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Pakistan has to deal with the fearsome Foursome in the Sri Lankan line-up when they meet in the finals of the ICC T20 Championship on Sunday. If Pakistan has to win the Cup this time, they need to stop the onslaughts of Malinga, Mendis, Murali and Dilshan.

Both Sri Lanka and Pakistan have their strongholds in bowling with the Lankans performing a shade better than their Pak counterparts. The Three M’s in the Sri Lankan bowling – Mendis, Malinga and Murali – will be hard to score off. According to Castrol Index, these three bowlers have not only been miserly but also lethal in their approach – conceding runs at the rate of 6 per over and also picking up more than 5 wickets per match- added to that now is another M – Mathews who rocked the West Indies with his three-wicket haul in the first over in the semi-finals.

The story is the same on the Pakistan side, if not better. The Afridi-Ajmal-Gul combination has been mercurial conceding a shade below 6 runs per over, and also picking up more than 5 wickets per match. However, Mohammed Aamer and Abdul Razzak need to maintain the Bowling Efficiency (BE) to keep the pressure on the Lankan batsman.

Performance of Sri Lankan bowlers in ICC T20

Performance of Pakistan bowlers in ICC T20

It’s batting that will be bothering Pakistan the most. Sri Lankan is miles ahead in this department with Dilshan in prime form and ably supported by Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardane. Dilshan and Jayasuriya have been giving a high Quickstart Bat of around 87 in the tournament so far, compared to only 38 that Pakistan is managing currently. The table below shows how the Lankan batsmen have performed in this Championship. But a low Extreme Performance Bat score of 44 for the Lankans suggests that the lower order needs to perform better during the death overs. 

Sri Lanka batting performance in ICC T20

Pak batsmen, on the contrary, needs to simply score more runs. They have relied too much on their bowling to win matches, but in the Finals, the batsmen too have to chip in to provide a meaty score for the bowlers to defend. Pakistan’s Batting Momentum (BM) of 177 may fall short against the 214 that Lanka currently maintains, on an average, in this tournament. How this deficit is to be balanced will be keenly watched in the final.

Pakistan batting performance in ICC T20

The methodical approach by Sri Lanka in this Championship has made them the top team, according to Castrol Index. But with the unpredictable Pakistan team around, the Final will be a keenly fought battle as the runners –up of 2007 will not easily let go the opportunity to be crowned Champions this time.

Sri Lanka will look forward to the Three M’s – Mendis, Murali and Malinga to deliver once again when they face the West Indies in the second semi-final today. In contrast, wayward bowling by the West Indies may prove to be their biggest handicap.

In all the matches in this Championship so far, West Indian batsmen have hit almost everything coming their way. But a closer analysis, according to Castrol Index, reveals that the Batting Momentum (BM) between the teams don’t differ much with West Indies a shade higher at 225 compared to the Lankan’s 215. Can the Windies depend only on their batting prowess this time or should they instil more discipline in their bowlers to win this one?

With the first innings total at Kennington Oval wicket averaging around 180, a high scoring match can easily be expected from the two sides who are packed with hard-hitters. But Sri Lanka has a much stronger bowling department with a wider variation with the Three M’s – Mendis, Murali and Malinga. They have the cunning Ajantha Mendis, who can fox the batsmen with his unorthodox styles. Then there is Lasith Malinga whose stinging yorkers can choke even the biggest hitters. And then there is Muttiah Muralitharan, who needs no introduction.

Bowling Performances of West Indies and Sri Lanka in 2009 ICC T20

An interesting fact in the table above reveals that Dwayne Bravo, Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards are conceding too many runs and picking fewer wickets than their Lankan counterparts – a big advantage in the shortest version of the game. The 12 overs from the Lankan bowling trio usually cost around 75 runs in a match – another big advantage to Sri Lanka. This fact may be the sole differentiator between the teams considering the average second innings total at The Oval is around 135. The Windies batsmen will have to offset this advantage with patient batting and disciplined bowling.