India, Lanka fight today for cricket crown

THE ICC Cricket World Cup reaches its culmination at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday when former champions India and Sri Lanka clash for the trophy in the first-ever all-Asian final of the mega event with the spotlight falling on a pair of all-time greats — Sachin Tendulkar and Muttiah Muralitharan. Sadly, though, only one of them will be left celebrating as the teams fight out for the biggest-ever purse on offer for the new world champions in 12 years, with the winning side set to pocket $3,250,000 out of the $8,010,000 prize money for the latest quadrennial showpiece. Tendulkar, the little Indian batting genius, had never been a World Cup winner and would be desperate to win the most coveted cricket trophies of all for his country which it won in 1983. The most successful batsman, by far, in both forms of the game is set to make his last appearance at the World Cup in front of his adoring Mumbai fans on a dry, brown surface laid out for Saturday's title-decider. And realistically speaking, for Tendulkar who turns 38 on the 24th of this month, this is one final opportunity to be a part of the World Cup winning side at his sixth attempt since 1992. For a man who has broken every possible batting record in international cricket, this will be a deserved accolade after the bitter disappointment of the 2003 final in Johannesburg where India were blown away by Australia. Off-spinning maestro Muralitharan, of course, knows well how it feels to win the biggest prize in limited-overs cricket since he was a member of the Arjuna Ranatunga-led Sri Lankan team that won the last World Cup staged in the Subcontinent. That was in 1996 and since that finest moment in his country's cricketing history, Muralitharan carved a niche for himself by setting new benchmarks on the bowling front and rewriting the record books. While Tendulkar is still to make a call on his future, Muralitharan has no intention of playing for his beloved country beyond Saturday's grand finale, having already declared eight months ago that he would be signing off from the international arena after the World Cup. But right now Muralitharan is anxious to ensure his last hurrah does not end up on the sidelines. Grave doubts over his fitness have persisted right through the campaign but, given his resilience and fighting qualities, the man called 'Murali' will definitely play in the final. A four-wicket haul on Saturday will make him the most successful wicket-taker in the World Cup — Glenn McGrath currently holds the record with 71 scalps — and add yet another chapter to his glittering career. Sri Lanka relatively had a smooth ride to the final, winning seven games while their only defeat was against Pakistan in Colombo on Feb 26. They were simply just too good for England in the quarter-final where Tillekeratne Dilshan — the tournament's leading batsman with 467 runs — and Upul Tharanga starred with centuries in the 10-wicket triumph before defeating New Zealand in the semi-final by five wickets. India won six games, but survived a few close shaves before getting to this stage of the competition after getting past Pakistan by 29 runs in that 'mother of all battles' at Mohali on Wednesday and halting Australia's World Cup title-winning sequence in the Ahmedabad quarter-final. INJURY WORRIES: Both teams have concerns over injuries. Indian left-arm paceman Ashish Nehra is almost certain to miss out the final after fracturing the middle finger of his right hand during the semi-final. His likely replacement could be either the in-form off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin or the temperamental Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, the fast bowler who hasn't played since being clobbered for 53 runs in five overs in the tournament's opening game against Bangladesh in Dhaka on Feb 19. Sri Lanka, who are already sweating on Muralitharan, have been forced to rush in off-spinner Suraj Randiv as a replacement for all-rounder Angelo Mathews, who had to leave the field during Tuesday's semi-final with a quadriceps muscle injury and had to bat with a runner. His absence is a body blow for Kumar Sangakkara's side since he was a vital cog in the middle order while also being a trusted back-up seamer. Although both teams appear to be well balanced on paper, Sri Lanka have the psychological edge over India since they had the advantage of playing their preliminary round fixture at the refurbished stadium here on March 18 and comfortably beat New Zealand by 112 runs. Sangakkara (111) and Muralitharan (4-25) made significant contributions. Sri Lanka also have enjoyed more success over India in World Cups, winning four to their rivals' two. More significantly, Sri Lanka won both matches against them in 1996, including the riot-hit semi-final at Kolkata's Eden Gardens. And when these two talented outfits last competed in a World Cup game, Sri Lanka won their battle in Trinidad on their way to the 2007 final against Australia while India went home without going beyond the first round. Teams: INDIA: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Ashish Nehra, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth. SRI LANKA: Upul Tharanga, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (captain), Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Silva, Nuwan Kulasekara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lasith Malinga, Rangana Herath, Ajantha Mendis, Chamara Kapugedera, Dilhara Fernando, Thisara Perera, Suraj Randiv. PITCH CONDITIONS: The well-rolled pitch with even bounce should provide entertaining cricket with both bat and ball. The match will begin in hot weather but the evening sea breeze will cool temperatures. Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pakistan) and Simon Taufel (Australia). TV umpire: Ian Gould (England) Reserve umpire: Steve Davis (Australia). Match referee: Jeff Crowe (New Zealand).