Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Proteas wary of in-form Sri Lanka

World Cup Super 8, Guyana: South Africa v Sri Lanka
Match starts 1430 BST Wednesday

Shaun Pollock and Graeme Smith
Shaun Pollock and Graeme Smith confer after practice in Guyana

South Africa hope to return to winning ways when they take on Sri Lanka in the Super 8 in Guyana on Wednesday.

But they are certain to find it tough against Mahela Jayawardene's side, who had a 100% record in the first round.

"Sri Lanka are going to be a massive challenge in this tournament," said South Africa captain Graeme Smith.

"We've played a lot of times against them and they've always been pretty close games, so we've got a lot of respect for them."

South Africa will be concerned about the way Shaun Pollock was treated by Australia's batsmen in their 83-run defeat by Australia, but they are unlikely to be panicked into changes on the basis of one result.

Sri Lanka, meanwhile, must decide whether to stick with pace bowler Dilhara Fernando, who bowled Sachin Tendulkar in last week's win over over India, or revert to Farveez Maharoof.

The weather could be a factor in the outcome, with rain which has fallen in Georgetown in recent days, expected to continue for much of the week.

"It's about getting 40 overs in over two days if the weather stays as it is. It's out of our control so we try not to worry about that.

"We have a lot of options in our team if the game is reduced. We've had our share of 20-over cricket - most of our guys are pretty comfortable with it, so if that has to happen, I'm sure we'll adapt to what's thrown at us," said Smith.

Mahela Jayawardene
Sri Lanka captain Jayawardene has a quiet air of condence

Sri Lanka are among the four sides to carry two points forward from the first round group stage and skipper Mahela Jayawardene is concerned that they capitalise on that advantage as they look to reach the final for the first time since they won the World Cup in 1996.

"They are a good side but they have their weaknesses like any other. It's a big Super 8 game for us. We have carried points through, but early points will definitely benefit us," Jayawardene commented.

"You need to win practically every game that you play. That will give you a lot of confidence and a lot of momentum. You are not going into a game thinking 'It's OK, we can give this one away' because there are four places in the semi-finals.

"I am sure teams that have been beaten once up to now will be thinking it is possible for them to win every one from now on."

Sri Lanka are now seen by some pundits as one of the favourites to win the tournament, but Jayawardene added: "Whatever we are called is fine by us, we just have a system and will concentrate on that.

"We play very well as a team, everyone contributes and that has been our strength."

On paper, there is nothing between the two sides, with 21 wins each in 44 previous meetings, one no result and a famous tie at Durban four years ago when South Africa misunderstood their revised target in a rain-affected game.

Sri Lanka have won seven out of 10 matches since then, but it was South Africa who came out on top by 78 runs in a low-scoring game at last year's ICC Champions Trophy.


South Africa (from): G Smith (capt), J Kallis, L Bosman, M Boucher, AB de Villiers, H Gibbs, A Hall, J Kemp, C Langeveldt, A Nel, M Ntini, R Peterson, S Pollock, A Prince, R Telemachus.

Sri Lanka (from): M Jayawardene (capt), K Sangakkara, S Jayasuriya, U Tharanga, M Atapattu, T Dilshan, R Arnold, C Silva, C Vaas, F Maharoof, L Malinga, D Fernando, N Kulasekara, M Muralitharan, M Bandara.

Umpires: S Bucknor (WI), D Harper (Aus)

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