India and Sri Lanka to fight it out

Australia duly righted their ship after their early defeat in the CB Series and so India and Sri Lanka now have to fight it out, in all probability, for the right to face them in the final. The two sides meet at the Adelaide Oval on Tuesday, with little to choose between them.

India have the better side on paper but as always that tends to mean little in these one-day matches, especially when there is something at stake. Pressure does funny things to some players while others blossom.

Bet365 make India narrow favourites at 8/11 while Sri Lanka are evens, but the Indians will have to pick themselves up if they are to get back on track. Sri Lanka did a pretty good job of getting to a rain-adjusted total when they last met and they will have some confidence that they can overtake India in the points table.

For India, Sachin Tendulkar is 3/1 favourite to top-score and that is not a bad price for a favourite as the little master is due a big score in this competetion. He is in great touch and just needs to get giong to smack a big one, it appears.

Behind him, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir are both 4/1, with Yuvraj Singh 5/1 and the impressive Rohit Sharma 11/2. Captain MS Dhoni should also not be ruled out at 6/1.

For Sri Lanka, Kumar Sangakkara, the undoubted class of the batting line-up, is 11/4 clear favourite, with Mahela Jayawardene and Sanath Jayasuriya each 7/2 and each capable of big things.

Upul Tharanga is 9/2 and Tillekeratne Dilshan is 5/1 with Chamara Silva and Dilruwan Perera both 6/1.