Tamil Union clash with NCC in Premier Limited Overs Final

After the Sri Lankan cricket team's annihilation of the West Indies and Zimbabwe sides during the last few months, which were almost one-sided affairs, the attention has now turned to a tough competition, not international but domestic. Tomorrow's final of the domestic Premier Limited Overs Tournament between NCC and Tamil Union with most of the national caps available for the match has aroused much interest.

The young players who toiled for success on the way to the final have given way to the seniors, and the intensity of the tournament has increased with Janashakthi insurance coming forward to sponsor the match, which will be televised live by Channel Eye.

Both teams performed well in the first round of the tournament, with the Tamils winning five of their seven matches and NCC doing even better, winning six of their seven. In the semi-finals, NCC beat Colts Cricket Club, the leaders of Group A, while the Tamils beat BRC, the leaders of Group B, to qualify for the final at the SSC, Colombo.

Though NCC look the stronger side on paper, the availability of champion off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan will be a big boost for the Tamils, and they will hope those magic fingers which have claimed 400 Test wickets will do the job for them. The captain of the Tamil Union side Niroshan Bandaratillake himself acknowledges this.

"I have got the best spinner in the world in my team. That's a big plus point I have," Bandaratilleke said.

"Murali's finger was injured during the second Test Match, but despite that he played in the third and the final match and won the game for Sri Lanka. For tomorrow's match he has made himself available and that's a big boost for the team."

Murali, like most of the stars featuring tomorrow, has not played in the preliminary round matches. But the captains believe that shouldn't be a problem.

Russel Arnold has taken over the captaincy from Naveed Navaz for the final game.

"We haven't had much of an interaction in recent times due the commitment with the national side," Arnold said. "I haven't played a single game, neither has Kumar. Hashan played just one game. It's a bit difficult, but we know each other pretty well so that must not be a problem,"

Meanwhile NCC has star player Aravinda de Silva, who still can win matches on his own, and with a point to prove he'll be eager for the challenge. He will open the innings with Pradeep Hewage for the NCC.

The Tamil side is packed with bowlers, specifically spinners, while the opposition boasts batsmen of the caliber of de Silva, Pradeep Hewage, Kumar Sangakkara, Naveed Nawaz, Arnold, Hashan Tillakaratne and Ruwan Kalpage.

Tamil Union skipper Niroshan Bandaratilleke believes his side is better balanced. "NCC can be proud of a strong batting line-up. But we've got a balanced side with a couple of good batsmen and guys who can bowl fast like Gayan Wijekoon and Promodaya Wickramasinghe. Then our main weapon, the spinning department, is the best in the country,"

But Arnold believes his team have the edge. "We have a strong batting line-up compared to the Tamils. The Tamils have good spinners, but we've got a few good fast bowlers and that must suit us at the SSC,"

Both teams have picked 12 players and are undecided about the final slot. The Tamils have to decide between batsman Indika de Saram, who is not fully fit, and Sanjeeva Jayaratna, a young fast bowling all-rounder. NCC are contemplating whether to play fast bowler Akalanka Ganegama or spinner Malinga Bandara.

Arnold and Muralitharan have been playing for their country together for a while, and it will be interesting to see how they perform as opponents. Arnold has been an enormous strength to Muralitharan in international matches, contributing to many of his wickets.

"We've been working together for a long time. But don't expect us to lose tomorrow. If we lose by chance, Murali is going to give us a headache for months," joked Arnold.

The winners will be awarded the Premier Limited Overs Tournament Challenge Cup and a cash prize of Rs. 150,000 while the runners-up will win 100,000 from the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka. Former Sri Lankan Test cricketer Don Anurasiri will be the match referee.