Bookies favourite Lanka take on England in three-Test series

Bookies favourite Lanka take on England in three-Test series
Associated Press

Galle, February 21: With bookies favouring Sri Lanka to win the three-Test series against England, home team skipper Sanath Jayasuriya predicted a tough fight in the first Test tomorrow.

The cricket pitch in this southern port city is likely to favour spin and Sri Lanka hopes its star spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan, can turn the tide of the game in its favour.

The home team is favoured six-to-five over England, according to the British bookmaking firm, William Hill. England are quoted a two-to-one, the same odds as a draw.

The last time Muralitharan played against England in a Test was at the Oval in 1998 when he took 16 wickets, including a second-innings haul of nine for 65 as Sri Lanka romped home by 10 wickets. He has taken 303 Test wickets in 59 matches.

The two sides have met six times in one-off matches, but this is their first series, something Jayasuriya has have been seeking.

Although Sri Lanka are the bookmaker's favourites, the series looks well balanced. England has the confidence of successive series wins over Zimbabwe, West Indies and Pakistan. Sri Lanka, despite a recent 2-0 defeat in a Test series in South Africa, has the home advantage.

``We are going to give our best,'' Jayasuriya told reporters. He said the team was seeking to put South Africa behind, ``and focus on the game at hand.''

Jayasuriya, 31, is under pressure, however, as he has struggled to maintain his personal batting form since taking over the captaincy from Arjuna Ranatunga after the 1999 World Cup.

After starting his cricket career 11 years ago, Jayasuriya became known for his explosive batting in the 1996 World Cup.

The following year he batted more than 13 hours to make 340 out of Sri Lanka's total of 952 against India in Colombo, the fourth highest individual knock in Test cricket.

Teams (from):
Sri Lanka:Sanath Jayasuriya (captain), Marvan Atapattu, Kumar Sangakkara, Aravinda de Silva, Mahela Jayawardene, Russel Arnold, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Dharmasena, Dilhara Fernando, Dinuk Hettiarachchi, Muthumudalige Pushpakumara, Kaushalya Lokuarachchi.
England:Michael Atherton, Marcus Trescothick, Nasser Hussain (captain), Graham Thorpe, Alec Stewart, Michael Vaughan, Graem Hick, Craig White, Ashley Giles, Robert Croft, Andrew Caddick, Darren Gough, Matthew Hoggard.

Galle pitch worries England
The cricket stadium in this southern port is a a perfect candidate for a picture postcard.

With the blue waters of the Indian Ocean nearby, the ramparts of a 15th century Dutch Fort overlooking the lush green field and a quaint water garden in the car park, the stadium can charm any one.

The England cricket team may be enjoying the beauty ahead of the first Test starting tomorrow but for skipper Nasser Hussain, the worry is the pitch.

The pitch is rolled in black mud and custom-made for Sri Lanka's spinners. The home team is likely to play as many as three spinners.

``I presume that it will favour the spinners and would be surprised if it doesn't,'' Hussain told reporters today. He declined to elaborate, but appeared concerned about what shape the pitch will take for the five-day match.

Galle is a happy hunting ground for the Sri Lankans, with their star spinner Muttiah Muralitharan often performing well here.

The wicket will turn and the only question is how soon, how much and will cracks appear as they did during last year's Test between Sri Lanka and South Africa.

The pitch then became so unpredictable that Sri Lankan wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara had to wear a helmet for protection behind the stumps.

Although cricket has been played in Galle for years, there have been only four Tests in this ancient maritime port, which was founded by a Portuguese fleet in 1505. The Port later changed hands to Dutch and then to the British, who ruled Sri Lanka until 1948.

In Galle, Sri Lanka crushed New Zealand in 1997, and South Africa by an innings last year. Australia was only saved by rain in 1998, and Sri Lanka's only defeat here was at the hands of Pakistan last year.

Jayantha Warnaweera, the curator, had to say this about the pitch: ``It will be a slow turner, but I don't think it will break up. The bounce should be even and on the first day the seamers should get some assistance.''

The ground staff have worked tirelessly over the past week, shuttling tarpaulins on and off the square as heavy downpours have interrupted preparations.