Battle of familiar foes

Cuttack: Their World Cup build-up halted by West Indies team’s sudden mid-series pull-out, India would resume the preparations for the mega-event when they square off against under-cooked sub-continental rivals Sri Lanka in a hastily-arranged ODI series starting here on Sunday. A series against the depleted Lankans on surfaces totally different from those on offer in Australia and New Zealand may not be the ideal launchpad but it would certainly give the reigning world champions an opportunity to test their bench strength under stand-in skipper Virat Kohli.

Regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been rested for the first three ODIs of the five-match series. Having come here on SOS after the West Indies cricketers’ abrupt pull-out midway into the series last month over a pay dispute with WICB, the Sri Lankans are without their injured premier pace duo of Lasith Malinga and Suranga Lakmal, while spin aces Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath too will be missed.

That India A side, under Manoj Tiwary, plundered 382 runs in 50 overs with centuries from Rohit Sharma (142) and Manish Pandey (135 not out) in their 88-run win against the Lankans in the only practice match at CCI on October 30, is a pointer to the quality of the visiting team’s attack. At a time when Kohli is looking to rediscover himself and Ajinkya Rahane competing for the opening slot against Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, the series would give plenty of opportunities to the Indian batsmen to get back among runs.

After a forgettable England tour, Kohli has been in the spotlight for the wrong reasons as he had to shuffle his position to No 4 to get back to form. It worked as he scored a 62 against the West Indies in Delhi and followed that up with a 127 at his familiar No 3 spot. For somebody who’s seen as a future captaincy material, Kohli would be under pressure to lead the side for the first three ODIs. He will also look to keep the critics at bay.

The stats may indicate otherwise with Kohli winning nine out of the 12 ODIs he’s led but under his captaincy India, without Dhoni and Suresh Raina, lost to Pakistan and Sri Lanka be eliminated at group stage at the Asia Cup in Bangladesh. But the silver lining for the stylish right-hander would be his batting average — 65.12 against the overall 51.57 — with three centuries from the 12 ODIs, something that may indicate that he’s not weighed down by the additional responsibility.

That Kohli (133 innings) needs only 121 runs to become the fastest ODI batsman to complete 6,000 in ODIs would be an added motivation for the Indian youngster who would turn 26 on November 5. As a matter of fact, both Kohli and Sir Viv Richards took 114 innings to reach the 5,000 club. As for Rahane, Dhoni’s choice for the opening slot in place of Sharma, the series would give at least three opportunities before the Mumbaikar staked his claim with an imposing 111-ball 142 against the visiting Lankans in the practice match.