http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 vs Pakistan – 3rd ODI – Battles to watch out
With the ODI series intriguingly poised one a piece, Bettor takes a sneak peak at some of the battles which could ultimately prove decisive in either side’s march towards a 2-1 lead.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Umar-Gul-c94604
While it is hard to judge the outcome of the battle between the Men in Green’s opening bowler and Lankan’s explosive opener, it is fair to argue that the series’ outcome, up till now, has been decided fair and square by the performances of the respective
players where Umar Gul’s led initial rout in the opening game eventually ended the game as the contest.
However, the scenario was reversed for the 2nd ODI where Dilshan finally put his batting gloves on for good and anchored his side’s innings, balancing aggression with calmness, to a set up a winning total which in due course proved too much for
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755’s patchy batting lineup. The third ODI will again see both men’s paths colliding in the early phase, which will provide a fair reflection on the final outcome.
Batting re-shuffles
With all the resources in the bowling department, Pakistan were always flirting with danger after they decided to elevate http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Azhar-Ali-c46890 at the top which saw Shahid Afridi coming in at no.6. That move went unnoticed in the first ODI but given the unpredictability
of the tourists’ batsmen, and in particular Boom Boom, it was a matter of time before such a stance backfired.
They will be thinking of playing a bowler less or the omitting a specialist wicket-keeper, in preference of a make-shift one in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Umar-Akmal-c94595, or ideally would want the top 5 to contribute.
For the hosts, the decision to drop skipper http://www.senore.com/Cricket/WU-Tharanga-c2802 has a solid
enough technique, and has opened in the past, and in addition, is a perfect sidekick to someone like Dilshan.
Spinners to take centre stage
It is time for the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Saeed-Ajmal-c87859 and Shahid Afridi to be a little more clinical with the ball. The pitches so far witnessed in the first two ODIs have aided the pace bowlers in the initial phase before becoming easy to bat on. Ajmal has hardly had
an impact in the series so far but one expects him to deliver, along with Afridi, when the hour of need arises.
The Lankans have largely relied on their medium pacers to see off their opponents. Their ODI bowling department looks pretty much settled having the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/KMDN-Kulasekara-c1802 upfront, before Jayawardene throws the ball to Thisara Perera
or http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sajeewa-Weerakoon-c87976,
Jeevan Mendis or http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sachithra-Madushanka-Senanayake-c87813.
Impact players
Despite both sides working on various combinations, the tie could ultimately be decided on individual brilliance. For the Lankans, Thisara Perera has been their impact player by a fair margin, while for the Men in Green; it has to be http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shahid-Afridi-c2482, who has
the uncanny knack of bringing out his best against the hosts.
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