West Indies tri-series 2013 final: India vs Sri Lanka - Five players to watch out for

India have regained most of the that self-belief with which they came to the Caribbean after a glorious victory at the Champions Trophy. They have had a two-part campaign: the first part in Jamaica was tarnished by an injury to captain MS Dhoni and the humiliating defeat to Sri Lanka, whereas the second half at Port of Spain has seen the team bounce back with a vengeance.

India have the momentum on their side with two back-to-back victories going into the final, and they will be smacking their lips for another piece of silverware when they have a look at their record against Sri Lanka in consequential matches.

It remains to be seen if MS Dhoni features in the final after having recovered from his hamstring injury, but the odds are that Virat Kohli will captain the side in the final. The 24-year-old lad from Delhi has led the side admirably in the absence of MS Dhoni and it was his century that redeemed India’s campaign. He will be hoping to taste his first success as captain at Port of Spain.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have had to work hard to get to the final. They had to play two consecutive rain-interrupted matches, one of which went into the reserve day. That effort would have expended a lot of their energy, but nothing invigorates more than the possibility of revenge. The Lankan lions were ousted from the Champions Trophy semi-finals by India, and the World Cup final loss would still be fresh in their memory. They would like to win this series to give captain Angelo Matthews his first major success.

Here is a list of five players who will play a critical role when the final is played at Port of Spain:

5. Rohit Sharma

The right-handed opener played a crucial knock in the previous rain-interrupted game. He has been India’s highest run-getter in the series so far and averages over 50.00. While the runs have come handy, his inability to convert those half-centuries into centuries remains very frustrating.

He will have yet another opportunity to mend that flaw in the final and he does not need to do much. He just needs to limit the range of his shots so that he does not play an unnecessary expansive shot, throwing away his wicket in a critical situation. He will have enough time to settle down to get his share of runs due to the able support he will receive from his opening partner Shikhar Dhawan, who escalates the run rate at the head of the innings.

4. Rangana Herath

The off-spinner has defied his critics by taking full advantage of the conditions in the West Indies. He has found turn on the dry surfaces and has not been hindered by the lack of pace. He was ripping through India’s batting line-up in the last game when rain interrupted the match. He has five wickets in the last two matches that he has played against India and that stat indicates that he will be a potent threat.

The familiarity between these two sides means that the Indian batsmen read Lasith Malinga through and through. Herath has received quality support from captain Angelo Matthews, who helps the spinner shackle the opposition’s scoring rate in the middle overs with his slow-medium pace.

3. Virat Kohli

The Indian stand-in captain can hold his head high with his efforts in this series, irrespective of the result of this match. He turned around the body language of this Indian team after a humiliating loss to Sri Lanka earlier with a magnificent century in the slow and dry conditions of the West Indies.

The ball does not come onto the bat so easily in these conditions, and that means that a settled batsman cannot afford to throw away his wicket. In such a situation, Virat Kohli’s ability to make it a match-winning innings when he gets going become all the more critical. He can enhance his reputation as a leader and as a batsman by starring in this final.

2. Mahela Jayawardene

The former Sri Lankan captain will be playing his 400th ODI. He would like to celebrate the landmark by contributing a lion’s share to a victory against the Indian team. He has played an important role in the series so far and scored a century against India earlier in the tournament. He will be up against India’s most recent find the shorter format of the game – Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Mahela Jayawardene will be assigned the job of anchoring one end in order to avoid the kind of meltdown that occurred in the last game. The vulnerability of the middle-order will be a concern for him, and hence he would like to take up the bulk of the responsibility while allowing the likes of Dinesh Chandimal and Lahiru Thirimanne to play around him.

1. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar finished with figures of 4/8 in his six allotted overs in the last group game against Sri Lanka. He destroyed the Sri Lankan batting order with his swing bowling. His ability to swing the ball both ways with a credible disguise makes him a lethal bowler at the head of the innings. The fact that he is always economical makes him a match-winning bowler as it creates a huge amount of pressure on the batsman in the first fifteen overs.

The effectiveness of the Indian bowling attack increases manifold when he gets that initial breakthrough for India as the spinners are bowling at unsettled middle order batsman. He has taken 8 wickets at an economy of just above 3.50 runs per over in this tournament so far.