[DJ Sahastra]

I think this match-up is evenly balanced as far as the two teams are concerned.

Bowling: SL team has an edge over India as far as bowling goes. Malinga, Murali and Mendis, in the same order, are all impact players. Regardless of what kind of World cup they have had so far, they can rip through any side when they get going and win the match single-handedly. Indian bowlers, on the other hand, are at best effective and can only hunt in a pack. They also rely on helpful condition. Advantage Sri Lanka.

Batting: India team has an edge over SL in batting. Sehwag, Yuvraj, Pathan, and to a lesser extent on current form, Sachin - are all impact players. They can take the game away in a matter of few overs. Gambhir, Kohli and Sachin provide the solidity along with run-scoring prowess as good as anyone. For the SL side, Jaya and Sanga provide the solidity. Dilshan (and to a lesser extent, Sanga and Agnelo) are impact players. Collectively, i feel their batting is strong but untested in this World cup and lacks the pedigree. Advantage India.

Fielding: SL has a definite edge on this one.

Pressure: Sri Lanka hasn't demonstrated a good ability to handle pressure in the two games that they were really tested - against Pakistan and against NZ (though they eventually won against NZ). India showed that in ample terms in its last 2 crunch encounters. But then the pressure of playing in front of the home-crowd should even that out. Advantage - none.

Overall - the two teams are evenly matched. India is dashing and mercurial on the batting side and above average in bowling. Sri Lanka is dashing and mercurial on the bowling side and has a decent or more than decent batting line-up. It is simply a matter of who shows up on that day.