Micromax Asia Cup 2010: Advantage Sri Lanka?

Yes, it might seem a bit premature but the fact remains that Sri Lanka are pretty much unbeatable at home. Their record in both, the ODIs and the test matches is so good that it is hard to believe that any of the other teams would be able to beat them in the league matches. Further, what makes the Lankans such a potent force is that their bowling is well-suited to the prevalent conditions. For starters, the likes of Kulusekera can bowl slow, medium-pacers that are the best option for the slightly sluggish pitch conditions here in Dambulla and the neighboring venues. On the other hand, young spinners in the side, led by Murali will ensure that the batsmen aren't able to take much liberties during the middle overs. Even the fill-up bowlers like Angelo Matthews have showed in yesterday's match against Pakistan that these Lankan bowlers know how to manipulate the conditions to their advantage. In comparison, Pakistan's bowling line-up seems full of comeback bowlers while India just doesn't have a semblance of a pace battery or a spin attack.

Daniel Vettori: Improving with every outing

If you talk about a player who is progressing with every outing he makes to the cricketing field, you just cannot help but mention the Kiwi captain - Vettori. His average as a batsmen, particularly in the more demanding form of the game - test cricket, has improved tremendously. At a time, when the team is so short on pure talent and there is little experience to fall back upon, his captaincy and his ability to bail out the team with the bat when the situations is really bad speaks a lot about his courage and his hunger to improve upon himself as a cricketer. He batted brilliantly but then got out on 99, which was purely unlucky but it seems that many more test centuries are sure to follow.