Australia wary of enigmatic Sri Lankans

On paper there is no contest: cricketing superpower Australia, unbeaten during their past 15 matches, versus Sri Lanka, a side whose form has seesawed throughout the tournament and who limped into the last four. During their earlier Super Six encounter at Centurion the South Asians were swept aside, losing by 96 runs.

However, Australia will be only too aware of the potential threat posed by the enigmatic and flambuoyant Sri Lankans. Sanath Jayasuriya's side was the last team to beat Ricky Ponting's team, a 79 run victory at Sydney, and they also have fresh memories of a thumping win in the ICC Champions Trophy last September,

That victory was fashioned by their assortment of twirly men and, once again, if Sri Lanka are to pull off the impossible and upset the world champions, the slow bowling of Muttiah Muralitharan, Aravinda de Silva and Sanath Jayasuriya appears to hold the key.

Indeed, Sri Lanka could not have dreamed of a better venue. The slow St George's Park pitch at Port Elizabeth has already been the source of trouble for Australia's top order in this tournament and, although the groundsman is promising a surface with more pace and bounce, Sri Lanka are hopeful that their spin-orientated attack will find assistance.

"Australia are a very good side. They are clearly the form team and are the favourites. What brings them back to the field is the surface we are going to play on. I think the wicket will suit Sri Lanka's style of bowling more than it did in Centurion."" said Sri Lanka's coach Dav Whatmore, a former Australia Test player, who added: "If we can muster up a figure close to 250, it will be very interesting."

Ponting is wary, hopeful that the curator's predictions prove correct: "We have not been all that happy with the pitches we have played on there. But, talking to the groundsman, the pitch for this game is going to be on a different block from the two pitches we have seen previously and he said he expected it to be better."

Whether the pitch is slow or fast, however, Australia's Brett Lee will be a handful with the new ball. During the last match he tore into the Sri Lankan top order, sending Jayasuriya off to hospital and taking three wickets during a terrifyingly fast and hostile opening burst. Once again, he will be targeting Sri Lanka's inform openers, hoping to exploit a perceived weakness against short bowling.

Ponting, who believes Jayasuriya "wriggles a little bit" when the bowlers target his rib cage, makes no apology for their aggressive approach: "Intent and intimidate - those are words that were used at the start of the tournament. It will be just a progression of what we started."

If Australia can make early inroads then victory can be expected. Jayasuriya and Atapattu, who both scored hundreds during Australia's Sydney defeat, have the potential to play match-winning innings but the middle order, the veteran Aravinda de Silva apart, has been suspect throughout the tournament, with Kumar Sangakkara, Russel Arnold and Mahela Jayawardene all having failed to pass fifty.

The hugely talented but desperately out-of-form Mahela Jayawardene, who has scored 16 runs in six innings in the World Cup, is set to miss out again after Avishka Gunawardene grabbed his opportunity against Zimbabwe, scoring a valuable 41.

De Silva, scorer of a brilliant 92 at Centurion and a traditional thorn in the Australia side, could also play a key part. The 37-year-old, who could be playing his last international game, will have his sights set on a fitting finale to a glorious career. Throughout his career he has reserved his best for the big occasions, notably in the 1996 final when he blasted a match-winning century, and, like any great entertainer, his sense of timing has not been dimmed by age.

Australia's batting line-up, meanwhile, who will be without Damien Martyn (broken finger), will look to target the weak links in the Sri Lankan attack, particularly the support seam bowling, whilst also ensuring early wi ckets do not tumble like they did against England and New Zealand on the same St George's pitch earlier in the tournament.

At least they will be welcoming back their savour in those two games, Michael Bevan, aka the "finisher", who missed the last game against Kenya after suffering from soreness in his lower back. His return had prompted a selection quandary over whether to drop Ian Harvey or Andrew Symonds but Martyn's withdrawal allows both to play.

Australia (from):

Ricky Ponting (captain), Adam Gilchrist, Michael Bevan, Andy Bichel, Matthew Hayden, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Darren Lehmann, Jimmy Maher, Damien Martyn, Glenn McGrath, Andrew Symonds, Nathan Hauritz, Ian Harvey, Nathan Bracken.

Sri Lanka (from):

Sanath Jayasuriya (captain), Marvan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Aravinda De Silva, Russel Arnold, Jehan Mubarak, Avishka Gunawardene, Hashan Tillakaratne, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Dilhara Fernando, Pulasthi Gunaratne, Prabath Nissanka, Buddhika Fernando.