For Team India, it’s time to finish their last-minute shopping for equipments and arrange their kitbags. But as Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his team limber up to start 2009 proceedings with the one-day series in Sri Lanka starting next week, the image of Ajantha Mendis looms large in the backdrop.

According to sources in the Indian team, the think-tank is keeping a close eye on Pakistan’s three-match series against Sri Lanka. With the Mendis brand of spin bowling ceasing to be a novelty after six matches against him last year, the Indian players are expected to be comfortable than before when they face him, and they are now looking to find a strategy that will negate his effectiveness outright.

The debate within Team India is whether to attack Mendis or quietly see off his quota of 10 overs, and the way the Pakistan series pans out is likely to go a long way in shaping Indian opinion. The Pakistan-Sri Lanka ODIs, beamed live on TV, are being uplinked to India’s database centre so that the Pakistan response to Mendis and his impact under various match situations can be analysed. The conclusions of this research will be discussed by the team during their only net session in Chennai before embarking on the tour.

“This Pakistan-Sri Lanka series will be of utmost importance in our preparation. We will see the strategies employed by Pakistan to counter Mendis, especially after their coach Intikhab Alam, vice-captain Misbah ul Haq and Younis Khan have all made comments regarding their preparedness for Mendis. In fact, Pakistan had been quite successful against Mendis even during the Asia Cup,” said a member of Team India’s support staff.

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