Need to guard against inconsistency, says Dravid

Most of the chatter during the series has been about the Sachin Tendulkar effect © AFP

For the umpteenth time in this series Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappell insisted that there was still a long way to go, and that being 2-0 up would make no difference to the way they prepared, and to the intensity they carried into the third game.

"We will just concentrate on what we have to do. I am happy with the way my team has played in the last two games," Dravid said on Sunday after a lengthy practice session at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. "But I am not worried too much about the results. We need to focus on the processes we put in place and on our goals, and I believe if you do the processes well, the result takes care of itself."

Dravid also reiterated the need to be consistent, and said that it was something he had put across to the team. "I have put the challenges forward to them," he said. "We know that we have been inconsistent in the past, and the challenge is to make sure that doesn't happen again. We have learnt to prepare hard for the match in hand, irrespective of the result of the previous game."

The fact that India are 2-0 up gives them the luxury of considering resting Sachin Tendulkar - who has just managed a successful return to cricket after a long lay-off owing to a painful tennis elbow - although perhaps the time has not yet come for that. "We are aware of that, we have to make sure that we don't put too much pressure on him," said Chappell. "If and when the opportunity presents itself, we will look to rest him for a game somewhere down the line."

Dravid added that Tendulkar's style of playing was in line with the team's current needs. "When you play 15 years of international cricket, you can't score in every game, and we don't expect him to score in every game," he said. "He's hitting the ball well, is in good form, and we hope he may continue to do that. Most importantly, he is a team man who can play according to the requirements of the team, who can play differently in different conditions."

Chappell conceded that playing at home did give the Indians an edge. "Playing at home does make a big difference, and Sri Lanka are on the road," he said. "But the fact is that we have played good cricket in the last two games. We have approached matches with strategies that we think will give us an advantage and work against them, and so far, they have succeeded. Good teams are those who have different players performing in different matches. If someone fails, then someone else turns up."

Marvan Atapattu: 'Vaas is among the top five bowlers in one-day cricket' © AFP

Marvan Atapattu, the beleagured Sri Lankan captain, was once again faced with questions on how his team planned to bounce back in the series after suffering heavily at India's hands. Keeping his cool, he said, "We need to play well as a group for us to bounce back. We have a few things planned, and one of those is not to pressurise individuals. The team has to gel together for us to come up trumps. There is no point having stars and putting pressure on them. As a unit, we all have to respond to the challenge."

Atapattu also defended Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas, who have not had as big an impact as expected. "Murali is a class act, and it's not easy to bowl on flat tracks," he said. "Actually, if you take the figures of all the bowlers in the series so far, you will find that Murali has the best figures. As for Vaas, it will be unfair to pull him down when he is bowling to someone like Sachin, who is batting as well as he has done all career long. Vaas is among the top five bowlers in one-day cricket, but how he is bowling here is a reflection of both the conditions and the person he is bowling at. He can't go from being very good to very bad overnight."

Mahela Jayawardena, who also attended the pre-match press conference, echoed Atapattu's words, and said he, as an individual, was not feeling any special pressure to perform. "I don't feel any additional pressure. As a team, we need to get our acts together. We all have the capability, of that there is no doubt. What is important is how we approach the task tomorrow. Personally, I will take it as just another game."