The World Cup, the Wankhede, and the Lankans. There’s a compellingly resonating familiarity, isn’t it? It was April 2, 2011 then; it will be November 2, 2023 now.
Much water has flown into the Arabian Sea since, but little seems to have changed. India are once again the rolling juggernaut and Sri Lanka will have their task cut out, much like it was on that fateful night at this very venue 12 years ago.
The echoes of history may indeed resurface, albeit with a somewhat diminished glory this time around for the home team. While the World Cup itself is not on the line, a spot in the semifinals awaits the home team. They’ve seemed like a shoo-in for a top-four position ever since their remarkable victory against Australia, emerging from an exceptionally adverse, difficult, and challenging position in the tournament-opener. India’s campaign has been brimmeth with authority since.
The Indian team has displayed clockwork precision in nearly all aspects – batting, bowling, and fielding. While they’ve been in top form, there have been occasional hiccups, such as Shreyas Iyer’s recent struggles with the bat and Mohammed Siraj’s rather under par performance with the new ball. However, these issues can potentially be addressed in the game on Thursday.
As a local player on his home ground, Iyer has the opportunity to work out his problems and rediscover his form in familiar surroundings. Facing short-pitched deliveries has been a challenge for him, but he has had extended net sessions to address the issue. There have been sporadic suggestions that he should make way for someone like Ishan Kishan, but the team management, led by Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid, is unlikely to tamper with the batting order.
Siraj’s recent performance with the new ball has not been very impressive but the team management is likely to persist with him too. Besides, the prospect of facing Sri Lanka might help him regain his form. Not too long ago, in the Asia Cup final, he single-handedly decimated the Sri Lankan team, which should serve as a positive memory for the bowler.
Having come from a defeat against Afghanistan and virtually out reckoning for a last-four berth, save the outside mathematical possibility, everything seems lost for Sri Lanka, and that could be the only positive for them. That may allow them to play freely.
When: November 2, 2023 at 14:00 IST
Where: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
What to expect: A high-scoring game is expected unless Mohammed Siraj hits his straps against Sri Lanka. The weather is set to be fair.
Team watch:
India
India are unlikely to make any changes to the XI that beat England a few nights ago in Lucknow, unless the think-tank wants to rest Jasprit Bumrah. But that decision will be left to the pacer himself. Apart from that, no other changes look possible. With Hardik Pandya still unavailable — a BCCI source says he is expected to be fit for the game against South Africa in Kolkata on November 5 if not here in Mumbai on Thursday — there is little chance for R Ashwin to come in, as a third spinner can be fielded only when all-rounder Pandya is available. For now, that is not happening.
Tactics and strategy
India will want their out-of-form player Shreyas Iyer to get runs so that everyone is in good nick for the tougher tests ahead. His scores so far read: 0, 25, 53, 19, 33 and 4. Fortunately, he will be playing at a venue known for consistent pace and bounce.
Probable XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
Sri Lanka
Tactics and strategy
Sri Lanka’s spinners including Maheesh Theekshana have had an indifferent World Cup so far, faring the worst out of all teams. They have together picked only five wickets at an average of 121.6 and will need to step up against a team like India.
Probable XI: Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis (c & wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka.
Did you know?
– Mohammed Siraj has only picked 2 wickets inside the first PowerPlay in this World Cup
– Rohit’s ODI scores at Wankhede read 16, 20 and 10
– Virat Kohli has 10 ODI hundreds against Sri Lanka
– Theekshana has picked only five wickets across seven games in this World Cup
What they said
“The boys are very aware of the history, to be honest. Obviously, players do talk about the past history of their team as well and the results that they’ve had. It’s a great stadium. We walked in today and the first thing you do is go, wow, this is a great place to play cricket. And when you stand out in the middle, you get that sort of goosebumps. So, for me, there’s plenty of things out there to motivate them to go perform in front of what will be a packed house tomorrow as well” – Chris Silverwood on the World Cup history associated with the ground and how it can motivate his players.
“Speaking of the past, obviously, there’s hardly one or two players from their squad, from that team, maybe one guy, Angelo (Mathews), and the same from our side as well. There are only two guys (Virat Kohli and R Ashwin) in the squad. So, I don’t think — it’s been more than a decade now since that has happened. So, I don’t think that is going to be a factor. Everyday, you have to turn up, and you have to turn up well, thinking that this is a fresh day, fresh game, fresh opposition” – Rohit Sharma on the relevance of recent and past games against Sri Lanka to Thursday’s World Cup encounter
