India face Srilanka in tri series 3rd ODI

After receiving a battering at the hands of the Kiwis, the Indians would be looking to plug the loopholes in the batting, if they are to save themselves from the ignominy of a 2nd straight loss.

Monday, August 16, 2010
Start time 14.30 (0900 GMT)

The recent contests between Sri Lanka and India have had an interesting subplot: Kumar Sangakkara v MS Dhoni. The Indian captain made his views clear about the floodlights in Dambulla, the poor practice pitches, the toss factor, and the difficulty of chasing a target. Sangakkara, on the other hand, said, "If you can't win batting under lights, you are not a good team". He wasn't responding to Dhoni at the time, but Sri Lanka chased a target with ease against New Zealand, after India had lost to the same team by 200 runs. Both Sangakkara and Dhoni are also planning for the World Cup, assessing the arsenal at their disposal. Monday's game gives them another opportunity to find answers to certain questions.

India's questions are several: Is Ravindra Jadeja good enough? Is there an in-form allrounder who can replace Jadeja, or should the part-time spinners fill the role of the fifth bowler in the subcontinent? Is medium-pacer Abhimanyu Mithun good enough? Should Virat Kohli play in the middle order, or should Rohit Sharma be persisted with? Will Ishant Sharma's form dip further if he is looted for runs in this format? And how long will Dinesh Karthik continue to squander starts?

For quite some time Sri Lanka, too, have had problems with their combination. Can Chamara Kapugedera grab one of his numerous opportunities, or it time to give Dinesh Chandimal a run? Is Thilan Samaraweera a good fit for ODIs or should he be replaced with either Chamara Silva or Thisara Perera? Should Suraj Randiv be played with Ajantha Mendis or with Rangana Herath? Should Dilhara Fernando be given a game here and there?

In the short term, however, Monday's match is crucial to India's hopes of staying alive in the tri-series but they have been dealt a blow by the absence of Yuvraj Singh, who has been diagnosed with dengue fever. Ashish Nehra, who has some trouble with his gluteus muscles, is also uncertain.

A second defeat, following the bonus-point loss to New Zealand, will make it hard for Dhoni's men to engineer a turnaround. An Indian victory will leave all three teams on a win each and the tri-series wide open