Hosts face Lanka in inconsequential tie
Assured of a slot in the final after knocking India out, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe square off in the last preliminary match of the ODI tri-series here on Monday hoping to get a measure of each other before the summit clash.
The result of the match is only of academic interest though a win for any of the side would come as a psychological boost ahead of the final.
The Zimbabweans would be looking to shock the Lankans, something they did twice against India but failed to do against the Islanders the first time around.
After a rather inconsistent show early on, the Lankan batting line-up finally struck form on Saturday and Dinesh Chandimal struck a fluent hundred to make his presence felt. The likes of skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan and Chamara Kapugedera are in good knick and would prove difficult to contain or dismiss for the Zimbabwean bowlers.
On the bowling front, the Lankans have a decent line-up with Nuwan Kulasekara and Dilhara Fernando heading the pace department. Ajantha Mendis spearheads the spin attack but has been rather lacklustre with not many wickets to show for.
The Zimbabweans, on the other hand, are riding high on the historic back-to-back wins over India. On the first occasion, their batting did the trick while the second time around, the bowlers stifled the Indians. — PTI
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