Pakistan, Sri Lanka set for crunch battle
The R Premadasa Stadium looks set to host the crunch Group A match between the hosts and Pakistan today.
COLOMBO:
The R Premadasa Stadium looks set to host the crunch Group A match between the hosts and Pakistan today with both teams coming off resounding wins, aiming to stamp their authority early on in the tournament.
Sri Lanka thrashed Canada by 210 runs while Pakistan got the better of Kenya with a 205-run win. A repeat of those margins looks unlikely given the strength and confidence of the teams but both sides vowed to take the fight right till the end of the match.
“It’s a very important game for us and a win here will help us immensely in the tournament,” said Pakistan’s coach Waqar Younis in the pre-match press conference. “We’re keeping an eye on the quarter-final slots and will have to take every match seriously.
“Apart from the support, the conditions and weather will suit them as well compared to us but we’re in good touch and by overcoming the mistakes we made in the last match, we can beat them.”
Waqar, though, was critical of his openers who failed to score freely in Pakistan’s tournament opener as the first eight overs yielded just 18 runs with both openers back in the pavilion.
“We need a good start to gain confidence in the match. We should not lose early wickets and must avoid repeating mistakes.”
Changes unlikely
While the team management refrained from naming Pakistan’s playing-eleven, it has been learnt that they will retain the squad from the win against Kenya.
“The team is likely to be retained but it’d be finalised in the meeting before the match. Our combination worked well against Kenya and Abdul Rehman has been performing well. He also gives us an added batting option.”
The coach also defended the team’s defensive strategy of playing with seven batsmen with explosive allrounder Abdul Razzaq coming in down the order. “He hasn’t done that well with the bat since Abu Dhabi but he’s bowling well so that’s where he comes in handy.”
Hosts wary of Pakistan threat
Sri Lanka will be enjoying home advantage but captain Kumar Sangakkara remains well aware of the threat Pakistan carries and said his side will not take the match lightly.
“Pakistan are a balanced side,” said Sangakkara. “Their players are capable of taking the match away from us and we cannot take anything for granted. It’d be a keen contest and the side showing better discipline would be victorious.”
Sangakkara hoped his pacer Lasith Malinga, who missed the match against Canada due to a back strain, will recover in time for this match. “He’s recovering fast and we’re hopeful he’ll play as he’s an important player for us.”
Stringent security measures in place
The Sri Lanka security officials have made strict security arrangements for the match that is expected to be attended by over 30,000 spectators. Hundreds of officials were deployed in and around the stadium, as well as in the city, on the eve of the match to avoid any untoward incident.
“The security risk is not very high as we’re over with the Tamil resurgence but we can’t take any risks at this point in time,” a security official told The Express Tribune. “We want to hold the World Cup in a befitting manner to send a positive message to the outside world.”
Meanwhile, fans in Colombo were seen running from pillar to post to get tickets which already have been sold out weeks ago.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 26th, 2011.
The R Premadasa Stadium looks set to host the crunch Group A match between the hosts and Pakistan today with both teams coming off resounding wins, aiming to stamp their authority early on in the tournament.
Sri Lanka thrashed Canada by 210 runs while Pakistan got the better of Kenya with a 205-run win. A repeat of those margins looks unlikely given the strength and confidence of the teams but both sides vowed to take the fight right till the end of the match.
“It’s a very important game for us and a win here will help us immensely in the tournament,” said Pakistan’s coach Waqar Younis in the pre-match press conference. “We’re keeping an eye on the quarter-final slots and will have to take every match seriously.
“Apart from the support, the conditions and weather will suit them as well compared to us but we’re in good touch and by overcoming the mistakes we made in the last match, we can beat them.”
Waqar, though, was critical of his openers who failed to score freely in Pakistan’s tournament opener as the first eight overs yielded just 18 runs with both openers back in the pavilion.
“We need a good start to gain confidence in the match. We should not lose early wickets and must avoid repeating mistakes.”
Changes unlikely
While the team management refrained from naming Pakistan’s playing-eleven, it has been learnt that they will retain the squad from the win against Kenya.
“The team is likely to be retained but it’d be finalised in the meeting before the match. Our combination worked well against Kenya and Abdul Rehman has been performing well. He also gives us an added batting option.”
The coach also defended the team’s defensive strategy of playing with seven batsmen with explosive allrounder Abdul Razzaq coming in down the order. “He hasn’t done that well with the bat since Abu Dhabi but he’s bowling well so that’s where he comes in handy.”
Hosts wary of Pakistan threat
Sri Lanka will be enjoying home advantage but captain Kumar Sangakkara remains well aware of the threat Pakistan carries and said his side will not take the match lightly.
“Pakistan are a balanced side,” said Sangakkara. “Their players are capable of taking the match away from us and we cannot take anything for granted. It’d be a keen contest and the side showing better discipline would be victorious.”
Sangakkara hoped his pacer Lasith Malinga, who missed the match against Canada due to a back strain, will recover in time for this match. “He’s recovering fast and we’re hopeful he’ll play as he’s an important player for us.”
Stringent security measures in place
The Sri Lanka security officials have made strict security arrangements for the match that is expected to be attended by over 30,000 spectators. Hundreds of officials were deployed in and around the stadium, as well as in the city, on the eve of the match to avoid any untoward incident.
“The security risk is not very high as we’re over with the Tamil resurgence but we can’t take any risks at this point in time,” a security official told The Express Tribune. “We want to hold the World Cup in a befitting manner to send a positive message to the outside world.”
Meanwhile, fans in Colombo were seen running from pillar to post to get tickets which already have been sold out weeks ago.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 26th, 2011.