COLOMBO: The high-profile ICC World Twenty20 gets underway on Tuesday with no clear favourites but inaugural champions India will fancy their chances on the slow familiar tracks of the island nation where they have played a lot of cricket in recent times.

Seeded second in Group A, which clubs them along side defending champions England and qualifiers Afghanistan, India were on a high after clinching the 50-over World Cup last year. But their fortunes took a turn for the worst soon after with Test whitewashes in England and Australia.

On a roller-coaster ride since last year, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men have a decent shot at the title as Sri Lanka is a home away from home for Indian cricketers. The turning tracks which might bamboozle the likes of Australia and England would be hardly a concern for the Indians, who have the requisite spin arsenal to exploit the conditions as well.

The hosts themselves have a good chance of winning their first ICC world title after the 1996 50-over World Cup triumph in India.

The talent is there and so is the much-needed familiarity with conditions, and the only thing that Mahela Jayawardene's flock has to guard against is the pressure that would come with playing in front of adoring home fans.

Not to forget the ever-so-unpredictable Pakistan, a team which can be outstanding one day and completely pedestrian the other. Mohammad Hafeez appears to have a balanced Twenty20 side with all ends covered.

What they have to battle are non-cricketing issues. To present themselves as a cohesive unit would be the challenge for Pakistan even though they are coming into the event on a high after beating Australia. The Asian giants aside, the tournament will be another arduous test for the Australians, once the seemingly-invincible world champions and now a struggling team in transition.

Gone are the days when the Aussies took the field as the outright favourites.

Led by a rather low-profile batsman George Bailey, the side from Down Under still has to get comfortable with the format and it would be a tough task for them to master conditions which they have traditionally found hard to cope with. Clubbed alongside West Indies and the sprightly Ireland, the Australians will have it tough. In fact, they rank below perceived-minnows Ireland in the ICC table which quite reflects their state right now. Defending champions England, on the other hand, don't even look the part in the absence of a certain Kevin Pietersen.

The big-hitting controversial batsman has been forced to retire from the format as he has quit ODI cricket and England Board's rules bar players leaving one-dayers from T20s as well.

His ouster has created a vacuum which would be tough to fill for any other batsman and in a format which is called slam-bang, it could prove to be decisive.

Then there are AB de Villiers' South Africa. A team which has not won a single ICC world trophy even though, it has always been counted among the favourites. Labelled the 'chokers' for not coming good in multi-team events, the South Africans would be desperate to wipe off the tag. They seem to have the ammunition besides being the rare non-subcontinental side which doesn't find it tough in the region's dust-bowls.

The Proteas just have to keep it steady when things get rocky, which might end up being the recipe for that elusive success in ICC events.

The West Indies and New Zealand are the dark-horses of the tournament. The Caribbeans would want Chris Gayle to be at his destructive best after making peace with the board to force a national comeback. The Windies were a team on the slide but Gayle's comeback and some decent results in the past few months show that they seem to be steadily gaining in confidence and that would come in handy when they square off against the perceived stronger teams.

The Kiwis, meanwhile, have traditionally been known to save their best for big-ticket events. In inspirational Daniel Vettori, they have a world-class spinner who can make the most of the conditions. Australia's trans-Tasmanian rivals are, in fact, a better bet than Bailey's men to survive longer in the tournament.

The qualifiers — Afghanistan and Ireland — and Zimbabwe would try to ensure that they don't just make up the numbers and present a fight to ensure interesting contests. Looking at the overall picture, the event promises to be a cracking affair and it would be hard to put money on any team given the diversity of talent. — PTI

Colombo, September 17
With an unbeaten 92 off 50 balls by Kamran Akmal, Pakistan on Monday beat India by 5 wickets in International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup warm up match. Pakistan, chasing India's commanding 185-3, appeared to lose steam as they lost five wickets in 12th over with just 91 on the board.

However, wicketkeeper Akmal and former captain Shoaib Malik made a comeback with an unbroken stand of 95 off 46 balls, guiding Pakistan to victory with five balls in hands. Akmal hit five six sixes and five boundaries to remain unbeaten on 92, while Malik powered two sixes and two boundaries.

For India, birthday boy Ravichandran Ashwin was the most successful bowler, taking four wickets by giving away 23 runs. Indian bowlers had a poor outing as Zaheer Khan (0-31 off 3 overs), Irfan Pathan (0-40 off 3.1), L Balaji (0-41 off 4) and Harbhajan Singh (0-40) were smacked all over the park by Akmal. Earlier, Virat Kohli led the charge, while Sharma returned to form with a 40-ball 56 to post a good total. Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal returned with the figures of 2/22. — TNS

SCOREBOARD

India innings

Gambhir b Umar Gul 10

Sehwagc Afridi b Ajmal 26

Kohli 75 no

Rohit b Ajmal 56

Yuvraj 4 no

Extras: (lb 3, w 5, nb 6) 14

Total: (3 wkts; 20 ovrs) 185

Fall of wickets: 1-41, 2-45, 3-172.

Bowling: Tanvir 3-0-35-0, Sami 2-0-31-0, Ajmal 4-0-22-2, Hafeez 3-0-22-0, Afridi 4-0-41.

Pakistan Innings

Hafeez c Sharma b Ashwin 38

Nazir c Raina b Ashwin 13

Jamshed run out (Gambhir) 0

Kamran 92 no

Afridi c Khan b Ashwin 0

Umar c & b Ashwin 2

Malik 37 no

Extras: (w 4) 4

Total: (5 wkts; 19.1 ovrs) 186

Fall of wickets: 1-30, 2-33,3-84,4-84,5-91.

Bowling: Khan 3-0-31-0, Pathan 3.1-0-40-0, Ashwin 4-0-23-4, Balaji 4-0-41-0, Harbhajan 4-0-40-0, Yuvraj 1-0-11-0.

Colombo, September 17
Despite suffering a five-wicket loss to Pakistan in the World T20 warm-up match, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was not complaining, and said that his side got the chance to test which combination would be the right one for the tournament proper.

“It was a good test for the main tournament and it was a good game. We could test which combination would be the best for the tournament," Dhoni said after his side lost the practice match at the R Premadasa Stadium.

“We bowled well in the last few overs though I felt we gave too many runs with the new ball by our fast bowlers. But apart from that it was a good game for all of us," he added.

India had beaten Sri Lanka in an earlier warm-up match after the two practice games, and Dhoni indicated that his side would stick to the seven-batsmen-four-bowler combination in the tournament.

“It's a difficult choice whether to pick an extra bowler (fifth bowler) and drop a batsman. I have batsmen who can be used as part-timers and we are a side that is comfortable playing seven batsmen,” said Dhoni.

Dhoni was happy with the form of Rohit Sharma who has done well in the two warm-up matches. “Rohit has been doing well. Lots of people think that T20 is very short game but I feel that at times you can use up some balls to settle down. Rohit did just that, he took some time to settle down and later went after the bowlers.

“He (Rohit) is a talented player. It's good for the team as he can also bowl a bit with his off-spin,” he said.

Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez said that today's win would give his side a morale booster. “The way the boys approached the chase was very positive. We knew if India could post that total, we could get it if we worked hard. Kamran Akmal was exceptional," said Hafeez.

“We won the series against Australia in the UAE before coming here. Now we have beaten India in practice match, this will give us the momentum and boost in the tournament proper," he said. Hafeez also praised Shoaib Malik for his performance and supporting Akmal in the chase. “That is what experience is all about. The experience of Malik was also the key. He supported Kamran really well. The bowlers tried hard, but things didn't work out today.” — PTI

Mumbai, September 17
Mahesh Bhupathi today threatened to drag AITA to the court for ousting him from India's Davis Cup squad along with Rohan Bopanna, saying he was exploring if the national federation's move was legal.

All India Tennis Association (AITA) had sidelined Bhupathi and Bopanna from representing the country till June 30, 2014 on disciplinary grounds.

AITA had taken the decision hours after India's young Davis Cup team took an unassailable 3-0 lead against New Zealand in Chandigarh on Saturday.

Bhupathi will address a press conference in Mumbai tomorrow to give his side of the story and reveal his next move. “Rohan has played for India for 10 years and I have played now for about 18 years now. And to get slapped with something like this, I take this as rough,” Bhupathi said.

“We are exploring it, we don't know yet but I don't think what they have done and the way they have done it , is fully legal. So we are exploring it what they have done is right and obviously if not legal, we are gonna go after it,” he added.

Asked if he felt the AITA action was because of personal vendetta, Bhupathi said,“ Ya, believe so.”

“It's been going on with me and association and heads of the federation for years now. I am just upset and afraid Rohan has got caught in the middle of this dirty game. I have been quiet for a long time,” AITA had chosen Bhupathi to play with Leander Paes at the London Olympics but both he and Bopanna refused the pairing and instead forced the AITA to pair them for the Games.

AITA had to accede to their demand at that time but has now taken the action saying it will not tolerate indiscipline.

Both Paes and Somdev Devvarman had made themselves unavailable for the tie but AITA said their act did not amount to indiscipline. — PTI

Mumbai, September 17
In a minor relief to the beleaguered Deccan Chargers, the Bombay High Court today directed the BCCI to maintain status quo regarding the termination of the IPL franchise, owned by Deccan Chronicles Holdings Ltd.

Deccan Chronicles had approached the High Court on Saturday challenging the decision taken by BCCI in Chennai on Friday at its emergency IPL Governing Council meeting to terminate the contract of the cash-strapped Deccan Chargers. According to Deccan Chronicles petition, the decision of BCCI was illegal and bad in law. It further sought for interim relief from the High Court to stay the termination on the grounds that BCCI was already planning to invite tenders for the team from Hyderabad.

BCCI, however, informed the High Court that it was not inviting tenders for Deccan Chargers team. — PTI