Lanka's WC preparations begin in India

CRICKET: Sri Lanka's preparations for the World Cup cricket tournament in the West Indies will commence with a day night fixture against India on February 8 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkatta.

The opening match of this four match series was earlier scheduled to be played in Pune but was shifted as the Maharashtra Cricket Association was facing problems with the local corporation which owns the ground.

The Sri Lanka team led by Mahela Jayawardena will arrive in Mumbai on February 2 and will play a warm-up match on February 5 at Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Sports Complex before leaving for Kolkata the next morning.

The warm up match will be played between the Sri Lankans and a team comprising players of Mumbai who are not in the team for the Ranji Trophy final.

The second match of the series will be played in Rajkot on February 11, Morgao on February 14 and Visakhapatnam on February 17.

The tour of India will be Sri Lanka's final international engagement before they embark to the Caribbean for the 2007 World Cup. This series is also quite significant as Sri Lanka and India are grouped together in Group 'B' of the 2007 World Cup along with Bangladesh and Bermuda.

C.D.