First one-dayer at Rajkot today:

SL in with new plans

Shirajiv Sirimane in India

Sri Lanka will be looking for a perfect start when they take on India in the five match one day international series which begins in Rajkot today. Kumar Sangakkara’s team is determined to make amends and improve their rankings following a disappointing Test series and after having drawn the Twenty20 series one all.

The Sri Lankan captain stated that they have a couple of surprises that will certainly upset the opposition and altogether they have sought out a different gamer plan to topple the home side.

However the Lankans suffered a severe blow ahead of the first game when speedster Lasith Malinga was ruled out with a virus flue.

India currently sits in second place on 122 ratings points, eight behind Australia, but can reduce the gap to four ratings points if it manages to win all five matches of the series.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s side can only drop a position if it loses the series by 1-4 or worse. If Sri Lanka wins the series 4-1 series, India will drop to 117 ratings points, two behind South Africa, while a 5-0 defeat will put it on par with Kumar Sangakkara’s side on 115 ratings point but behind Sri Lanka when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

While India will be aiming to get closer to Australia, Sri Lanka will be attempting to improve its current seventh position. And to make it happen, Sri Lanka has to win the series by 3-2 or better.

A 3-2 series win will put Sri Lanka ahead of Pakistan while a 4-1 series win will place it before New Zealand and England on the ODI Championship table. A clean sweep will lift it to third position.

Meanwhile, in the ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is feeling the heat from Australia’s Michael Hussey as only 16 points separates the two batsmen.

Dhoni will have to perform consistently well in the series with the bat to defend this number-one position which he has been occupying since January.

Apart from Dhoni, India boasts Yuvraj Singh (seventh), Sachin Tendulkar (eighth), Virender Sehwag (11th) and Gautam Gambhir (19th) inside the top 20. The foursome are well-placed to move up the order with Yuvraj in sight of a return to the top three and Sehwag within touching distance of a place inside the top 10.

Sri Lanka includes captain Kumar Sangakkara (17th) and Sanath Jayasuriya (18th) inside the top 20 while the batsmen inside the top 50 are Tillakaratne Dilshan (27th), Mahela Jayawardena (29th) and Thilina Kandamby (49th).

In the ICC Player Rankings for ODI bowlers, Sri Lanka pacer Nuwan Kulasekara is the highest-ranked bowler from either side in fourth position.

The other bowlers inside the top 20 from either side are spinners with India’s Harbhajan Singh in 11th position and Sri Lanka pair of Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralidaran in 13th and 14th spots respectively.

In the ICC Player Rankings for ODI all-rounders, Yuvraj is the highest-ranked player from either side in third place while Jayasuriya is Sri Lanka’s highest-ranked all-rounder in eighth spot.