The 'little master' Gavaskar has been a highly respected figure and his presence here will give a wider coverage to the tournament. Also expected in town to cover the big event will be another former Indian captain Ravi Shastri and Pakistani veteran Chisty Mujahid.
The grand opening ceremony of the 1997 Pepsi Asia Cup will be held at the Premadasa Stadium on Monday. The four participating teams - the defending champions India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the hosts Sri lanka will attend the colourful opening ceremony which is scheduled to commence around 9 a.m. The hosts - the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka has finalised all arrangements and the stage is set for the biggest cricketing extravaganza in Asia.
CULTURAL GROUP
The cultural group and the band of the National Youth Services Council (NISCO) will add colour to the opening ceremony of the quadrangular tournament which will be followed by the 'curtain-raiser' match between the World champions Sri Lanka and Pakistan, a team which Arjuna Ranatunga's men have beaten four times in two successive tournaments in Sharjah and India. Sri Lanka's second match will be against the defending champions India on July 18 at the R.Premadasa Stadium. In addition they will meet Bangladesh on July 22 at the SSC grounds, Maitland Place.
India and Pakistan are yet to re-confirm their arrivals in Colombo. An official of the Sri Lanka Cricket Board said yesterday that they have informed the respective boards - BCCI and the BCCP that their teams should arrive here before the opening ceremony. Unconfirmed reports said both India and Pakistan will be here by Sunday evening. Pakistan were originally scheduled to arrive at 12 noon today but are likely to reach Colombo on Friday, along with Sachin Tendulkar's Indians.
ICC trophy champions Bangladesh were the first to arrive on Tuesday to play two practice games and adjust to the conditions here.
INDIA WILL DEFEND
India will be defending their title won in Sharjah in 1995. Pakistan too will be a strong contender, while the 1997 ICC trophy champions Bangladesh are determined to spring a surprise. The four teams will play each other on a league basis and the top two teams will advance to the final which will be played on July 26 at Premadasa Stadium.
Sri Lanka, who won its last two successive one day tournaments in Sharjah (Singer-Akai Cup) and India (Pepsi Independence Cup), will make a strong claim to win the Asian cricket 'crown' before their home supporters. Sri Lanka has won the Asia cup only once and that too was way back in 1986 under the present team Manager Duleep Mendis.