Experienced India favoured in opener
Both sides are missing key players but India will start as favourites, particularly given the amount of experience the team has of the conditions in Dambulla

In the absence of two senior players, Ross Taylor's role with bat and as captain will be crucial • Getty Images
Match Facts
Tuesday, August 10, 2010Start time 1430 (0900 GMT)
Big Picture
For a series with such an unhurried schedule, the rush to start within three days of the Tests is puzzling. India have had so little time to prepare that they decided to take an army chopper to Dambulla to save time on the five-hour road journey from Colombo. On Monday afternoon, the Indian team had their only practice session ahead of the one-dayers. They had a three-hour net in the middle, observed by the groundstaff going through their last-day preparations such as getting the advertising hoardings in place and the security personnel going through their drills.Form guide
(most recent first)India: WLWWL
New Zealand: WLLLW
Watch out for...
Suresh Raina is coming off a fantastic start to his Test career, and seems to have established himself as the best of the young Indian batsmen battling for middle-order berths. He didn't have the best of times during the Asia Cup, and will want to make amends this time round.Team news
An ankle injury has ruled Ishant Sharma out of the first game which means Abhimanyu Mithun is in line to add to his solitary one-day cap. Dhoni had struggled with a finger problem during the third Test but he said that he expected to play despite being in a bit of pain.Pitch and conditions
No cricket has been played at the Dambulla stadium since the Asia Cup which means there will be plenty of juice in the fresh, greenish track on Tuesday. To balance that is the fact that the boundary ropes have been pulled in at least 10 metres from where there were during the Asia Cup.Quotes
"It is an opportunity for them [Daniel Vettori and Brendon McCullum] to spend some time with their families. They will come back fresh and strong, it has turned out to be a positive thing for them and for the youngsters as well."Mark Greatbatch, the New Zealand coach, on playing the tri-series without two of his most important players
MS Dhoni on coping with the relentless schedule
Siddarth Ravindran is a sub-editor at Cricinfo