The penultimate match of the League stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 is upon us. India and Sri Lanka will be playing at Headingley, Leeds. While the Lankans’ campaign has come to an end, with no hope of progressing further, confirmed semi-finalists India will be determined to skip over Australia to go on top of the points table.

The Men in Blue are having a splendid World Cup with the team making itself the side to beat in the tournament. Only one defeat so far indicates the good form Virat Kohli and Co. are in at the moment. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka have had a turbulent ride in England. Not only was form a concern for the team, but even the weather did not favour them with two of their matches – one against Pakistan and another Bangladesh – getting abandoned.

The highlight for the Sri Lankan camp was their praiseworthy win over the hosts that opened up possibilities of qualification for teams like them, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Despite their current place on the standings, the Men in Blue will not take the fixture lightly focusing on the top spot finish.

Headingley is the venue where the Lankans beat Eoin Morgan’s side. That match and the other two CWC ’19 matches played there saw pacers enjoying a major share of wickets. The likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Lasith Malinga will be keen to get going on Saturday.

Team Form:

India bounced back strongly after the England loss, to book the semi-final spot. Rohit Sharma is in the form of his life having four hundreds in the current edition of the World Cup already, the joint-highest in the history of the tournament with former Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara. His opening partner KL Rahul has been among the runs too, but the fluency and tempo of his game remain a concern.

The Indian dressing room is a content unit as far as bowling is concerned. Bumrah, Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have been in superlative form. Be it with combinations of playing two specialist pacers or even three, as in the previous game, the team has flourished.

Sri Lanka have had a sporadic stint in England in both batting and bowling departments. Their biggest revelation of the campaign has been Avishka Fernando. Having played only three games, he is the only Sri Lankan to have scored a century at this World Cup. The youngster will be key to build a foundation against the Indian bowlers.

Veteran Malinga has been the force leading his team’s bowling unit. With 12 wickets to his name, he will be crucial with the new ball to counter India’s prolific top-order. Dhananjaya de Silva, too, will be important to provide breakthroughs during the middle overs.

Key Battle:

Rohit Sharma vs Lasith Malinga

What a clash it will make, one of the best ODI batsmen in the world and the leading run-getter at the World Cup facing the well-seasoned bowler playing his fourth World Cup. That the two players have years of experience of knowing and playing each other for Mumbai Indians will make the battle even more watchable.

Both teams will be keen to end the league stage on a winning note, before India go into the semi-finals and the Lankans end their World Cup campaign. The match at Headingley will start at 3 PM IST on Saturday.