India had a poor outing in the recently-concluded triangular series in Australia where they failed to make the cut for the finals. The Asia Cup will provide Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men a chance to make amends for their miserable show in the series where they won just three out of eight matches.
After having flopped in two consecutive overseas tours in England and then Australia, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni knows the importance of a good start that will hold them in good stead in the regional tournament.
"Over the years the format has changed in the sense now there are four good sides. It is a very short series, and it is very important to start with a positive note because it`s not very often that you play in a tournament where all the Asian countries are playing together," Dhoni said.
India are coming into the tournament with just a few changes in the squad that played in Australia with hard-hitting batsman Yusuf Pathan and pacer Ashok Dinda drafted into side, while Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and Umesh Yadav have been `rested` due to injuries.
The Asia Cup is also an ideal platform for Sachin Tendulkar to record his much-awaited 100th international ton after having missed the feat in the Test series against Australia and the subsequent triangular series.
The tournament will also provide another opportunity to young players like Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja to prove their worth after producing a below-par performance in tough Australian conditions.
Young Virat Kohli, on the other hand, will be oozing with confidence following his impressive showing in Australia, which earned him the post of vice-captain in Sehwag`s absence.
But looking at India`s inconsistent showing in Australia, Dhoni has a lot to ponder ahead of his side`s tournament opener against Sri Lanka at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
The series will also see a keen contest between Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan for the lone all-rounder`s spot in the playing eleven.
On the bowling front, India boasts of a relatively young pace attack in R Vinay Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Praveen Kumar and Irfan Pathan, while the spin department will be led by Ravichandran Ashwin and will have leg-spinner Rahul Sharma for company.
Going by the present form Sri Lanka are a much better side and will start the tournament as favourites ahead of India. Sri Lanka have been a resurgent side this year. They narrowly lost the five-match series in South Africa 2-3 early this year and reached the finals of the just-concluded triangular series in Australia, only to lose it but not before giving a tought fight to the home team.
But the Sri Lankans have come here as a tired side after the long tri-series in Australia, where they played five matches in the last 10 days.
"The intensity (of the CB series) was really high because we were performing at a very high level. Even though we lost the finals I thought the commitment of the players and the energy level was very good," Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said.
"International cricket is such now, you need to adapt very quickly mentally and physically to the schedules that we have," he said.
If the islanders wish to win their fifth Asia Cup title, they will have to rejuvenate themselves in no time as one bad day in office can hurt their cause.
Match starts at 1.30 pm (IST). Live on Neo Sports.
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