Sri Lankan spin king returns to haunt Pakistan

Muttiah Muralitharan returns to haunt Pakistan when they face Sri Lanka in the final of the Asian Test Championship on a seamers' friendly track at the Gaddafi Stadium from Wednesday.

The spinner was the force behind Sri Lanka's four victories in the last six Tests in Pakistan when he captured nearly 40 wickets. "He is a world class spinner and there is no denying the fact that all the teams are scared of him. His presence means pressure on everyone but then again he is just one," Pakistan captain Waqar Younis said.

"We have to cope with Muralitharan and play very carefully. But I wouldn't say he is a threat. But yes, he has been bowling well and has the capacity to turn even on glass," Waqar said.

Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya piled on more psychological pressure on Pakistan when he said he was not counting on Muralitharan alone. "Chaminda [Vaas], Nuwan [Zoysa] and Bhuddika [Fernando] are also there and they are bowling excellently," Jayasuriya said.

Muralitharan was virtually seen smelling the wicket to have a feel of the conditions after being disallowed to inspect the pitch. But Jayasuriya and Whatmore had a closer look at the strip and should have gathered all the needed information for the maestro.

Going by the current form of Pakistan batsmen, it appears they will have a real job in hand. Against Test greenhorns Bangladesh and the spent force West Indies, now the whipping boys of international cricket, Pakistan batsmen failed to live upto expectations. Had there not been a rearguard action, led by Rashid Latif, there might have been a different story to tell than to write, at least against the Caribbeans.

Pakistan's best batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq is badly out of form while it was still unclear who will be opening the innings. Younis Khan has been scoring some runs but his technique against a quality bowler like Muralitharan is yet to be seen. That leaves Yousuf Youhana as the batsman Pakistan would be looking to play a big innings he is very well capable of. Youhana has blossomed into a brilliant batsman who has time and again carried the innings on his shoulders.

There are no two opinions that Youhana was the best batsman for Pakistan in the three-Test series in 2000 and almost pulled victory from the jaws of defeat at Peshawar with a defiant 80 odd. A cruel leg before decision ruined Pakistan hopes in the end.

A green top wicket has been prepared for the match and chief curator Mohammad Bashir is confident that it would support the seamers as it had a rock-solid base. But Waqar dismissed impressions that such a wicket had been prepared to counter the brilliance of Muralitharan.

"The wicket has been prepared according to our strength. I believe bowling remains our strong point. Although I am the only experienced bowler, Mohammad Sami and Shoaib Akhtar have been bowling well," he said without ruling out the possibility of going into the match with a four-pace attack.

Waqar agreed that it was the clear test of his team's character despite going into the Test with a six-win record. "Although I believe the opponents were not that much though, we had to go out in the field and beat them," Waqar said. "It would require a sheer hard work to compete against a team like Sri Lanka and I think it will be a fantastic game," he added.

Sri Lanka too had a good home season last year when they won eight successive Tests. They beat India 2-0 before whitewashing West Indies and Zimbabwe. "Both Sri Lanka and Pakistan had a good run upto the final. And I do hope that it will be a good game," Jayasuriya said.

Pakistan and India reached the final after canning minnows Bangladesh in the league matches. The round match between the two teams was scrapped as it would have had no bearing on the final.

The tournament went ahead after India pulled out after being drawn to play Pakistan at Lahore between Sept 12 and 16. The competition was devalued to an extent but Waqar said: "Who knows if India had participated, even then Sri Lanka and Pakistan would have qualified for the final.

"I think the two best Asian Test sides are competing in the final. It would have been nice if India had competed in the event, nevertheless," he said. In case of no result the trophy would be shared as first innings lead would not decide the fate of the game.

Sri Lanka: Sanath Jayasuriya (captain), Marvan Atapattu, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Russel Arnold, Hashan Tillakaratne, Thilan Samaraweera, Chaminda Vaas, Bhuddika Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Nuwan Zoysa, Upal Chandana, Tillakarante Dilshan, Dulip Liyange.

Pakistan: Waqar Younis (captain), Taufiq Umer, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Yousuf Youhana, Abdur Razzaq, Rashid Latif, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami, Shoaib Malik, Saqlain Mushtaq, Faisal Iqbal, Mohammd Zahid.

Umpires: Daryl Harper (Australia), Athar Zaidi (Pakistan).

Tv Umpire: Saleem Badar.

Match Referee: Justice Ahmed Ebrahem (Zimbabwe).