Time for the real battle to begin

Muttiah Muralitharan is all set to turn it on at Sydney © Getty Images

Forget the past week. The Super Test starting on Friday is the match of the series. Run over in the limited-overs games in Melbourne, the World XI have six days to rediscover their sparkle and show their undoubted quality. The contest is vital for both teams - an all-star bunch and a revitalised Australia - who will determine the validity of the Super Series.

Home and happy, Ricky Ponting can gain further distance from the Ashes and add the novel prize of taking on the World and winning. The Australians displayed incredible excitement at securing the one-day series 3-0 but the resurgence - Ponting would call it consistency, but they have improved significantly since England - would mean nothing if the intensity and ferocity is not matched at the SCG.

Overseas and currently overpaid, the World are struggling to merge their skills and roles while holding unfamiliar positions. John Wright, the coach, understands his team cannot match the collective desire of his opponents and will rely on a clutch of high-class performances in an arena that gives individual genius more chance to thrive. Today they cut Shoaib Akhtar from the squad and will finalise the side on Friday morning.

The combinations and head-to-heads are mind-blowing; the mood in Sydney is expectant. Four specialist spinners are massaging their fingers and almost gleaming at the prospect of their bowl-off. Shane Warne said Daniel Vettori and Muttiah Muralitharan were the most dangerous of the World XI's components. "Expect a very good showing from these guys," Warne said of the opposition. "You get the true indication in a Test because the best side will always win."

Graeme Smith has never handled a quality spinner and his leadership and tactical nous will be tested as sternly as his batsmen from the Warne and Stuart MacGill threats. "The responsibility falls on myself and Murali to help us through that," Vettori said. "We have to guide Graeme. He's obviously a strong character and will have his way of doing things, but in the end it will come back to us to work out what we need."

Australia named both spinners in their team today and included the allrounder Shane Watson while Brad Hodge was 12th man. Michael Clarke will slot in at No. 4, the spot formerly held by Mark Waugh, another New South Wales batsman who grew up in the western suburbs of Sydney. "He looks at home whenever he strides to the crease in both forms of the game," Ponting said. "He's got a big future and will certainly be around for some time."

The World XI's problems are much tougher as they attempt to squeeze 13 experts into 11 chairs. Shoaib has already been considered excess baggage, but Smith said the decision was not based on fitness. "Combinations are very important for us and we are pretty confident in the 11 we will pick," he said. "Shoaib's been left out and it's got nothing to do with his weight. We didn't feel he'd fit into the 12 we picked." Shaun Pollock, the one-day captain, was dropped on the morning of the match with the England pair of Andrew Flintoff and Steve Harmison set to open the attack.

Spinning duels will definitely provide some of the highlights, but there is suitable competition from the batsmen. Will a player come close to matching the immediately recalled achievement of Garry Sobers's 254 at Melbourne in 1971-72 for the Rest of the World? Or the batting of the Chappells? Or can a bowler mirror the force of Dennis Lillee?

Virender Sehwag lifts himself for the Tests and the pride of Dravid, Lara and Kallis is bruised following the one-day matches. A similar feeling applies to the current Test specialists Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer as they face Flintoff and Harmison after the England loss. Ponting, too, is keen to make points with bat and captaincy.

Five Tests were played during that summer 24 years ago, this time it is a one-match shoot-out with Test instead of exhibition status. At every point there will be intriguing subplots but the result is what will matter. The closeness of the contest will determine how super the series is, and whether it will be repeated in four years.

Australia 1 Justin Langer, 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Simon Katich, 6 Shane Watson, 7 Adam Gilchrist (wk), 8 Shane Warne, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Glenn McGrath, 11 Stuart MacGill, 12 Brad Hodge.

World XI 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Inzamam-ul-Haq, 5 Brian Lara, 6 Jacques Kallis, 7 Andrew Flintoff, 8 Mark Boucher, 9 Daniel Vettori, 10 Steve Harmison, 11 Muttiah Muralitharan.