Vaas and Pollock make welcome return

South Africans out for revenge, Lankans out to devour

Dinesh Weerawansa

TEST CRICKET: Both Sri Lanka and South Africa are likely to make one change each as they go in to their second and final cricket Test which begins at P. Saravanamuttu Stadium, Colombo today.

Out of the pace trio who did duty for Sri Lanka in the first Test, Farveez Maharoof will make way for experienced Chaminda Vaas. The return of left-arm quick bowler Vaas, who did not play in the SSC Test due to a hamstring injury, will be a big boost for the Lankan camp.

On the other hand, all-rounder Shaun Pollock will return to the South African side after he was forced to delay his arrival in Colombo and skip the first Test due to a family commitment. A veteran of 101 Tests, Pollock returns at a time his team needs his services most.

The 33-year-old is only six wickets short of completing 400 wickets in Tests. Pollock is expected to play a decisive role in South African bowling with Makhaya Ntini and Dale Steyn likely to be in charge of the new ball attack.

Herschelle Gibbs was hit by stomach problems and his inclusion in the final XI would be subject to a late fitness test.

The tourists must win the Second Test if they are to draw the series and undoubtedly, the team would expect Pollock to play a prominent role. Pollock is set to return to the side at the expense of Andre Nel.

Sri Lanka will walk in to Sara Stadium, the venue for their inaugural Test against England two and a half decades ago, with their morale high after that smashing innings win over the tourists in the First Test concluded on Monday.

But Mahela Jayawardena and his men are not ready to take things for granted. Coach Tom Moody has stressed the importance of being consistent and has asked his boys not to take the things lightly. If dashing opener Sanath Jayasuriya and his partner Upul Tharanga could start from where they left in England, things could turn bitter for the South African bowlers with Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena to follow.

The South African bowlers will have to get rid of that psychological barrier after Sri Lanka's captain-vice captain combination set a new world record partnership for any wicket - 624 runs, at the SSC.

However, the toss too would play a decisive role as the Sara wicket is likely to favour seamers. Though initial reports predicted it to be a slow one, team sources predicted the Sara wicket to be faster than the one at the SSC.

With the wicket likely to be fast and bouncy, Sri Lanka will go in with Vaas and Lasith Malinga with Dilhara Fernando coming at the first change. Under the circumstances, off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan could look even more dangerous. The Lankan spin wizard, who completed a match bag of ten-wickets in Sri Lanka's triumph at SSC, will look forward to another memorable performance on his home grounds.

South Africa must forget what happened at the SSC and go into the Second Test with a fresh mind. They could definitely do so with the return of their champion all-rounder Pollock, who is determined to give a torrid time to Lankan batsmen.

Sri Lanka will be looking forward to win the Second Test, not only to complete a 2-0 series win, but also to complete hat-trick of Test wins under the able leadership of Jayawardena. Sri Lanka won the recent third Test against England by 134 runs at Trent Bridge and then crushed South Africa by an innings and 153 runs at SSC.

This will be the 17th meeting between the two countries in Test cricket. South Africa has been dominating in the series, winning exactly a half of their 16 previous Tests. Sri Lanka has emerged victorious only on three occasions - but all three on home soil.

Probable teams:

SRI LANKA: Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Kumara Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Chamara Kapugedera, Prasanna Jayawardene, Chaminda Vaas, Dilhara Fernando, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan.

SOUTH AFRICA: Jacques Rudolph, Andrew Hall, Hashim Amla, Ashwell Prince (captain), Mark Boucher, Shaun Pollock, A.B. de Villiers, Dale Steyn, Herschelle Gibbs, Makhaya Ntini, Nicky Boje.