The Sri Lankans will certainly be fired up by the fact that they have to prove to the Indians that their World Cup victories were no flashes in the pan and also by the fact that to lose will be to take the next flight back.
CONSISTENT
The Sri Lankans who have got their batting and fielding acts together will be hoping that their bowlers come good and that the umpiring will be CONSISTENT. By saying consistent we mean that the umpires must go on the adage that - what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
We are aware that umpiring is one of the most unenviable jobs in the highly commercialised game of cricket. Not many will want to don the white coat.
While appreciating the difficult job that the umpires are doing and applauding them for that the umpires must also see that they leave no room for unkind things to be said.
GENUINE MISTAKE
Umpires are humans and are fallible. A genuine mistake made by them can be excused. But as the game progresses and if bias is shown, then the whole concept and all the good that umpiring stands for is hit out of the ground.
The umpires must understand that they are the judge and jury all in one. They must not unfairly condemn a batsman. To do so will be sacrilegious and could mean the end of the road for the batsman.
FAIR UMPIRING
The Lankans will be hoping for fair umpiring for both sides. Had Jayasuriya and Dharmasena been given the benefit of the doubt who knows Sri Lanka would have been on the winning side.
In general the standard of umpiring has dropped all round. To put these matters right a lot will depend on the International Cricket Council and its new boss Jagmohan Dalmiya. How they will help the umpires to get their things right will be interesting to watch.
Skipper Ranatunga will be hoping that his bowlers will bowl line and length, to one side of the wicket or wicket to wicket. When the field is set to one side, and the bowlers keep straying, there is nothing that any captain in the world can do to stop the avalanche of runs. WICKET TO WICKET
The bowlers were guilty in the game against Pakistan. There is no point in aimlessly trying to bend their backs. To bowl wicket to wicket should be the strategy of the bowlers.
If the bowlers do their bit, the fielders and the batsmen will support them. With Chaminda Vaas going for lot of runs, especially in the early and the final overs, the selectors must be toying with the idea of resting him and going in with allrounder Dulip Liyanage. However, Vaas should get the nod because of his experience.
The Indians will be hoping and praying that Tendulkar will continue the rollicking form showed against New Zealand. He has the ability to do the impossible with his thunderous batting.
GOOD BATSMEN
In addition to Tendulkar, the Indians have many other good batsmen who can give them an imposing total. The Indian bowling is not that penetrative and the Lankan batsmen must look for a match-winning score.
This game is a do or die situation for the Lankans. The Lankans revel in a challenge and there is no reason why it should not be any different this time round!