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Cannot overlook Rohit's quality – Gambhir

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The change of venues from windy Hambantota to humid Colombo may not change the fortunes of Rohit Sharma and Manoj Tiwary. The team management expects much of Rohit in the 2015 World Cup and will back him “as much as possible”, according to opening batsman Gautam Gambhir. Tiwary is sure to get opportunities, but whether it comes in the next game or the next series, “no one knows,” Gambhir said. So basically, Rohit has the faith; Tiwary can keep the bench.What again came out in the press conference was how highly the team management rated Rohit. Gambhir said dropping a “talented” player like Rohit – who averages 17.33 this year – would only undermine his confidence. He might not be among the runs, but Rohit was batting “the best among all of us” in the nets, and asked for more faith as he saw him “scoring a lot of runs for India in the future.” Where is he going wrong at present, though? “Nowhere.””He’s done pretty well,” Gambhir said. “Not on this tour, not in Australia, but he’s got two Man-of-the-Series awards, in West Indies and in India. If you keep chopping and changing players like him who are so talented, you are only going to play with his confidence. He was unfortunate in the last game. You can drag the ball on [to the stumps]. It can happen to the best of players. But you have to see the bigger picture. If he is in your scheme of things for the next World Cup, obviously you have to go with him and try and give him as much confidence as possible.”Gambhir said it was a matter of time before Rohit got the runs. “Whether a person is in form or out of it, the important thing is how he is feeling about his batting. You cannot be batting well, but you can still be getting runs. If you are very comfortable with your batting, if you know that you are batting well, somewhere down the line you will score runs. We still need to show some faith in him because he is a quality player.”Getting dropped after a lean run may damage Rohit’s confidence, but Tiwary’s will sink lower when he makes a match-winning century, and is then left out for 13 straight games, and maybe more. All Gambhir said was that Tiwary should look to grab every chance he got.”It is not about individuals and I don’t want to talk about individuals, about how Manoj is feeling,” Gambhir said. “How the team is doing is all that matters. Somewhere down the line, he will get an opportunity. If he is not getting the opportunity and the team management [believes the] playing XI they pick is the best XI to do the job on that particular day, the team management does that because ultimately it is not about individuals. It is about what results you want and what combination you want to go with.”Whenever Manoj gets that opportunity, he should be looking forward to it and he should do well in that opportunity. Whether he gets it in the next game, whether he gets it in the next series, no one knows.”The third ODI on Saturday may make the fate of both the batsmen clearer.

Mustard sacked as Durham captain

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Paul Collingwood has been appointed as captain of Durham’s County Championship side as the club seek to reverse a disappointing start to the season which has seen them fail to win any of their first eight games.Collingwood, who led England to the World T20 title in 2010, replaces Phil Mustard, who was appointed in May 2010 after Will Smith was removed as captain in similar circumstances. Dale Benkenstein remains Durham captain in the limited-overs formats.Durham’s head coach Geoff Cook said: “We’re delighted that Paul has agreed to take on the captaincy and lead the side in the four-day competition. Paul’s international experience is an excellent asset to the team, at a time when we need to be delivering our best results.”We are grateful for Phil Mustard’s efforts as captain and he remains an integral part of the team as a key contributor behind the stumps and with the bat.”Whether a change of captaincy will arrest the decline of an ageing squad remains to be seen. Aged 36 and with a top score of 50 in 12 championship innings this season, Collingwood is probably not a long-term solution.Collingwood’s first game in charge will be next week, when Durham travel to New Road to take on Worcestershire, the only other side in the top division without a win in the championship this season.Collingwood said: “I’m excited to have the opportunity to use my experience to help us progress in the LV= County Championship and get us back to winning ways.”Durham had been touted as championship challengers, but a side that has grown old together has been bereft of top-order runs and two former England fast bowlers, Steve Harmison and Liam Plunkett, have been conspicuous by their absence.Mustard took over little more than two years ago when another poor start caused Durham to sack Smith after a heavy defeat at Trent Bridge. The decision was officially one of “mutual consent,” but Smith was persuaded that he had lost the trust of senior personnel on a coach journey back from the game.Now Mustard, who was regarded as the player to restore harmony, has failed to address the championship slide of a county for which successive championships of 2008 and 2009 are now a distant memory.

Masakadza, Mpofu seal 11-run win

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Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Hamilton Masakadza cracked 62 of 35 deliveries•AFP

Zimbabwe cruised to an 11-run win over Bangladesh in the opening match of the tri-series at Harare Sports Club. After choosing to bat on a dry pitch, Zimbabwe were propped up by the in-form Hamilton Masakadza’s bellicose half-century as they reached 154 for 6. A professional team effort from Zimbabwe’s bowlers then completed the job, the spinners keeping Bangladesh’s explosive top order quiet and the seamers holding their nerve at the death.Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Ashraful, promoted to open the batting, had approached Bangladesh’s chase with the clear intention of laying a platform and not losing early wickets. They managed five boundaries in the first six overs but became oddly becalmed when Brendan Taylor turned to his spinners, Prosper Utseya and Graeme Cremer.By the seventh over Taylor was using spin from both ends, and though neither Tamim nor Ashraful are known as calm accumulators, they did just that as the opening stand passed 50 in the eighth over. With the required run-rate approaching nine an over, Ashraful jumped out of his crease at Utseya only for the bowler to spear one past the outside edge. Taylor completed a smart stumping.A fired-up Ziaur Rahman thumped his third ball, from Utseya, high over the deep midwicket boundary to give the chase a little oomph but Zimbabwe’s spinners kept the pressure on both batsmen. Cremer was particularly thrifty, mixing fizzing legbreaks with quicker sliders as just two runs came from his third over. Cremer’s unbroken spell from the city end should have brought a wicket when Rahman top-edged a slog sweep and Mpofu set himself to take the catch at wide long-on. The ball burst straight through his fingers, however, and bobbled over the rope for four.Mpofu made quick amends for his lapse when he came on from the Golf Course end and picked up Tamim’s vital wicket as a slashed drive was caught by a tumbling Jarvis at third man to reduce Bangladesh to 87 for 2 in the 14th over. The uncapped Richard Muzhange has made his name in domestic limited-overs cricket through his skilful use of the yorker and it was a swinging toe-crusher that got rid of Mushfiqur Rahim as Bangladesh quickly slipped to 95 for 3.An athletic, diving catch by Craig Ervine at deep backward square got rid of Rahman and from then on Zimbabwe’s grip tightened steadily. Nasir Hossain and Mahmudullah swung gamely at everything to keep Bangladesh in the hunt, but they were simply not given enough to hit and Jarvis had no trouble defending 19 in the final over.Zimbabwe’s batting had not been quite so assured, and they were thankful for Masakadza’s knock. He struck the ball with fluency and power but after he fell Zimbabwe stumbled on a surface that slowed noticeably as the afternoon wore on.Masakadza’s first task had been to negotiate Abdur Razzaq’s parsimonious opening spell, which he did with aplomb while collecting three fours and a six in Mashrafe Mortaza’s first three overs. Emboldened by the imperious form that brought him a century in Zimbabwe’s warm-up match two days ago, Masakadza raced into the 30s by slapping Abul Hasan’s second ball cleanly over long-off.Vusi Sibanda’s scratchy innings came to an end as he walked past one from Elias Sunny that gripped and spun past the outside edge but Taylor did a good job of handing the strike back to Masakadza, who powered the first half of Zimbabwe’s innings almost singlehandedly. Masakadza’s third six, which skimmed through the fingers of the long-on fielder, took him to a 31-ball half-century. He added a fourth, a brutal flat-batted swipe that dented the advertising boards behind the bowler’s arm before being run out.His departure prompted something of a wobble in the middle order as Ervine was needlessly run-out second ball and Stuart Matsikenyeri managed just a single from his first six balls.Matsikenyeri eventually got going with a slice to the wide third-man boundary off Razzaq and added 39 for the fourth wicket with Taylor, whose chipped six over extra cover off Sunny was the shot of the innings. But Zimbabwe never quite regained the momentum that Masakadza had given them. Zimbabwe’s bowlers more than made up for the shortcomings of their batsmen and Bangladesh will need a good dose of inspiration if they are to bounce back against South Africa in two days’ time.

Low expectations for West Indies

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Match Facts

May 17-21, Lord’s
Start time 1100 (1000GMT)Jonny Bairstow is in line for his Test debut at Lord’s•Getty Images

The Big Picture

The days when a West Indies series began with the expectation they would inflict a blackwash are long gone. Now they begin a series with many expecting they will be whitewashed. Unless weather intervenes, anything other than an England cleansweep is likely to be viewed as a missed opportunity.There are valid reasons for that. England are at home in early season conditions against a West Indies team that have been hindered by rain and late arrivals during their preparation. Despite a difficult winter, where they lost four out of five Tests, England remain a formidable team with arguably the strongest pace-bowling resources in the world.Yet, perhaps West Indies are not being given their due. Between the politics and batting collapses there have been a few signs that this team are starting to gel under the leadership of Darren Sammy. The 2-0 defeat against Australia looked comfortable for the visitors last month but they were tested on many occasions. In Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach and Ravi Rampaul, West Indies have a strong trio of pace bowlers. If only they could put consistent runs on the board. Shivnarine Chanderpaul, despite being the No. 1 Test batsman, should not have to do it all on his own.For England’s standing in Test cricket – where they remain No. 1 by the skin of their teeth – they need to dominate this series. Not all the players have hit the ground running in the County Championship this season, notably the openers Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook, and that could provide an opening for West Indies. Ultimately, though, the depth of the home side should prevail.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
England WLLLL
West Indies LDLDL

Watch out for…

James Anderson was named England’s Player of the Year on Monday and is now rivalling Dale Steyn as the leading pace bowler in the world. If he stays fit, Ian Botham’s England record of 383 wickets is within his sights and he will expect to boost his tally against a flaky West Indies top order.Darren Bravo has a huge part to play alongside Shivnarine Chanderpaul in the middle order. His twin fifties against England Lions in Northampton gave an English audience the first glimpse of his huge talent, but West Indies need him to convert into three figures on the Test stage – a skill he has already shown at the top level.

Team news

Unless the hosts decide to be really bold and select five frontline bowlers, Jonny Bairstow will make his Test debut at No. 6 to become the 13th father-son combination to play Tests for England. Then the only decision is who supports Anderson and Stuart Broad. Tim Bresnan may just be leading the race ahead of Steven Finn and Graham Onions.England (probable) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Alastair Cook, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ian Bell, 6 Jonny Bairstow, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Graeme Swann, 11 James AndersonOttis Gibson has hinted at a four-man pace attack for West Indies with Shane Shillingford, the offspinner, missing out despite his impressive comeback against Australia. There have been some niggles in the camp over the last week and Ravi Rampaul did not take a full part in training on Wednesday. Narsingh Deonarine is the man in possession at No. 6 but his late arrival may count against him.West Indies (probable) 1 Adrian Barath, 2 Kieran Powell, 3 Kirk Edwards, 4 Darren Bravo, 5 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 6 Marlon Samuels, 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Kemar Roach, 10 Ravi Rampaul, 11 Fidel Edwards

Pitch and conditions

Chris Adams, the Surrey team director, was highly critical of a Championship pitch at Lord’s earlier in the season. It has been tough for Mick Hunt, the groundsman, with all the wet weather around but there is rarely a concern about one of his Test strips. At Lord’s it is often a question of looking up, not down. If it is cloudy expect help for swing bowling.

Stats and trivia

  • West Indies have not won an away series against anyone other than Bangladesh and Zimbabwe in 17 years
  • They have not won a Test at Lord’s since 1988 when Malcolm Marshall took 10 wickets in the match
  • England have churned out hundreds at Lord’s in recent years; since 2006 they have hit 24 with Kevin Pietersen scoring five, while Alastair Cook and Matt Prior have three apiece
  • This is the first Test for new MCC chief executive Derek Brewer

For a full stats preview click here

Quotes

“I’m excited about the challenges ahead, to come out at Lord’s again, and I’m hoping we will all show what we’re capable of this summer.”
Andrew Strauss looks forward rather than back”Pressure could make you crumble; pressure could make you rise above your expectations – and I know Strauss is a strong guy mentally.”

Tigers suffocated by Bulls

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Scorecard
Steven Cazzulino occupied 198 balls without striking a boundary•Getty Images

Alister McDermott was the chief tormentor as Tasmania’s batsmen were suffocated by Queensland on a draining day one of the Sheffield Shield final in Brisbane.Claiming three wickets in an afternoon spell that tilted the balance of play, McDermott added a fourth when he removed Steven Cazzulino after an obstinate 68 that contained not even a solitary boundary – the batsmen handicapped by a slow outfield in addition to the questions posed by the bowlers.The captain Ricky Ponting managed only one, leaving Luke Butterworth and Tom Triffitt to hold their ground in the day’s closing overs as Queensland’s bowlers tired. McDermott, Steve Magoffin and the Bulls captain James Hopes all had their energy and fitness sapped by the Brisbane sun and Ryan Harris was clearly frustrated at times by the sort of day on which he could easily have claimed five wickets on his own.Tasmania have at least given themselves something to bowl at in weather that should offer further assistance in the next few days. They would though, want to add to their tally on the second morning. Ponting had won the toss on a Gabba surface that showed some evidence of the tackiness of drying paint and moisture, the only question being how long that would last.Aware they were in for a difficult morning, Ed Cowan and Cazzulino began carefully, scoring mainly with deflections through the legside and leaving as much as they could. Cowan was struck an eye-watering blow to a ribs from a Magoffin delivery that cut back and appeared to disturb the surface, but held his ground to raise a 50-run opening stand.A little exasperated by the number of plays and misses his bowlers gained without catching an edge, Hopes called on the legspin of Cameron Boyce, and met with success almost immediately. Boyce was delivering his second over to Cowan when he managed to catch the edge of a footmark outside off stump, causing the ball to kick and spin sharply. Cowan had shaped to cut, but could manage only lay a glove on the ball before Chris Hartley held a juggling catch.Coming in at No. 3, Alex Doolan showed the most fluent touch of any Tiger, striking four boundaries and impressing with his upright strokeplay. Together with the limpet-like Cazzulino, he took the visitors to a seemingly comfortable 1 for 138 before McDermott intervened.Swinging and seaming the ball a little on a full length, McDermott coaxed Doolan into an impulsive drive, the edge snapped up by Harris at first slip. Ponting was next in, but was dismissed by a delivery that lifted sharply, catching the shoulder of the former Australian captain’s bat before looping just far enough for Joe Burns to catch it on the dive.Nick Kruger matched Ponting’s score, scratching around before fending limply into the slips cordon, to give McDermott three critical wickets in the one mid-afternoon spell.Paralysis then gripped the Tasmanian innings, as Cazzulino fought for survival but was capable of no more than that, while James Faulkner battled with his timing on a testing pitch and slow outfield. Harris and Magoffin, the latter afflicted by an aching body, beat the bat repeatedly, leaving Hopes to split the visiting pair.Finding some late in-swing, Hopes won an lbw verdict as Faulkner shouldered arms, and next over Cazzulino’s vigil was terminated when McDermott angled across him on the ideal length to catch a thin edge.A Shield final speciailst after strong displays in 2007 and last year, Butterworth struck the first boundary for 33 overs, and with the wicketkeeper Triffitt attempted to salvage things in the final hour. Whether they can cobble enough runs on day two against a refreshed attack remains open to question.

Sammy confident ahead of T20s

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Darren Sammy, the West Indies captain, has said it is important for the team to quickly change gears as they look to win the two-match Twenty20 series against Australia. West Indies had a chance to beat Australia in a bilateral ODI series for the first time in 17 years but ended up drawing 2-2. Sammy, though, said the effort to go up 2-1 in that series had given the side confidence.”These matches will give us a gauge as to where we are. The belief is there,” Sammy said. “It was clear during the last two weeks. We are getting stronger. We have good batting with guys in the middle and lower order who can clear the boundaries. We also have a good bowling attack, and as a team we have bought into what is required.”The two-match series is also a chance to focus on building the team for the forthcoming ICC World T20 Championship in September in Sri Lanka. West Indies have been drawn in the same group as Australia for that tournament and the current series could prove to be a preview.The selectors have called up batting allrounders Dwayne Smith and Nkrumah Bonner, left-arm medium-fast bowler Krishmar Santokie, fast bowler Fidel Edwards and spinner Garey Mathurin to the Twenty20 squad.”It is vital we get the right mix of players, the guys we are looking at to represent West Indies,” Sammy said.Smith, who last represented West Indies in a Twenty20 international against England at The Oval in September 2011, is “excited” to make a comeback at the top of the order.”I am always up to the task of playing for West Indies,” he said. “I like it at the top. Most of the people who get hundreds in T20 bat at the top, where you get a chance to bat 120 balls. It’s good for me to get out there early and put the scores on the board.”The first Twenty20 international is scheduled to be played today in St Lucia.Edited by Devashish Fuloria

Scotland have got right attitude – Drummond

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Gordon Drummond, the Scotland captain, says his side’s attitude can help them return to the world stage. Scotland haven’t featured in an ICC event since the 2009 World Twenty20 in England and are eager to get their ambitions back on track.Scotland have revamped their squad since 2009 and now have a much younger crop for the World T20 qualifiers, which start on March 13 in the UAE. This new team have the desire to get back into a major competition.”Since 2009 we have had a big change in playing personnel,” Drummond said. “The coaching staff has worked hard to create an honest, positive and hard-working ethos among the squad, to build on the ability and talent that was already there. The current squad are now more experienced and have been involved in tournaments and big games over the last few years, which will give us confidence going in to the tournament.”We are a team that has a never-say-die attitude and always believe we can win from anywhere. We have a good balance of power hitters, touch players, quality spinners, accurate seamers and a dynamic fielding unit and we feel this is what is needed to be successful.”Scotland got together for a six-week training camp in Edinburgh and travelled to the Middle East for an Intercontinental Cup match against the UAE before travelling to Colombo for another preparation camp. “We’ve had a mixture of skills, training, fitness sessions and matches against state teams, Canada and Sri Lanka A. The preparations have been good, particularly in Colombo where the conditions and opponents have been challenging; this will give the squad confidence going into a tough schedule in the qualifiers.”Drummond’s side are up against Ireland, Kenya, Namibia, Uganda, Oman, Italy and USA in group B and he believes it will be a very close-fought race for qualification for the knockout phase. “All the teams in the group are dangerous and in the shorter format of the game are capable of beating each other,” he said. “Luckily for us we have had previous experience of playing against every opposition in our group.”Qualification will give the squad an opportunity to play in an event against the best teams at a global event and it would mean the players can put their skills to the test against the best players in the world.”Scotland begin their campaign against Kenya in Dubai.Edited by Alex Winter

Curse continues for Pietersen

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The curse of the left-arm spinner returned to haunt Kevin Pietersen in the final Test in Dubai only hours after he insisted he had eradicated the weakness from his game.Pietersen was beside himself with frustration as he was adjudged leg before to Abdur Rehman for 32 as he showed glimpses of form for the first time in the series. The decision by the umpire, Simon Taufel, could not have been more marginal and left Pietersen passionately bemoaning his misfortune with England’s coach Andy Flower.”I have an average of 37 against left-arm spin – it’s not a train crash,” Pietersen told before the third Test as England tried to stave off their first Test whitewash against Pakistan.”It’s been made into a media thing,” Pietersen said. “It is something I’ve had to live with. I used to have a flaw but I sorted it out. Left-arm spinners have bowled me the most balls on the tour.”Pietersen called for a review after a prolonged discussion with his captain, Andrew Strauss, who was at the non-striker’s end, but umpire Taufel’s decision was upheld by the narrowest of margins as Hawk Eye suggested the ball would have shaved leg stump.It was all too much for Pietersen who since the advent of DRS must feel that he is defending two sets of stumps, not one. The number of lbw decisions in Tests in 2012 are running at an all-time high.Pietersen put the shift in the balance of power down to the time when Sachin Tendulkar was give out lbw to Monty Panesar on the front foot in a test in Nagpur six years ago. The decision brought Panesar his first Test wicket and caused him to slalom through the slips in delight.”As soon as Aleem Dar gave Sachin Tendulkar out to Monty Panesar, Test cricket changed,” Pietersen said. “I have had to change the way I play because of DRS.I am a big guy and a few years ago I was able to push well forward and never get out.”

Sri Lanka take another shot at history

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Match facts

January 3-7, Cape Town
Start time 10:30 (08:30 GMT)Can Jacques Kallis return to his best in his 150th Test?•Getty Images

The Big Picture

South Africa haven’t won their previous four home Test series, but a failure to close out this one will cause the most criticism. While the other contests were against teams near the top of the rankings, this one is against a side that was struggling to find its feet in Test cricket after the retirement of Muttiah Muralitharan. A series that was expected to be all one-way traffic is now level at one-all, with Sri Lanka having already achieved their pre-tour ambition of winning a Test in South Africa.After basking in one of their greatest Test victories, Sri Lanka have now scaled up their goal to a series win in South Africa. The Durban success came about through significant contributions from many of their players – Thilan Samaraweera and Kumar Sangakkara making hundreds, Chanaka Welegedera and Rangana Herath taking five-fors, and Dinesh Chandimal scoring vital half-centuries in each innings. That’s something they need to repeat in Cape Town if they are to pose a challenge to South Africa, who remain favourites despite the Durban debacle.The return of Vernon Philander, whose accurate swing bowling has brought him four five-wicket hauls in three Tests, is a cause of cheer for the home side. Sri Lanka, though, have several injury worries – Chandimal is struggling with an elbow problem and a final call on his availability will be taken on Tuesday, while their quickest bowler Dilhara Fernando is also doubtful after suffering knee pain.It has been more than a decade since Sri Lanka played a Test in Cape Town, but their previous match at the venue remains their biggest defeat in Tests. However, as they did memorably in Durban, Sri Lanka need to forget the past and set about taking a shot at history.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
South Africa LWLWD
Sri Lanka WLDLD

Watch out for…

Only once in the past nine seasons has Jacques Kallis gone through an entire home season without making a Test century. The Cape Town Test is the last one of the South African summer and Kallis is yet to score a hundred, and what is more – he has picked up three ducks in his past four Tests. Luckily for him, the next match is at Newlands, his home ground and one where he has an outstanding record – 1874 runs at 72.07 with eight centuries. No better place then for him to regain form, that too in his 150th Test.
Tillakaratne Dilshan is another batsman struggling for form – he has only two half-centuries in his previous 15 Test innings. After a miserable first seven months as leader, Dilshan had little to show in terms of results, but the Durban victory should give his captaincy a fresh lease. Now that the team is showing signs of a turnaround, he’ll hope his own form too will improve.

Team news

The Durban debacle has prompted immediate action from South Africa. Ashwell Prince has been axed, and the in-form Alviro Petersen returns. He slots in as an opener, pushing the out-of-sorts Jacques Rudolph down the order. The other change to the XI is that Vernon Philander returns to take the place of Marchant de Lange.South Africa: 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Alviro Petersen, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers, 6 Jacques Rudolph, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Imran TahirThe only changes to the Sri Lankan side are likely to be due to injuries. Decisions on Chandimal and Fernando will be taken on Tuesday morning, and in case they aren’t fit, Kaushal Silva and Dhammika Prasad are the likely replacements.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 2 Tharanga Paranavitana, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Dinesh Chandimal / Kaushal Silva (wk), 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Dilhara Fernando / Dhammika Prasad, 11 Chanaka Welegedara

Pitch and conditions

It rained in Cape Town on Monday but the forecast is better for the rest of the week. Smith believes the pitch is dry though there is a tinge of green on it. The Newlands track is usually a good Test wicket, so we can expect a bit for the bowlers early on, and a decent batting strip.

Stats and trivia

  • Since South Africa’s post-apartheid return to cricket, Australia are the only visiting team to have won Tests at Newlands. South Africa’s record at the ground in that period is a formidable 15 wins and three losses in 23 matches
  • Daryl Cullinan is the only South African batsman to have made more than one Test century against Sri Lanka. Surprisingly, the only batsman in the current squad to make have made a Test hundred against Sri Lanka is Jacques Rudolph
  • Thilan Samaraweera is 22 short of becoming Sri Lanka’s highest run-getter in a Test series in South Africa.

Click here for the detailed stats preview to the Test.

Quotes

“We have the capabilities to be at the top and we won’t get there with the way we played in Durban. We need to step it up a little bit and we understand that.”

“If we can win the series, it will be a great achievement as a team. We believe we can perform in any conditions and it would be a big achievement for Sri Lanka if we win.”

Tricky opening challenge for in-form Pakistan

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Match facts

Tuesday, November 29
Start time 1700 (1100 GMT)The spotlight will be on Misbah-ul-Haq as Pakistan attempt to overcome their tendency to slip on the odd banana peel•AFP

Big Picture

It is all coming together for Pakistan cricket. Since the sordid English summer of 2010, Misbah-ul-Haq’s side has stayed clear of controversy with a sense of purpose and discipline rarely seen in Pakistan outfits. That discipline has now permeated into their cricket; they have sacrificed some of their inherent flash in favour of winning ugly, and are yet to lose a bilateral series this year. One test remains – have they overcome their tendency to slip on the odd banana peel?Bangladesh are among the more treacherous banana peels going around. Pakistan would know – their defeat in a 1999 World Cup encounter between the sides is still being spoken about. That loss paved the way for Bangladesh attaining Test status, and three years later they nearly toppled Pakistan in the long format, before Inzamam-ul-Haq pipped the thriller by a one-wicket margin. That tour, in 2003, was the last bilateral encounter between these sides. Here’s to a renewal of rivalries.The one-off Twenty20 offers Bangladesh their best chance of an upset. They recently outplayed West Indies in a similar tour-opening Twenty20 game. Pakistan have been on the road for a while now, and are unlikely to be caught unprepared, but Misbah-ul-Haq’s men would be wary, all the same.

Form guide

Pakistan: WWWLW (most recent first)
Bangladesh: WLLLL

Watch out for …

Pakistan fans will have their first sighting of a raft of spinners on this tour, but few will match the allrounder Nasir Hossain for spunk. He gives his offbreaks a rip, fields with rare energy for a Bangladesh player, and celebrates his dismissal with outrageous WWE moves. Additionally, he packs a fair tonk with the bat.The spot-fixing scandal robbed Pakistan of two of the most attractive fast-bowling talents in the game, but, in typically Pakistani fashion, they brushed aside the setback and found worthy replacements. Mohammad Khalil, who returns to the fold after a six-year gap, is the latest in the fast-bowling pipeline. His first stint at the highest level lasted only two Tests and three ODIs, but he will hope his second coming counts for more.

Team news

Pakistan are unlikely to change the combination that beat Sri Lanka on November 25, but will be tempted to give Younis Khan a game before the ODI and Test legs of the tour.Pakistan (possible): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Imran Farhat, 3 Asad Shafiq / Younis Khan, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Umar Akmal (wk), 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Sohail Tanvir, 9 Aizaz Cheema, 10 Umar Gul, 11 Saeed AjmalBangladesh are without Mohammad Ashraful, who played in the West Indies T20. Mahmudullah who missed that game should come in for him.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Alok Kapali, 4 Shakib Al Hasan, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Nasir Hossain, 8 Naeem Islam, 9 Abdur Razzak, 10 Rubel Hossain, 11Shafiul Islam

Stats and trivia

  • Pakistan and Bangladesh have played four Twenty20s, with the former winning all four
  • Bangladesh have won only four of the 17 Twenty20 games they have played, of which only two were against a top-flight side – West Indies on both occasions

Quotes

“It would be a big folly on our part to think we can walk over Bangladesh. We are playing a full series in Bangladesh after a long time and I have told the players to treat the series as a top ones because there will be lot of pressure on us.”

“West Indies were favourites against us as we don’t usually play Twenty20s. At the end of the day, we bowled well and despite a hiccup in batting we finished as winners.”
Mushfiqur Rahim is bullish about his team’s chances