India start as favourites

The last time Muttiah Muralitharan played a Test match in India, he was just another slow bowler with pretensions to greatness. He played two matches on that visit in 1997-98, finishing with unflattering figures of 3 for 311 against an Indian line-up accustomed to humiliating slow bowlers, even if they answered to the name of Shane Keith Warne. By the end of that series, Murali had 135 wickets in 34 Tests at an average of 31.15 - good figures, but certainly not the stuff of legends.

With the early part of his career having been blighted by innuendo and controversy over an utterly unique action, it took a while for him to find his moorings. Encouraged by a captain, Arjuna Ranatunga, who detected the spark of genius earlier than most, he slowly matured into a match-winner without peer, and by the time the Indians next ran into him - on Sri Lankan soil in 2001 - he had scalped an astonishing 182 wickets in 28 outings after the Indian misadventure.

These days, only the jealous or the malicious tend to quibble over his action, and the wicket-haul has swelled to scarcely believable proportions - 568 from 96 Tests at a fast bowler's average (22.23). Provided he doesn't succumb to the troublesome shoulder niggles that have plagued him of late, it's only a matter of when, rather than if, he will surpass Warne and set a record that is likely to withstand the best efforts of a generation or two.

Like Murali, the undoubted bowling talisman, Sri Lanka also arrive in India unrecognisable from the team that have done so little in 11 previous outings on Indian soil dating back to 1982. They have never come close to victory, and all six defeats were thumpings by an innings and plenty. The last series, by which time Ranatunga had built a team with real purpose and spine, saw them buck that losing trend, though Anil Kumble and Rajesh Chauhan still came tantalisingly close to a final-day heist in the third Test at Mumbai.

Despite Harbhajan Singh having bowled beautifully in one-day matches over the past month, the slow-bowling spotlight will still be focussed on Murali and Anil Kumble. The two men, who share the happy knack of shutting up detractors with on-field performances, have a great camaraderie, and also boast of remarkably similar figures against the opposition. Murali's 12 Tests against India have seen him pick up 51 wickets at 32.94, while Kumble's dozen outings against Sri Lanka have realised 46 victims at 33.36.

What will worry Sri Lanka slightly though are the respective numbers on Indian turf, where Kumble's 24 wickets at 24.83 dwarfs Murali's 15 at 48.73. Given the disdain with which other Sri Lankan spinners were treated during the recent one-day series, it's imperative that Chaminda Vaas chips in with an incisive new-ball spell or three.

Come Friday morning, though, and most eyes will be firmly trained on the Indian teamsheet and especially on the couple of names stencilled for middle-order duty. VVS Laxman appears a certainty, leaving Sourav Ganguly to hope that he can edge out Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif for the last slot. His record against Sri Lanka should certainly help in that regard. Sri Lanka's last tour here saw Ganguly pile up 392 runs with the help of two brilliant centuries and a 99. And India's gutsy victory at Kandy in 2001 was also sealed by his splendid 98, during the course of which he defied everything that Murali and friends could come up with.

For Sri Lanka, who have left Sanath Jayasuriya at home, the batting remains an area of grave concern. Utterly at ease on sluggish pitches at home, Sri Lanka's finest have often been found wanting in more testing conditions away. Kumar Sangakkara will be expected to shoulder an immense burden, as will Marvan Atapattu, but they will need sizeable contributions from the mercurial Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan to have any chance of ending their sorry run in India.

India have a few worries of their own - will Ajit Agarkar be able to hack it with the new ball in Tests? - but the batting has rarely failed on more benign surfaces at home. Sachin Tendulkar needs one century to surpass Sunil Gavaskar's tally of 34, and what better place to do it than Chepauk, where he averages a stunning 102 from six Tests, with four centuries.

Tom Moody has talked bravely of how the Tests won't mirror the abject surrender of the one-day internationals, but it's hard to see a complete reversal of fortune. Barring a truly sub-par performance from India, Sri Lanka face another depressing episode of Big Brother, with even the inimitable Murali unable to change the script.