely fails to dominate the Sri Lanka attack, but Thisara likes playing India almost as much, having first made his name against them. Angelo Mathews and Virat Kohli are the shiny young leaders in world cricket, and with both teams prime contenders for the World Cup next year, the series will see the sides size each other up, perhaps knowing they could be crossing swords in the knockouts in Australia or New Zealand.
But India v Sri Lanka matches could also quickly regain their reputation for monotony if Sri Lanka cannot de-rust quickly. India are fit and firing after their clinical victories against West Indies and England. The Sri Lanka team have had six weeks of fitness training on end, so they should all have six-pack abs, but as they have barely netted in the past two months, they may need reminding which lines on the pitch mean what, or where their feet should move when the bowler does that thing with his fingers and wrist that makes the ball bounce weirdly.
There is pressure on Sri Lanka's batting to come good in the series, in order to give the green attack a little breathing space. India's top four, meanwhile, will expect to take full toll of the opposition's inexperience. They have rattled plenty of better attacks in recent years.
Form guide
India: WWLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka:WWLLW
In the spotlight
Only 27, and on the cusp of the 200-ODI milestone, Suresh Raina has divided opinion in the past, but has continued to make brisk, meaty contributions from the middle order. He is going into his 200th ODI with some form. He hit 62 and 71 - both at better than a run-a-ball - against West Indies, and had hit a hundred against England in Cardiff. With MS Dhoni not playing in this series, Raina may have to pick up some slack when it comes time to finishing the innings.
There is perhaps no current cricketer who would hate skimping on preparation more than Kumar Sangakkara. Planning and practice are the cornerstones of his game, and when the sudden tour of India was announced, Sangakkara's displeasure at having so little time to gear up found voice on Twitter. He has been typically prolific this year, hitting 728 runs in 18 ODIs so far, but will his experience see him maintain that productivity? Or will his cricket be more sensitive to less-than-ideal preparation than some others'?
Teams news
Mohammed Shami's undisclosed injury will create an opening, and Amit Mishra, Akshar Patel, Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav are competing for the two places up for grabs. With two frontline spinners already in the XI, Umesh and Aaron may have the inside track. Wriddhiman Saha has recovered from a finger injury and is all set to take the gloves in Dhoni's stead.
India: 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Ambati Rayudu, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Ishant Sharma, 10 Umesh Yadav, 11 Varun Aaron
Sri Lanka have plenty of gaps to fill in the absence of their two best bowlers, and two batting spots still up for grabs. Upul Tharanga's 76 in the practice match will probably see him take guard opposite Tillakaratne Dilshan in Sunday's match, while Ashan Priyanjan is the most likely man to slot into the middle order. Suraj Randiv may play his first ODI in three years, but will probably have to keep seam bowler Lahiru Gamage out to do so. Niroshan Dickwella may play if Sangakkara's back complaint has not cleared up.
Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Upul Tharanga, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene 5 Ashan Priyanjan, 6 Angelo Mathews (capt), 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Seekkuge Prasanna, 9 Dhammika Prasad, 10 Nuwan Kulasekara, 11 Suraj Randiv/Lahiru Gamage
Pitch and conditions
The Barabati Stadium groundsman has promised a track full of runs - one on which he expects 280 to 300 to be a good score. Dew may form in the early evening, however, making bowling first the obvious choice for the captains, so long as the pitch looks like it will stay together.
Stats & trivia
- Sri Lanka have played eight bilateral ODI series in India with their best result being a 1-1 draw in 1997-98. India won the other seven
- India have never lost more than one match in a bilateral ODI series against Sri Lanka at home
- Suresh Raina's first match of the series will be his 200th ODI. He will become the 12th individual to play 200 ODIs for India. This does not include Zaheer Khan who has also played 200 ODIs, but only 194 for India and 6 for Asia XI. Overall, 66 players have already been part of 200 ODIs
- If Raina posts a 50+ score in his first ODI of the series, his 200th overall, he will have exactly eighteen 50+ scores in his first 100 ODIs and eighteen in his next hundred ODIs. If he goes on to score 111, his average in both sets of matches will also be exactly the same - 36.45
Quotes
"I always like being captain of the side. It gives me an opportunity to test myself in different aspects of the game. It's something that I enjoy, especially having a young side with not so much of experience is always an exciting thing."
Stand-in India captain Virat Kohli is looking forward to the assignment"We are giving opportunities to our bench strength, and [will try to] also see that we keep the winning momentum going. It's about balancing both the things."
Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews states his team's objectivesAndrew Fidel Fernando is ESPNcricinfo's Sri Lanka correspondent. @andrewffernando
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