India, like a true ODI champions, bounced back from defeats in first two matches of the tri-series to set up a title clash against Sri Lanka at the Queens Park Oval in Port of Spain on Thursday.
India’s remarkable comeback is due to its solid all-round performance after twin losses in the first two matches. Stand-in captain Virat Kohli’s 102 against the West Indies in India’s third match helped the team earn a bonus point which brought them back into reckoning for a place in the final. Also, the contribution of openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma must be mentioned here as they provided the perfect platform for the likes of Kohli to build on a good score.
In the next match against Sri Lanka, Sharma played a crucial knock of 48 not out to help India stay on course in a rain-truncated game, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar destroyed Sri Lanka’s top order with remarkable ease.
But a week ago, the story was different as India ran the danger of losing out on a final berth after faltering in the first two matches and losing their captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to a hamstring injury. Thanks to West Indies’ self-destruct mode and Sri Lanka’s inconsistent display, India is back into second straight tournament final.
Playing familiar foes Sri Lanka in the title clash brings back memories of the World Cup 2011 final where Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir brought glory to India. Dhoni might be back to play in the final as initial reports suggest he has been recovering well from his injury and rules in this tournament doesn’t forbade him from the playing in the final although he was replaced by Ambati Rayudu in the squad.
However, neither Dhoni nor Kohli would like to tinker with the playing XI and might go with the same side that played the last match against Sri Lanka.
India’s bowling attack, though looks a bit fatigue, has also done well with the likes of Bhuvi and Umesh Yadav coming up with regular top-order wickets. Ishant Sharma has also done well with his aggressive style of bowling, while Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have played their role of supporting bowlers to perfection on fast, bouncy pitches of Caribbean.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, has put up a spirited display in this tri-series with experienced batsmen Upal Tharanga, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara putting up good scores at the top of the order.
Their bowling attack has performed in fits and starts and needs to be more consistent to make a mark on the strong Indian batting line-up. Lasith Malinga’s toe crunching yorkers doesn’t hold that much menace as it used to thanks to Indian cricketers having played the slinging bowler regularly in the IPL.
For Sri Lanka, more than the revenge of the World Cup final loss, it’s the ‘chokers tag’ that would play in their minds as they have lost major tournament finals in the last few years. Will they be able to break the shackles against a foe that had got the measure of them in the recent past? That’s the question that would be on the mind of most Sri Lanka fans.
But although India will go as favourites in the final, they would do well to guard against complacency. Kohli is still new to captaincy and might have to hold his nerves in crunch situations to come out on top.
For the record, Queens Park Oval has been a happy hunting ground for India as the team has won consecutive four ODIs here in the last two years. But this statistic would matter little when India takes the field tomorrow as Sri Lanka could well spring a surprise or two.