Leicestershire - Ruhunu XI Face in Knock Out Game

Hyderabad: Though fancied Trinidad & Tobago booked their berth in the main draw of the Champions League from Pool B, the final match in this pool still assumes a lot of significance for both Ruhunu XI and Leicestershire Foxes as one of them could still make it to the main tournament.

With the third qualifying team being the one with the best losing record of the four teams left, it is imperative that either of these teams get a win under their belt so that they could stand a chance.

But a mere win may not be enough as a good net runrate is what will be required. With so much at stake, both sides are sure to go all out in their clas on Wednesday.

Ruhunu XI did give T&T some very anxious moments before going down. Though it was a five-wicket loss with six balls to spare, the Lankans did have their chances in the game. After losing a couple of early wickets, they fought back quite admirably thanks to Dinesh Chandimal, who showed that he is cut out for big time cricket.

However, skipper Mahela Udawatta will be keen that his other batsmen strike form in this crucial encounter. However, the trump card for Ruhunu XI could be veteran Sanath Jayasuriya. At 42, the southpaw is still capable of running the opposition ragged. The Lankans will be hoping that Jayasuriya is able to fire early on.

The Lankans will still have to bowl a bit better than what they did against T&T. After having them on the ropes, Ruhunu XI were not able to finish off the game.

The Foxes, on the other hand, received a severe drubbing at the hands of T & T in their 51-run loss on Tuesday. Will they be able to recoup in time to give the Lankan team a run for their money? It will be quite a challenge for them to do so.

The way the top order crumbled against T&T would worry skipper Matthew Hoggard, who would be eager to see his team give a good account of themselves.

Paul Nixon announced his retirement from cricket during the 2011 English domestic season and had the perfect send-off when his team sneaked through to secure a thrilling win against Somerset in the t20 final. He's been playing at the first-class level for 22 years. Will tomorrow be his final appearance for Leicestershire, or can they extend his run for a little while more?

Ruhuna have Sanath Jayasuriya to bank on for an explosive start but their captain Mahela Udawatte can be reliable too. He's been a heavy run-getter in domestic cricket - he's also represented Sri Lanka in ODIs - and has a Twenty20 century to his name and a strike-rate of 125.73 in the shortest format.

Teams from

Leicestershire MJ Hoggard (capt), Abdul Razzaq, MAG Boyce, NL Buck, JJ Cobb, J du Toit, HF Gurney, CW Henderson, WI Jefferson, AB McDonald, JKH Naik, PA Nixon (wk), GP Smith, JWA Taylor, WA White

Ruhuna ML Udawatte (capt), DNA Athulathmudali, LD Chandimal (wk), LJP Gunaratne, JGA Janoda, ST Jayasuriya, MS Kamileen, KPSP Karunanayake, AKKY Lanka, GACR Perera, MDKJ Perera, PBB Rajapaksa, TN Sampath, AAS Silva, TAM Siriwardana, OLA Wijesiriwardene

Stats & trivia

• Leicestershire have been through bad times in Twenty20s before. Between July 2006 and June 2007, they suffered eight straight defeats in the format, all except one by reasonably sizable margins.
• Allrounder TM Sampath has made the most Twenty20 appearances for Ruhuna - 23 in a three-year span. Jayasuriya has played 17 games for the side, and captain Udawatte seven.

Match facts
Wednesday September 21, 2011
Start time 16:00 local (10:30 GMT)