Much of the talk in the build-up to Sri Lanka's do-or-die league match against India has been about the unseasonal rains in Dambulla. A third consecutive day of showers disrupted both team's practice plans. India had to return to the hotel almost immediately after reaching the ground on Saturday morning due to a steady drizzle which continued till noon.
Fans and even some of the players may be sick of the amount of times India and Sri Lanka have played each other over the past couple of years, but the rivalry has been largely free of rancour over the period. This is the first time the teams will play each other after the Suraj Randiv no-ball controversy, providing an edge to the contest. Dhoni insisted that though "whatever happened was bad, the incident must be forgotten" while Sangakkara talked of his team taking responsibility when they make mistakes, before adding, "we don't try and hide behind the press or hide behind our board."
Form guide
(most recent first)Sri Lanka: LWLWW
India: WLWLW
Watch out for...
Yuvraj Singh has recovered from a mild attack of dengue and is set to return to India's middle order. It has been a forgettable year of injuries and controversies for Yuvraj, and he will be itching to turn the headlines back to his batting abilities.
Nuwan Kulasekara has quietly worked his way into becoming an integral part of Sri Lanka's one-day outfit. He doesn't have express pace but accuracy, a big incutter and the odd delivery that holds its line make him a difficult opponent. "Kule has a bad game once in ten games or 15 games," said Sangakkara praising Kulasekara's consistency.
Team news
With Yuvraj returning, either Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma is likely to be sidelined. There probably won't be any other changes from the XI that easily beat Sri Lanka.
India (likely) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Dinesh Karthik, 3 Rohit Sharma/Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Pragyan Ojha, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Ashish Nehra
Suraj Randiv is available for selection after serving his one-match suspension, and should find a place ahead of Ajantha Mendis. Chamara Kapugedera's place could also come under the scanner, with Thisara Perera available as an alternative.
Sri Lanka (likely) 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Upul Tharanga, 3 Kum
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