Pak bats first in the battle of the subcontinent!

Pak won a good toss and is batting first. Afidi opined that 280 will be a good score on this track and Sanga said he will be happy chasing 280 !

Kapugedara, the hard hitting batsman, was dropped and Chamara De Silva is in. Herath, the left arm spinner, replaces Mendis.

On a slow turning wicket, Pak seems to have the upper hand, as they are now 19/0. No Malinga, no Mendis and the SL attack seems to be a bit less penetrative.

The toss is vital, as the pitch may turn more as the match progresses.

Pak has now progressed to 65/1. Kamran and Hafeez are accelerating and off 10.3 overs, 65 runs have come already. Looks like headed for a big score !

Pak has lost her second wicket, that of Hafeez run out for 32. Now the Pakis are 76/2.

Now they have progressed to 105/3.Herath took K Akman. He was stumped by Sanga off his own bowling.

Even though it is Advantage Pak, SL will fight it out. Pak had won all the six encounters in the World Cup with the Emerald Isle.

Misbah played beautifully for an 83 not out. Y Khan scored 72 and Pak finished at 277/7 !

Now SL has gone off to a good start. They are 62/0.

This is a clash of the Titans, as Pak had won all matches against and SL are the second favourites at 4/1. The bookies have given Pak 8/1.

But Pak is now dominating, as SL has lost 5 wickets for 171. Neither side seem to be formidable, as this match has shown the chinks in the armour of both.

Razzak looks aged and his habit of stopping running after the follow through has been criticised by Akram. Akthar did give glimpes of his genius, but he is 35 years old. The Pak bowling is not formidable as it seems. Nor is the SL batting which is in disarray against Pak bowling.

Pak has won this match and History has repeated itself. By 11 runs. Chasing 280 will be easy, said Sanga but the pressure of the situation, particularly before the home crowd, was too much for the Lankans ! Afridi bowled remarkably well, returning with the figures of 4/31 !

We feel that Australia and South Africa will be formidable opponents !