Arjun
Cricketer Of The Year
There's less than a week (as of now) for the event, a tri-series in Bangladesh, involving the Lankans and Indians. We've had an overdose of India-SL matches lately, but so far, India have been the more successful team, although far from perfect.
This series is a double-leg triangular, which makes it interesting. It's not often that we have these double-leg (or more) triangulars involving a minnow, except in Australia and South Africa, but there is scope for that odd upset. The Indians are not perfect, and have their weaknesses, notably their lack of balance. The Lankans are not in the best of form either, having been defeated in the latest ODI series and largely struggled against India, home and away. The Bangladeshis have proved capable of upsets, but they're often against struggling top-flight teams, less against teams doing well, and they've never won more than once, except in the 2007 World Cup.
The Indians have rested Sachin for this series, which is seen by many as a good thing. After all, a more important clash against South Africa awaits. The loss of some all-rounders and pacers will hurt a little. The Lankans, however, have made sweeping changes in their squad for the series, and while two recalls seem smart, they'll go in with a largely inexperienced team. The Bangladeshis have possibly their strongest side now, and it's up to them to take it forward on the match date.
One matter of speculation is the choice of sponsor here. Nobody, for instance, expected Kitply, a near-forgotten brand, to sponsor last year's event. Then a series organised by BCCI between India and Lanka launched IDBI Fortis Wealthsurance, which was unknown till then. Even the recent ODI series was sponsored by Karbonn mobiles, famous only later this year. This might just happen again, with an unknown brand becoming the title sponsor of a limited-overs series in the subcontinent, and thus, famous overnight.
This series is a double-leg triangular, which makes it interesting. It's not often that we have these double-leg (or more) triangulars involving a minnow, except in Australia and South Africa, but there is scope for that odd upset. The Indians are not perfect, and have their weaknesses, notably their lack of balance. The Lankans are not in the best of form either, having been defeated in the latest ODI series and largely struggled against India, home and away. The Bangladeshis have proved capable of upsets, but they're often against struggling top-flight teams, less against teams doing well, and they've never won more than once, except in the 2007 World Cup.
The Indians have rested Sachin for this series, which is seen by many as a good thing. After all, a more important clash against South Africa awaits. The loss of some all-rounders and pacers will hurt a little. The Lankans, however, have made sweeping changes in their squad for the series, and while two recalls seem smart, they'll go in with a largely inexperienced team. The Bangladeshis have possibly their strongest side now, and it's up to them to take it forward on the match date.
One matter of speculation is the choice of sponsor here. Nobody, for instance, expected Kitply, a near-forgotten brand, to sponsor last year's event. Then a series organised by BCCI between India and Lanka launched IDBI Fortis Wealthsurance, which was unknown till then. Even the recent ODI series was sponsored by Karbonn mobiles, famous only later this year. This might just happen again, with an unknown brand becoming the title sponsor of a limited-overs series in the subcontinent, and thus, famous overnight.
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