MOHALI: Entertainment is the key factor in contemporary cricket. No place for blockers and innings builders, and when it comes to limited-overs cricket, the essence is on batsmen ever ready to pulverise the bowlers. The spectators love it when the ball lands close to them from big hits and the Champions Trophy promises to live up to the expectations of the masses.

The connoisseur may not relish the hectic pace of one-day cricket, but then the game has witnessed major alterations to suit the demands of administrators, who have concentrated on swelling the coffers through endless, and at times, meaningless competitions.

Yet another tournament unfolds, with high commercial stakes, and reputations on test. Matches in the Champions Trophy are to be held at four centres, where, reportedly, extra effort has been made to ensure the best of facilities on and off the field.

In the sub-continent, the bowlers have always been at a great disadvantage and this edition of the tournament will not be any different in terms of the huge challenges they would face.

Kingpins

Glenn McGrath, that lethal stalker of batsmen, Shoaib Akhtar, the furious destroyer of confidence, and Muttiah Muralitharan, the mysterious tweaker, would be the bowlers to watch, as they take on some of the most destructive batsmen in the modern era.

The list of entertainers is long. Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, the unchallenged stalwarts of batsmanship in any era; Sanath Jayasuriya, who just refuses to give up his vocation of slamming the ball; Adam Gilchrist, who believes he was born only to savage the bowlers; Kevin Pietersen, the most clinical stroke-maker in modern day cricket; Mahendra Singh Dhoni, an astonishing belter of the ball; Ricky Ponting, capable of finishing a match single-handedly; and Chris Gayle, who best signifies dominating batsmanship.

Australia, for obvious reasons, is everyone's favourite; even its opponents confide their admiration of Australian supremacy in private. Mike Hussey is the latest addition to its splendid grooming process as the team seeks to capture the one title that has eluded it from the time the team won the World Cup in 1987.

Compact combination

Sri Lanka appears a compact combination to take on Australia in all conditions. Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Marvan Atapattu and Muralitharan are world-class performers, with veteran Chaminda Vaas adding bite to the attack. Sri Lanka should be the team to watch out for, even though it has a dismal record when not playing at home. Its triumph in England recently is a strong indicator of its change in attitude.

India, as always, promises a lot. The experiments under Greg Chappell may have led to some criticism, but the team management knows better. Rahul Dravid, firmly saddled until the World Cup, has to lead from the front now and the youngsters need to deliver. Virender Sehwag's form will be the key and a lot should depend on how Irfan Pathan and Ajit Agarkar fare with the new ball, especially when pitted against aggressive openers.

Motivated side

Lara leads a motivated side, which has a point to prove after being forced to go through the qualification round in a tournament it won last time. Bowling remains a concern, but the top order batting carries enough weight to destroy oppositions.

South Africa has a few problems in the spin department. However, in Graeme Smith, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher, it has players capable of making a big impression.

New Zealand relies a lot on Stephen Fleming and Nathan Astle, and the presence of Shane Bond should be a boost. England has never had a great record despite being runner-up in 2004.

The return of Andrew Flintoff lends more firepower to England's batting.

Pakistan would be a threat even without Inzamam-ul-Haq.

The new captain, Mohammad Yousuf, has to keep the flock together after Younis Khan's dramatic abdication of the throne.

Zimbabwe is horribly over-matched, while Bangladesh, which takes on Sri Lanka in the first qualifying encounter here on Saturday, is capable of causing an upset.

Good outfit

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene described Bangladesh as a "good outfit."

He said: "Bangladesh is capable of creating upsets from time to time. We have always taken Bangladesh seriously."

Tom Moody, the coach, said: "I have been around for a year and a half, and we have worked very hard during that period. It takes time for young players to feel comfortable and find their feet in international cricket."

On the match, Moody said: "We are very excited and looking at it positively. We will have some games under our belt before the main competition and get adjusted to the conditions in India."

The Bangladesh captain, Habibul Bashar, was cautious. "I know that our record against Sri Lanka is not that great, but this is a new event and tomorrow is another game. We have some great individual performers in our ranks, and who knows, it might just be their day tomorrow."

The teams (from): Sri Lanka: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Marvan Atapattu, Malinga Bandara, T.M. Dilshan, Dilhara Fernando, Sanath Jayasuriya, Chamara Kapugedera, Farveez Maharoof, Lasith Malinga, Muthiah Muralitharan, Ruchira Perera, Kumar Sangakkara, Upul Tharanga and Chaminda Vaas.

Bangladesh: Habibul Bashar (captain), Shahriar Nafees, Abdur Razzak, Aftab Ahmed, Farhad Reza, Khaled Mashud, Mashrafe Mortaza, Mehrab Hossain (Jr), Mohammad Ashraful, Mohammad Rafique, Rajin Saleh, Saqibul Hasan, Shahadat Hossain and Syed Rasel.

Umpires: Messrs Steve Bucknor and Daryl Harper. Third umpire: Simon Taufel.

Match Referee: Mike Procter.

Hours of play: 2.30 p.m. to 6 p.m.; 6.45 p.m. onwards.

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