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Dhaka: Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene won the toss and chose to bat against Pakistan in their Asia Cup clash at Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Thursday.
Pakistan started their campaign on a winning note by beating Bangladesh even though it was a close shave for them given the home team's fighting performance in a steep chase.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, failed in the chasing job against India.
Faced with a mammoth 304, the islanders fell short by 50 runs despite the fact that they have a batting order that runs deep and was expected to click in the familiar sub-continental environs.
But for the sheer unpredictability of Pakistan, both the teams seem quite a match for each other on paper.
Pakistan have the destructive Shahid Afridi, who can snatch a game but, like his team, is not consistent enough.
He can be the game-changer one day but can also be a complete letdown the next. But Pakistan can bank on his leg-break bowling which comes in handy almost always.
Their openers notched up good scores against Bangladesh but the experienced middle-order comprising the likes of Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq failed to fire.
The bowling too was unimpressive against a side which is considered a minnow at the international level. Pace spearhead Umar Gul was expensive and would have to get his act together quickly as his form is crucial to the team's chances.
Sri Lanka, meanwhile, also have major bowling issues to deal with. Their bowling attack, sans Lasith Malinga, came a cropper on a placid track and allowed the Indians to plunder runs in the lung-opener.
Teams:
Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Hammad Azam, Shahid Afridi, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Aizaz Cheema.
Sri Lanka: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Dinesh Chandimal, Upul Tharanga, Lahiru Thirimanne, Nuwan Kulasekara, Farveez Maharoof, Seekkuge Prasanna, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal.
