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Cuttack: With the charismatic captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni serving a two-match ban, the Indian team under stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag will have to pull out all the stops to regain their lead when they lock horns with Sri Lanka in the third One-dayer on Monday.
As if poor fielding and bowling were not bad enough, the home side received a rude jolt when their inspirational skipper and last match centurion Dhoni was handed a two-match ban for the team's slow-over rate in the second ODI in Nagpur.
To add to India's woes, Yuvraj, who missed the first two games due to a finger injury and flu, still remains doubtful even though he has been retained in the 15-member squad.
In Dhoni's absence, Tamil Nadu keeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik has been drafted into the side to do the duties behind the stumps, while S Sreesanth, who is recovering from swine flu, has been replaced with Ishant Sharma.
Not that Sri Lanka didn't have their share of injuries. All-rounder Angelo Mathews, who braved pain to guide the side to a series-equalling three-wicket win in Nagpur, strained the right quadricep muscle in Nagpur and has returned home.
Earlier the visitors had lost champion spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and paceman Dilhara Fernando to finger injuries.
With the series locked at 1-1, the result of Monday's day and night affair will be crucial in the context of the outcome of the series.
Under Sehwag the hosts will first have to plug the loopholes in their bowling and fielding departments apart from capitalising on its main strength batting if they are to seize the initiative in the five-match series.
India's fortune often depends on the start they get and hence a lot would depend on how Sehwag himself fares, along side veteran Sachin Tendulkar.
India lost both Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir early in Nagpur and despite Dhoni's century, the home team could not post a total that was beyond their opponents.
"We did not get a good start. We got some partnerships going but also lost wickets regularly," Dhoni had rued after the match.
Fielding, both catching and ground fielding, has been another area of concern for the team and Dhoni did not try to defend his butter-finger teammates either.
The Sri Lankans, meanwhile, will be a confident lot after the Nagpur win.
The visitors will take heart from the fact that in the two matches played so far, their batting has been outstanding and will hope that it would come good tomorrow as well.
Opener Tillakratne Dilshan, in particular, has been the show-stopper for the Lankans with two back-to-back centuries.
Chasing a mammoth 415 for victory, Dilshan struck a scintillating 160 off 124 balls to take Sri Lanka inches close to a sensational win.
Apart from Dilshan, skipper Kumar Sangakkara and opener Upul Tharanga also looked in good touch.
However, just like India, the Lankans too have a problem or two in their inexperienced bowling and fielding departments.
The visitors' bowling front has been badly affected by injuries and their problems were further compounded when Mathews joined Muralitharan and Fernando on the sidelines.
Traditionally, Barabati has been a lucky venue for Team India who have won eight, lost four matches while one was abandoned due to rain.
But they have a poor record against Sri Lanka in the ground, having lost to the islanders in the only ODI played between the two nations way back in December 28, 1990.
Team news
India: Dinesh Karthik will take Dhoni's place, while Virat Kohli, despite a sprightly 54 in the last game, will have to make way if Yuvraj recovers fully. Praveen Kumar lacks the pace to hustle batsmen early on, especially in conditions where there's little or no movement, and that could see Ishant Sharma take his place.
Squad (likely): Virender Sehwag (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Ashish Nehra.
Sri Lanka: The big news Malinga's return. Sanath Jayasuriya's return, especially in low and slow conditions where his left-arm spin could be a big factor. Suranga Lakmal didn't impress much on debut, and there could be a recall for Nuwan Kulasekara.
Squad (likely): Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilina Kandamby, Sanath Jayasuriya, Suraj Randiv, Nuwan Kulasekara, Ajantha Mendis, Chanaka Welegedara, Lasith Malinga.
Pitch and conditions
A bright, sunny day is predicted, and it won't be excessively cold at night either. Teams only one score in excess of 300, and the conditions could make for a tight game with moderate scores rather than Rajkot-like ones.
Stats and Trivia
Match facts
Monday, December 21, 2009
Start time 14:30 local time (09:00 GMT), 02:30pm SLT
