India and Sri Lanka will face off in an intriguing all-Asian final in the ICC World Twenty20 today, hoping to create a slice of history that would carry the legacy of a generation of some champions from either side. With plenty to achieve for both the Asian powerhouses, the game is expected to be a battle of nerves, much similar to what separated the two teams two years ago in Mumbai, when India outperformed Sri Lanka in World Cup 2011 final.
India have retained almost the same squad, a bunch of energetic young cricketers grown up with a champion mentality under the leadership of wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a captain who made calmness quite an art.
Sri Lanka have their own motivation, having lost two World Cup finals and two World Twenty20 finals in the last eight years.
Two of their all-time great cricketers, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, will bid bye to Twenty20 Internationals with this match, making the game more special for the side.
Both Sangakkara and Jayawardene began their career after Sri Lanka won their only World Cup in 1996 and shared the burden of the side jointly on many occasion since then.
It will be a fitting farewell to the retiring duo if Sri Lanka can do it with a global trophy. Sri Lanka will be further boosted by a million-dollar incentive package, announced by the country’s cricket board for winning the trophy.
With money or no money, they have many issues to sort out including the team combination that is rocked by captaincy issue recently. Their regular captain Dinesh Chandimal opted out of semi-final for poor personal form, but stand-in captain Lasith Malinga said on Saturday he is still in contention for a place in final.
Malinga also confirmed even if Chandimal returns, he will be leading the side, something which indicates all is not well within the sides.
A similar selection rocked them before the World Cup final in Mumbai when they dropped four players from the semi-final line-up only to be thrashed by six wickets by India.
Ajantha Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Chamara Silva and Rangana Herath had to make way for Chamara Kapugedera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Thisara Perera and Suraj Randiv something which raised many eyebrows.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, however, ruled out the win in Mumbai will give his side any psychological edge over the Islanders.
‘Well in this format I don’t think psychological advantage really matters because the difference between the good sides is very narrow,’ Dhoni said in Saturday’s press conference.
‘I feel it all boils down to how well you have played on that particular day and how the individuals respond to a particular situation.’
His counterpart Malinga responded exactly the same way saying the team’s practice match win against India was a psychological game.
‘Practice match is a practice match. But a tournament match is very different, both mentally and physically,’ said Malinga
‘The final is a big game, the tension is completely different. Whoever plays well on the day can win,’ he said.
-With New Age input
