Watch Sri Lanka v Australia, 2nd Twenty20 Live Streaming

Lessons aplenty for the visitors

August 7, 2011

Australia were schooled in the first match, can they learn quickly?

Match facts
August 8, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Start time 19:00 (13:30 GMT, 23:30 EST)

Big Picture
There is no substitute for match conditioning. This much was clear after the first Twenty20 between Sri Lanka and Australia in Kandy, as the hosts showed the benefits of a testing tour of England, as opposed to the training camps in Brisbane and net sessions in Colombo that served as the visitors' preparation for the tour opener. The Sri Lankans also showed far better knowledge of the conditions, bowling plenty of spin on a surface that offered turn, while Cameron White preferred to use his pace bowlers in the latter stages and saw them belted out of sight by his opposite number Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Australia's coach Tim Nielsen described it as a "frustrating" start to the tour, but there will be more gnashing of teeth in store for the tourists if they do not tighten their fundamentals and show a little more understanding of the conditions that confront them. Shaun Marsh and David Hussey in particular looked out of sorts against the accurate spin of Dilruwan Perera, while Mitchell Johnson's first spell of the tour was disheartening in its inconsistency. More encouraging was the bowling and batting of Steve O'Keefe, and the slugging power of David Warner.

Australia need to show the capacity to learn quickly from the reverses of the first match, while Sri Lankan will seek to extend a psychological advantage.

Form guide
Sri Lanka WWWWL
Australia LWLLL

In the spotlight
Tillakaratne Dilshan was the undisputed star of the first match, and the Australians will need to find better ways of coping with his combative attitude and inventive strokeplay. Dilshan was not placed under too much pressure as a captain in the field either, as his bowlers kept the Australians in check. Cameron White said he had resorted to adjusting his field to counter the 'Dil-scoop' and thus created other gaps for the Sri Lankan captain, a rare admission.

Mitchell Johnson was attacked mercilessly towards the end of the innings, and was unable to find consistent line or length, let alone any swing. His work with the new bowling coach Craig McDermott is key to Australia's success in future matches on this tour, and he will want to improve his performance after a shoddy start.

Team news
Sri Lanka seem unlikely to make many changes to a team that performed so soundly and evenly in game one. For the Australians, Aaron Finch's pugnacity may be useful after some of the batsmen struggled for traction in the opener, and James Pattinson could be in line for a T20 debut.

Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Mahela Jayawardene, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Jeevan Mendis, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Dilruwan Perera, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Dhammika Prasad, 10 Rangana Herath, 11 Suranga Lakmal.

Australia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Shane Watson, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 David Hussey, 5 Cameron White (capt), 6 Steven Smith, 7 Brad Haddin (wk), 8 Steve O'Keefe, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Brett Lee, 11 James Pattinson.

Pitch and conditions
The surface for the first match confused the Australians somewhat by offering some bounce but also plenty of spin, a combination the Sri Lankans were far quicker to adjust to. Match two will be played on a similarly equal-opportunity surface.

Stats and trivia

* Tillakaratne Dilshan's century was the fifth in T20 internationals
* Dinesh Chandimal was the fifth batsman to be out hit wicket in T20I matches
* Sri Lanka had not previously won a T20I at home, losing their first four such fixtures
* Dilruwan Perera achieved the rare feat of taking wickets in each of his first three overs in international cricket

Quotes
"I had the confidence to play it. It worked and I think after I played the Dil-scoop they changed the field and I felt [it was] more easy to score more runs in other areas."

Tillakaratne Dilshan succeeded in dictating terms to Australia's bowlers in game one

"If anyone scores a hundred off 57 [55] balls it will be hard work to win the game from there. But look, there were some disappointing aspects of the game from our end as well."

Cameron White knows the Australians need to sharpen up after looking rusty in the opener.

Watch Sri Lanka v Australia, 1st Twenty20 Live Streaming

Setting the tone for a tough tour

August 5, 2011

Sri Lanka's captain Tillakaratne Dilshan will want a victory, and some runs to go with it

Match facts

August 6, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Start time 19:00 (13:30 GMT, 23:30 EST)

Big Picture

Australia commence their tour of Sri Lanka under a captain, Cameron White, who will be flying home once the Twenty20 matches have concluded. Sri Lanka, by contrast will be led in all three formats by Tillakaratne Dilshan, leading the team at home for the first time after taking over the reins for the England tour earlier this year.

Until a narrow victory over England in the second of two T20 matches following the Ashes, Australia's form in the shortest format had been poor, losing comfortably to the Sri Lankans in Perth last October and suffering a 2-0 series reverse against Pakistan in England during the 2010 northern summer. Michael Clarke's retirement from international T20 matches handed the captaincy to White, and he will now be hoping to get the tourists off to a strong start in Kandy.

The Sri Lankans have done rather better of late, defeating England in England, but that was their first T20 international since the aforementioned defeat of Australia at the WACA. Lasith Malinga's unavailability is a significant loss for the hosts, particularly as the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and its new pitches have the potential for greater pace than most other surfaces on the island.

Both sides will want to set the tone for the tour with a first-up victory, as much to build confidence in their transitional teams as to get their opponents worried.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WWWLL
Australia WLLLL

In the spotlight

Angelo Mathews missed the Test series against Engalnd due to injury but eased his way back into some form during the subsequent limited overs matches to demonstrate why he was entrusted with the vice-captaincy before his 24th birthday. Explosive with the bat and intelligent with the ball, he played a key role in lifting the Sri Lankans to a memorable ODI victory over Australia at the MCG last year and will want to repeat the dose on home soil.

Steve O'Keefe, like his captain White, is only in Sri Lanka for the T20 matches, and is intent on showing that he should have been allowed to stay on. Peculiarly, his first-class bowling record is far better than any of his spin bowling rivals in Australia, but thus far the national selectors have declined to employ him further. O'Keefe has made no secret of his desire to push for bigger honours, and he can make a start by performing capably here to back-up the 3-29 he took on his T20 debut for Australia against Pakistan in 2010.

Team news

Sri Lanka's squad includes no fewer than six capable bowlers of spin, while the pace attack looks thin without Malinga, meaning Mathews or Nuwan Kulasekara can be expected to operate with the new ball. Aaron Finch is expected to be available having recovered from a rolled ankle suffered in training, and James Pattinson could be in line for a T20 debut.

Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Mahela Jayawardene, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Chamara Silva, 6 Jeevan Mendis, 7 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Suraj Randiv, 11 Suranga Lakmal

Australia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Shane Watson, 3 Brad Haddin (wk), 4 David Hussey, 5 Cameron White (capt), 6 Shaun Marsh, 7 Steven Smith, 8 Steve O'Keefe, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Brett Lee, 11 James Pattinson

Pitch and conditions

The Australians have been delighted by a hint of pace in the Kandy practice wickets and are hopeful for more of the same from the match strip. The Sri Lankans have trained in the evening to prepare for any moisture that may be present for a 7pm start.

Stats and trivia

• This is Australia's first T20 international in Sri Lanka
• It is also the first such fixture at the Pallekelle International Stadium
• Sri Lanka's captain Dilshan is the oldest man on either side at 34, shading the Australian fast bowler Brett Lee by a little more than a month
• Dilshan will be looking for a greater share of his team's runs, having made a meagre 23 in the five ODIs against England

Quotes

"Australian usually play very hard. They may be a bit inexperienced. But they are tough opponents."

Tillakaratne Dilshan is not underestimating the Australians

"Definitely I think the way a series should be run, or a tour should be run, is that you start with your Twenty20s, then your one-dayers and then your Test matches."

Brett Lee says the tourists are happy with their Sri Lanka program.

Watch Kings XI Punjab v Rajasthan Royals Live Streaming, IPL 2011

Warne v Gilchrist in Mohali

Match facts

Thursday, April 21, Mohali
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

Colours have changed, teams have changed, but life's still good

Big picture

Adam Gilchrist contributed to 59 of Shane Warne's Test wickets either through catches or stumpings, one more than Ian Healy did. And then there were the endless plans that the two would have worked out together. On Thursday, they will be using their cricket expertise and their knowledge of each other's games to try and beat the other guy's team. More than other captains, perhaps, Gilchrist and Warne have left deeper imprints on teams they have led in the IPL. They have won the thing once each too.

This year, Gilchrist seeks to leave his imprint on a new side, the Kings XI Punjab, while Rajasthan Royals have loyally retained Warne. They have had contrasting starts to their campaign. Rajasthan began with two wins before running into two defeats at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders. Punjab lost their first game, didn't bowl exceptionally in their second, but then Paul Valthaty changed it all, winning them that game and the next. While Punjab will look to carry on that momentum, Rajasthan will look to arrest the slide.

Team talk

The last time Rajasthan played, they missed the injured Rahul Dravid and Johan Botha. While Dravid should walk into the XI if he is fit, it will be interesting to see if Rajasthan drop Shaun Tait for Botha. On current form, and considering the all-round skills of Botha, they should. Amit Paunikar hasn't got going as an opener, and his place could also come under scrutiny.

In their last game, Punjab brought in an extra seamer in Vikramjeet Singh Malik. It will be interesting to see if they persist with that winning combination in Mohali.

In the spotlight

At the moment, Paul Valthaty seems to be incapable of committing a mistake. In the last two games, he has scored a century and a fifty, and has also taken four wickets with his split-finger slower balls. If he keeps going in this vein, he is likely to stay on the winning side.

Shane Watson was one of the cornerstones of the success that Rajasthan Royals tasted in their first season. This time, though, he has got off to a slow start, scoring only 33 in two games. Rajasthan will look for some of what he did in Bangladesh immediately before coming to the IPL.

Prime numbers

• Valthaty needs 36 runs to take back the orange cap from Sachin Tendulkar.
• Rajasthan's leadin run-getter, Johan Botha with 118, is only the 15th best in the overall list. That represents some of Rajasthan's problems.

The chatter

"He is known to spring surprises on the opposition. So we have to be ready for the challenges thrown at us."
Adam Gilchrist need not be warned about Shane Warne.

Watch Pakistan Vs South Africa 1st Twenty20 International Live Streaming

Tuesday, 26 Oct 2010

			Pakistan Vs South Africa
Venue :1st Twenty20 International, Dubai International Cricket Stadium Live action starts from: 16:00 GMT (21:30 IST) T20 Pakistan and South Africa in UAE 2010-11 Match

Pakistan will play South Africa in the first T20I of the two match T20I series at Abu Dhabi. The game will be played on Tuesday, October 26.

Pakistan is the host of the tour by South Africa but because of the security situation back home, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have been the neutral venues chosen to host the entire series. This includes two Test matches and five ODIs as well and will see the Pakistanis trying to win something this year.

Pakistan has had a very bad lead-up to the series. They had an abysmal tour of England where they not only lost all the series that they had played but were also involved in so many controversies that there were rumours that they may be banned from playing cricket. There were match fixing and spot fixing allegations and the side saw three of the cricketers being provisionally suspended by the ICC for the same.

Speaking of their on-field cricket, their issue has been their batting but in this format of the game, they are expected to do well. Younis Khan makes a comeback to the side but it remains to be seen whether the former captain can play in the T20Is or will be directly play the other two formats. Mohammad Yousuf is out due to injury while Shahid Afridi will continue to lead the side despite issues with the Pakistan cricket board. It was said that the Pakistani management that included the captain Afridi and coach Waqar Younis were not happy with the team that they had got but they had had no say in the decision.

South Africa, on the other hand, go into the T20Is with a new captain. Johan Botha has replaced Graeme Smith in the T20Is and will look to command as much respect as Smith did when he was the captain. So far, Botha's initiation has been good enough - in a series against Australia where he was the stand-in captain he had won the series for them, while against Zimbabwe, he led them to a 2-0 win.

However, playing Pakistan on the slow and low wickets of Abu Dhabi could just be a different ball game altogether. South Africa will need to adapt themselves to the tracks which are going to be unlike those back home and things could get interesting. AB de Villiers will be the wicket-keeper.

Watch South Africa Vs England Live World Cup T20 2010

South Africa Vs England 6th Match Super 8s Twenty20 World Cup 2010 8 May Live

Saturday, 08 May 2010

			South Africa Vs England
Venue :6th Match Super 8s Group E, Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados Live action starts from: 17:30 GMT (23:00 IST) T20 ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2010 Match

The 6th game of the Super Eight stage will see England play South Africa at Bridgetown in Barbados. Both sides had won their opening encounter and this means that the team winning this game will be almost sure to go through to the next round, that is the semi-finals, whereas the team losing this encounter will need to restart all over again and win the last match in order to have any chance of making it through to the next round.

England did not have a great first round of the tournament, having lost to West Indies in the first game and then, going on to almost lose another one before the rains prevented any play and sending them through to the next round with a better net run-rate than Ireland.

However, their game against Pakistan was a revelation as they batted and bowled much better than their opposition. They could have been hit around for too many runs by the Pakistan batsmen, but the spinners held their nerves and bowled beautifully at an opposition which loves to play spin bowling.

The pitch at Barbados was such that the batsmen did struggle to come to grips with it, but the good thing was that Kevin Pietersen batted on through the innings. He did not flinch even he got beaten, and almost took that pull stroke out of his armoury to which he had got out in both the earlier games in the tournament.

This means that when England take on the traditional foes South Africa, the contest will be an even one.

South Africa had, rather unsurprisingly, sent out Loots Bosman for the previous game and called in Herschelle Gibbs, and Gibbs contributed, both, with the bat and in the field. He scored a 24-ball 30 that took his side through the middle overs and then held three smart catches to push the Kiwis back in that game.

However, for this game, South Africa will know that they are up against an opposition who had, only late last year, held them to a 1-1 draw in a T20I series. Both the games were high-scoring and that is where the English batsmen had been able to score, unlike this game which may not be high-scoring. Instead, this one could be a grind, and one can expect the team that is able to bat through the initial phase without losing too many wickets to be able to do much better.

Watch Pakistan Vs New Zealand Live T20 World Cup Match

Pakistan Vs New Zealand 5th Match Super 8s Twenty20 World Cup 2010 8 May Live

			Pakistan Vs South Africa
Venue :9th Match Super 8s Group E, Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia Live action starts from: 13:30 GMT (19:00 IST) T20 ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2010 Match

New Zealand will play Pakistan in what will be the fifth game of the Super Eight stage of the ICC World T20. This will also be the match between the two sides which had lost their opening games of the Super Eights stage; New Zealand were put down by South Africa, whereas Pakistan lost to England.

Hence, the winner of the game will still have a chance to qualify for the next round, whereas the losing team will almost be knocked out of the tournament, unless there is a miracle.

Pakistan's batting continues to haunt them in the tournament despite that one innings against Bangladesh. Against an attack which is strong enough, the side has struggled to make it count, and this has been witnessed in two games now. There is a sense of vulnerability or brittleness in the batting and that has probably been caused by lack of the very big hitters of the ball.

Even against England, the side started out well, but all of a sudden one wicket fell and this was followed by a line of wickets before a nervous-looking Shahid Afridi was run-out. It continues to be a surprise to see that Afridi bats so high up the order and it will make sense for him to come down lower in the batting, thereby allowing some of the more talented batsmen to ensure that they get a start at the top of the order.

The bowling did its best, but nothing much seemed to have come out of it as the side had already scored far too less.

For New Zealand, it was a problem of conceding far too many runs on a difficult pitch. The track was a 150 or thereabouts wicket, but with the Kiwis not possessing anyone with the pace of Dale Steyn and with Shane Bond, not exactly in the best of forms, the opposition could run away with 170 on the board in the slog overs.

The Kiwis may have to try to get in Kyle Mills, something that was a surprise that they did not get him in the side for the South Africa game. His height and ability to bowl the different lengths at different times in the game will go on to augur well for the side.

Between the two teams, one gets the sense that the side that bowls first will have an advantage given that this is a morning match.

Watch Pakistan Vs New Zealand T20 Live Streaming

Cricket: Black Caps eye Twenty20 challenge

Tim Southee wants his side to carry their winning momentum from the ODI series into the Twenty20s against Pakistan.

Thursday, 12 Nov 2009

			Pakistan Vs New Zealand
Venue :1st Twenty20 International, Dubai Sports City Cricket Stadium Live action starts from: 16:00 GMT (21:30 IST) T20 Pakistan and New Zealand in UAE 2009-10 Twenty20 International Match

In-form bowler Tim Southee believes New Zealand can carry the momentum of a one-day international series win over Pakistan into the Twenty20 series starting in Dubai on Friday morning (NZT).

Captain Daniel Vettori's men came back from losing the first match of the one-day series in Abu Dhabi by 138 runs to record back-to-back successes - by 64 runs and seven runs.

And even though Pakistan have beaten New Zealand in successive World Twenty20 events in 2007 and 2009, Southee believed the one-day result will provide a confidence boost for the Black Caps.

"Pakistan have proved they're a great Twenty20 outfit - they're the world champions - and they've got the wood over us in the last few outings," he said.

"But hopefully we can carry some momentum from the ODIs into the Twenty20 series and continue the form we've shown in the last couple of matches."

That series win almost didn't happen, of course, thanks to the remarkable 10th-wicket stand of 103 between Mohammad Aamer (73 not out) and Saeed Ajmal (33) yesterday.

Southee admitted that while logic said Pakistan should never win the match, there were doubts creeping in before Ajmal was dismissed in the final over.

"With them being nine down it was a question of saying it would only take one ball so we were pretty confident it would happen at some stage," said the 20 year-old who impressed with two for 26 in his 10 over-spell.

"Then again, when it got to within 20 or 30 runs, everyone was a bit nervous and it gave us a bit of a scare.

"If they had been eight down then it might have been a different story but we were only ever one ball away from that last wicket."

Southee has spent the series occupying the same slot as Ajmal, propping up the bating line-up at number 11 despite scoring 77 not out from only 40 balls on test debut against England in Napier in March 2008.

And he is keen to move up the order and realise his potential with the bat as soon as he can.

"I'd love to get as far as I can with my batting," he said

"You look at someone like Daniel Vettori, his batting over the last few years has been outstanding and it just shows you it can be done as he started at 10 or 11 when he was a youngster.

"It's not going to happen overnight and hopefully slowly it progresses.

"It's something I'm willing to work on as I don't want to be batting at number 11 too much longer."

Watch Diamond Eagles Vs New South Wales CLT20 Live Streaming

Friday, 09 Oct 2009

			Diamond Eagles Vs New South Wales
Venue :2nd Match Group B, Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi Live action starts from: 10:30 GMT (16:00 IST) T20 Champions Twenty20 League 2009-10 Twenty20 match Match

Watch Delhi Daredevils Vs Victorian Bushrangers CLT20 Live Streaming

Friday, 09 Oct 2009

Delhi Daredevils Vs Victorian Bushrangers Venue :3rd Match Group D, Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi Live action starts from: 14:30 GMT (20:00 IST) T20 Champions Twenty20 League 2009-10 Twenty20 match Match

Watch Bangalore Royal Challengers Vs Cape Cobras live Streaming

Steyn, Dravid lead RCB to convincing win

Thursday, 08 Oct 2009

			Bangalore Royal Challengers Vs Cape Cobras
Venue :1st Match Group C, M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Live action starts from: 14:30 GMT (20:00 IST) T20 Champions Twenty20 League 2009-10 Twenty20 match

A fiery spell of fast bowling by Dale Steyn, in which he picked up four wickets, helped the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) beat Karnataka State Cricket Association XI (KSCA XI) by 15 runs in a warm-up match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Tuesday.

Chasing a target of 146, KSCA XI did not have any momentum going for them and were bowled out for 130 in 19.1 overs. Bhuvanesh Kumar scored 35 which was the top score of the KSCA XI innings.

Steyn took the bowling honours for RCB with figures of 4 for 14, while R Vinay Kumar and Roeolf van der Merwe chipped in with two wickets apiece.

Earlier in the evening, RCB, led by Rahul Dravid's unbeaten 64, posted a competitive 145/4 in their allotted 20 overs. Dravid had only just returned from the Champions Trophy in South Africa and barely had had any time to recover from his jet lag. His knock came off 47 balls and consisted of three sixes and two boundaries. Virat Kohli made 24.

Gautam (2/31) took the bowling honours for KSCA XI, while Bhuvanesh Kumar and medium-pacer SL Akshay chipped in with a wicket each.

RCB, who have won both their warm-up matches, are due to take on Cape Cobras in the opening clash of the Champions League T20 in the M Chinnaswamy on Thursday evening.

Watch Sout Africa v Sri Lanka, Champions Trophy Live Streaming

Sout Africa v Sri Lanka, Champions Trophy, Group B, Centurion

Nearly men kick off nearly tournament

September 21, 2009

Match facts

Tuesday, 22 Sep 2009

			South Africa Vs Sri Lanka
Venue :1st Match Group B, SuperSport Park, Centurion Live action starts from: 12:30 GMT (18:00 IST) ODI ICC Champions Trophy 2009 One Day International Match

Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Start time 1430 (1230 GMT)

	Will Smith be any closer to that trophy in a fortnight's time?

Lack of choices can be a blessing in disguise. Hence we have potentially the best event organised by the ICC in a long while. Not entirely by design, though: there was no window for a longer tournament, there isn't even a reserve day for the final. So there was no space for flab or Super Sixes or Eights or whatever. Although Bangladesh can argue they had a better case than West Indies, few could have envisaged the political turmoil in the Caribbean when the tournament was being drawn up. As a result the preliminary groups are neither meaningless cakewalks nor so fickle that one freak loss ends the tournament for a team. Throw in the fact that the top three teams are so close to each other, the No. 1 ranking is likely to change hands more often in this tournament than the baton in a relay race. So good on the ODIs, which do with this shot in the arm.

It helps that South Africa has been the setting for memorable starts to world events. In the first match of the 2003 World Cup, Brian Lara's century helped West Indies beat South Africa by three runs in a tense finish. Four years later the ICC went to South Africa unsure if the World Twenty20 would be accepted by the audience. The same two teams, in 37.4 overs, hit all such trepidations out of the Wanderers. The possibility of an exact repeat has been ruled out by the draw, which pits Sri Lanka opening the tournament against the hosts, but a similar start is needed.

Both players in the act on Tuesday run the risk of becoming perennial best men: both have been consistent limited-overs teams for large parts of last 15 years, but only two players in each team have tasted success in an ICC event: Sanath Jayasuriya and Muttiah Muralitharan won the 1996 World Cup, and Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis won the inaugural Champions Trophy in 1998.

Since then South Africa have lost two World Cup semi-finals, one World Twenty20 semi-final, and three Champions Trophy semi-finals. Sri Lanka haven't been that consistent, but they too have lost a World Cup final and semi-final each, a World Twenty20 final, and shared a Champions Trophy final.

Not much has changed on that front: this is another best chance for South Africa to shrug off the chokers' tag, and although Sri Lanka are not starting off as favourites it would be folly to underestimate them. So let the nearly men kick the nearly tournament off.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)

South Africa - LWWWL
Forget their record in big tournaments, this is indeed South Africa's best chance in a big tournament. They are the most settled team among the eight, Australia are not what they used to be - their 6-1 win in England notwithstanding - and others generally have more issues to settle than the hosts. They last played an international match back in April. Will they be rested or rusty?

Sri Lanka - LWWLL
A new-look team trying to bring together mavericks, team players and veterans makes for interesting following. Their No. 5 ranking in ODIs should not prompt other teams to let their guard down.

Watch out for...

Dale Steyn has stated what the world knows in its heart of hearts but is not so convinced about when it comes to big tournaments. "If the team play to their potential, and this might sound cocky, I really believe no side can match us at the Champions Trophy." The world is waiting, Dale, for the "team to play to their potential".

Nuwan Kulasekara quietly became the No. 1 bowler in ODIs without many noticing, and has kept the ranking for some time now. Now he will be tested in the open and, if the conditions help swing, his accuracy, inswingers, and the odd one that goes straight could just confirm the ICC rankings.

Graeme Smith has not shied from making statements for his team, and on the first day of the tournament, with regular co-opener Herschelle Gibbs out, his team needs the leader in the front.

Kumar Sangakkara the captain has been conspicuous in trying to bring a hard edge to his skilled team, but Sangakkara the batsman last scored an ODI century in June 2008, against Bangladesh. Sri Lanka won't mind a reconciliation of the two Sangakkaras.

Team news

Either Hashim Amla or Kallis will have to step up to open with Smith in Gibbs' absence, due to a rib injury that has him out of the first match. It probably won't hurt the middle order, which looks settled - only Albie Morkel and Mark Boucher could be needed earlier than usual. The three most likely to sit out are Gibbs, Robin Peterson and Lonwabo Tsotsobe. Expect a toss-up between Roelof van der Merwe and Wayne Parnell for the final position.

South Africa (probable) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Jacques Kallis, 4 AB de Villiers, 5 JP Duminy, 6 Mark Boucher (wk), 7 Albie Morkel, 8 Roelof van der Merwe/Wayne Parnell, 9 Johan Botha, 10 Makhaya Ntini, 11 Dale Steyn.

Murali should be fit to take the field now. After the tri-series final that Sri Lanka lost to India, Sangakkara had said Murali was fit but they didn't want to risk him before the Champions Trophy. Whose place will he take if he plays is an interesting question. Unless it is a rank turner, Ajantha Mendis should be the man most likely to sit out.

Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt/wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilina Kandamby, 6 Chamara Kapugedera, 7 Angelo Mathews, 8 Thilan Thushara, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Lasith Malinga.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa lead 5-1 head-to-head on Sri Lanka in ICC events. They lost to Sri Lanka in the 1992 World Cup, and tied with them in 2003, but have won all other encounters.

• Murali, with 23 wickets, is the highest wicket-taker in Champions Trophy history.

• Sangakkara, with 22 catches and four stumpings, leads the dismissals table for wicketkeepers.

Quotes

"Our team has a lot of variety. We have got a left-armer, we have got pace, we have got allrounders and we have got spin. It is nice as a captain to have so many options."
Graeme Smith likes what he sees when he casts an eye over South Africa's squad.

Watch Sri Lanka vs New Zealand T20 Live Streaming

Wednesday, 02 Sep 2009

			Sri Lanka Vs New Zealand
Venue :1st Twenty20 International, R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Live action starts from: 12:30 GMT (18:00 IST) T20 New Zealand Tour of Sri Lanka 2009 Twenty20 International Match

Watch England Vs Australia T20 Live Streaming

	England Vs Australia Tuesday, 01 Sep 2009
Venue :2nd Twenty20 International, Old Trafford, Manchester Live action starts from: 18:00 GMT (23:30 IST) ODI Australia Tour of England 2009 Twenty20 International Match

Watch Sri Lanka Vs Pakistan T20 Live Streaming

Wednesday, 12 Aug 2009

			Sri Lanka Vs Pakistan
Venue :Twenty20 International, R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Live action starts from: 12:30 GMT (18:00 IST) T20 Pakistan Tour of Sri Lanka 2009 Twenty20 International Match