Sri Lanka Look To Wrap Up Series: http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 v India, 3rd Test, Preview
The Match
Sri Lanka will host India in the third Test match of the three-Test match Micromax Series at the P Sara Stadium in Colombo. The hosts lead 1-0, and a draw or a win here will win them the series. On the other hand, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 will go into the game, knowing that they cannot win the series but a win could ensure that they would have not lost their first Test series in Sri Lanka since 1997.
India had lost the first game of the series at Galle inside four days, whereas the second match was a high-scoring draw. In both the games, the Indian bowling had come in for a serious punishment and the Lankans will go into this third game feeling superior.
Fortunately for the Indians, a loss here will not snatch the number one Test ranking as was the case earlier, and that will allow the side to play more aggressively than before. Lanka, on the other hand, will look to avenge their 0-2 loss to the Indians in the previous Test series in India by winning this game.
The Pitch:
It cannot get worse than the one at the SSC in Colombo in the previous game. Almost 1400 runs were scored on the track, at the loss of 17 wickets, which can hardly be a good advertisement for Test match cricket. The pitch at the PSS in Colombo will afford more bounce for the spinners and the pace bowlers will get the ball to move around too. This should make things interesting for both bowling sides.
India:
The Indians were stuck with a big blow when it was revealed that http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Murali-Vijay-c78035 another opportunity. Apart from that, there is confusion whether Suresh Raina – century-scorer from the previous game – will maintain his place in the side over the more senior, Yuvraj Singh.
Harbhajan Singh could also miss out due to injury, and given the nature of the track, there is a good chance that India may look to go in with a third seamer in Munaf Patel.
The Playing Eleven:
Vijay, Sehwag, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Raina, Dhoni, Mithun, Ojha, Patel, Ishant
Players to watch out for:
The batting of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/VVS-Laxman-c2772 has been of much concern to the team and it will be interesting to see how these two senior pros bounce back from the string of low scores.
Sri Lanka:
The odds are heavily loaded in their favour. The Lankan bowling is much stronger than their Indian counterparts, whereas the batting is equally good, if not better. The side may have a conundrum or two with regards to their selection though.
For one, if Lasith Malinga is fully fit, then he should be a certainty in the side. But the question is who out of Dilhara Fernando and Dammika Prasad he will replace. The other question-mark is about the re-inclusion of Chanaka Welegedara after he had troubled Sehwag in the first game. If he comes back, then both, Fernando and Prasad will need to sit out.
The spinners and the batting department will remain the same as in the previous game.
The Playing Eleven:
Paranvitana, Dilshan, Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Samaraweera, Mathews, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Prasanna-Jayawardene-c82537, Randiv, Mendis, Malinga, Prasad.
Players to watch out for:
Malinga’s return will be the one that not only the fans, but also the Indian batsmen will look at. The Lankan fans will be happy to see him back after his first game’s shenanigans, whereas the Indian batsmen will be filled with the fear that he can cause when fully fit and firing in all cylinders.
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