Indians can crumble under pressure:

Lankans out to make history

Mahela and Kumar say goodbye:

By Elmo Rodrigopulle

Sri Lanka out for the kill... The Sri Lankan cricketers now that they have taken their rightful slot in the final of the ICC World Cup Twenty20 must fire all cylinders and crown their Bangladesh safari by bringing home the trophy.

The Lankans have been in this Cup final cauldron twice before in 2009 in England and 2012 in Colombo, losing to Pakistan and West Indies and the Lions will be gritting their teeth wanting devour the high riding Indians and lay their hands on that elusive trophy.

If the manner in which the Lankans played in the semi-final against the West Indies is an indication, then they are in the right frame of mind, the urgency and above all the hunger to win is all there.

Although losing the solitary match to England, the consensus is that the Sri Lankans are the pick of the teams in the tournament and deserve to hug the trophy.

Chandimal on the bench again

Once again regular skipper Dinesh Chandimal will have to be on the bench, and watch his vice captain Lasith Malinga leading the Lankans to the trophy guided cleverly by former captain Mahela Jayewardene.

Before going on to further comment on the final, we would like to compliment and wish two of the game’s greats Mahela Jayewardene and Kumar Sangakkara for their yeoman service to Sri Lanka cricket, now that they will be for the final time holding a bat and fielding a ball in this format of the game.

Moments like this are tinged with sadness. But the consolation is that they will not be lost to the game but will be seen in action in the 50-over and the established game.

The twosome have been faithful servants of the game as cricketers, captains and above all ambassadors and it is everyone’s wish that they will play a big part and go out in a blaze of glory by winning the Cup for the country.

Lankans must be ruthless

The Sri Lankans must carry the same ruthless approach into the final too. It must be an all out assault hitting the Indians where it hurts most and like a champion boxer not drop guard until the knockout punch is delivered.

Sri Lanka Cricket has further inspired the cricketers to win the trophy by offering them big prize money if they succeed. Here’s how rich the cricketers will get:- Participating fee of USD 500.000 for the team. For reaching the final USD 25.000. Winning the final USD 250.000.

The Sri Lankans must take the field with that second to none feeling.

The Indians too are after all humans and they are not larger than life. The side winning the toss and bating and posting a score of over 160 will be hard to beat. True the South Africans made 172 and lost. But that was because their bowling attack was hopelessly out of depth which allowed the Indian batsmen to roam free.

Wicket good for batting

The wicket in Dhaka looked a good one for batting. There was bounce, movement, spin and the sound the ball was making on bat was sweet music to the ears of the batsmen which allowed stroke making.

Like they did against the West Indies, openers Kusal Perera, the wonder boy of the game here now must lash out from ball one. A bit of caution could help him to a big score.

His partner the experienced Tillekeratne Dilshan must be told to watch his reckless running between the wickets. There is no need for risk taking. Not only did he run out Mahela Jayewardene he ran himself out too which to say the least was stupid.

Batsmen following Jayewardene and Kumar Sangakkara are sure to strain every nerve and sinew and make big scores and help the team win and bring the curtain down on their illustrious Twenty20 careers.

Picking the right ball to hit

Left-hander Lahiru Thirimanne has settled down beautifully and is batting intelligently, picking the right ball to hit. He should contribute lavishly again.

The cynosure of all eyes after Kusal Perera will be that man who could make mincemeat of any attack. Instead of playing pat ball cricket he must launch because he has Rhino power in him and can hit the ball out of the ground.

If the batsmen mentioned score there will be no need for the others following to bat. Sachitra Seneneyeke, Seekugge Prasanna, Nuwan Kulesekera and Skipper Malinga can concentrate on their bowling.

Good that the selectors saw reason and pushed in leg spinner Seekugge Prasanna into the team. He proved his value by getting a wicket that of Windies batsmen Lendl Simmons with his first ball.

Don’t allow a second chance

The Sri Lankan fielders, like they did in the previous games must field brilliantly again. None of the Indian batsmen must be allowed a second chance. As for the Indians, with the return of regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni they are a different side to the one that failed to impress in the Asia Cup. But they can crumble under pressure.

All Indian batsmen can be dangerous. But if the Lankans can knock Virat Kohli over early they could restrict the Indian batting juggernaut.

The only bowler who could worry the Lankan batsmen is off spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

Every Sri Lankan not in the scene of action will be glued to their radios and televisions watching the action, saying a silent prayer and wishing for a convincing victory. Sri Lanka has never won this trophy.

Over then to Dhaka and for history making!