The lack of clarity over Harbhajan's injury has added to the confusion in Indian camp ahead of the vital third test
The lack of clarity over Harbhajan's injury has added to the confusion in Indian camp ahead of the vital third test
Very little has gone right for India's tour of the Emerald Isle. Already they have lost Gautam Gambhir before the start of the third Test at P Sara Oval. Now Harbhajan Singh is on the doubtful list.
From the bemused look offered by coach Gary Kirsten, all it needs is for the captain M S Dhoni to report of a strained back and the plans of a series equalling victory will have all but disappeared.
Harbhajan "has a niggle and is being monitored" is the laconically offered official statement. With "monitored" being the current "buzzword" offered by physios and fitness support staff to explain anything from fever to swollen knees, tennis elbows and ankle problems, it becomes a guessing game just what really is wrong with Harbhajan. If his fever has returned, the "niggle" might turn out to be something else.
As it was, before the second Test when asked, Dhoni didn't quite remember which knee Gambhir was hobbling on. Just that is was a "knee injury".
There is also the question mark over Lasith Malinga's fitness. His right knee injury is still being monitored and the rumour of a 50-50 chance of playing was still circulating late yesterday. This is down from the 70/30 certainty of Sunday.
The selectors were non-committal yesterday after the net session at the venue, the oldest in the country and where Sri Lanka opened their Test career in March 1982 against the Keith Fletcher-led England.
If Malinga is patched up to play, he will need to be handled carefully as further strain on the knee will create long-term problems and with the tri-nation series ahead and long-term the World Cup, they cannot afford to lose their shock bowler with the rocket-propelled deliveries.u00a0
All this happened on the eve of Sachin Tendulkar's record-breaking 169th Test where he surpasses Steve Waugh, who played 168 before he retired.
As for the pitch, it is another "monitoring guessing game". It is not that there is a lot of grass on it, for as Sri Lanka learnt to their chagrin in Dambulla for the Asia Cup final, where they were bowled out for what was hardly a competitive total in the final after demolishing India two days earlier, they don't handle the moving ball too well; even if it is the white one.
As former Sri Lanka coach Tom Moody once said, winning the toss and batting first is always a dicey game on Day One at P Sara. By the end of Day Two, however, it will have flattened out and the ball will start turning from Day Four. Pakistan were dismissed for 90 last year and in 2007 Bangladesh, batting first scored 62 in their first innings.
Local critics at the Tamil Union venue suggest it will be a typically flat pitch by the start of the second day, if not before.
