Pakistan missed out on an opportunity to get those ICC World T20 2016 juices flowing when their match against a Bengal XI was cancelled owing to their late arrival in India. Shahid Afridi's men will get one final opportunity to get tuned and ready for the WT20, when they play Sri Lanka in a warmup match at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata Monday.
Not many have tipped Pakistan to go all the way in this World T20, while Sri Lanka, despite being the defending champions, are seen as a team unlikely to even get out of the Super 10 stage.
Those predictions, to a certain extent, are warranted, because neither team have convinced too much of late, particularly in the T20 format. While Pakistan have major issues at the top of the order with their batting, Sri Lanka have problems all over.
The injury concerns surrounding Lasith Malinga meant the fast bowler was forced to give up his captaincy for the tournament, and while he remains in the 15-man squad, it is unlikely he will feature in this warmup match. Malinga's availability for Sri Lanka's World T20 2106 opener against Afghanistan Thursday is also uncertain, leaving captain Angelo Mathews, whose team lost their first practice match to New Zealand, with plenty to ponder over.
Sri Lanka's batting isn't exactly in rude health either, and much of their fortunes will depend on the form of Dinesh Chandimal and Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top.
Pakistan have plenty of worries over their top order as well, with the top three failing with the bat pretty much all the time in the Asia Cup T20. As a result, they have brought in Ahmed Shehzad to add a bit of experience, but what Pakistan really need to do is to get their best batsmen to face the most amount of deliveries.
Sarfraz Ahmed, Umar Akmal and Shoaib Malik were the ones who impressed with the bat in the Asia Cup, and all three of them should be in the top four. The T20 format is such that the more balls the in-form batsmen get to play, the better it will be for the team.
A warmup match gives you the opportunity to try out all kinds of combinations, and Pakistan will do well to get their best batsmen coming in early, and not just because they have lost quick too many wickets up front.
The bowling for Pakistan is not a worry, though, with their pace attack, led by the irrepressible Mohammad Amir, arguably the best in the World T20.
Pakistan beat Sri Lanka in their Asia Cup T20 encounter, and just to carry some kind of momentum ahead of their WT20 opener against Bangladesh, a team they lost to a couple of weeks back, they will want to pick up a win in Kolkata.
Where to Follow Live
Pakistan vs Sri Lanka is scheduled for a 3 p.m. IST (2.30 p.m. PKT, 3 p.m. SLST, 9.30 a.m. GMT, 4.30 a.m. ET) start. There will be no live coverage of the match on TV or by live streaming online.
However, the ICC website will have the live updates and score, text commentary and action as it happens.
