The start of the seventh edition of the Asia Cup in Bangladesh has been marred by the unseasonal rains, keeping in with the gloomy atmosphere prevailing in cricketing circles in India and Pakistan. While the rains must be propelling the organisers to work on overdrive, there is enough merit in the sentiments expressed by Ashraf Hul Haq with regard to the timing of the tournament. Obviously one can't expect the senior nations in the sub-continent to pass up an opportunity to assert their superiority. Conversely at the time the decision was taken, Bangladesh would not have wanted to ruffle any feathers, as they need the support of their neighbours if they have to achieve the full member status in the ICC.

These factors apart, the participating countries would like to play matches in their entirety rather than a bare minimum that is required to produce a result. The host nation will be keen to prove their worth both in organisational and cricketing abilities as they are more than hopeful in getting recognised by the ICC as a full fledged member. At the moment giving a full membership to Bangladesh will be premature, as they have a long way to go before they can measure upto international standards. Agreed they have won the ICC trophy and against Pakistan in the past but their overall inexperience will probably outweigh their achievements.

The other nations have had the distinction of winning the World Cup and one would need a very effective crystal ball to predict the ultimate winner. The Pakistanis along with the Indians can be unpredictable to the extent of exasperating their supporters. Sri Lanka has proved to be reasonably consistent in the last few months in both the versions of the game. The return of Whatmore has once again revived the talented team from the Emerald Isle as they have performed creditably both at home and away. The clear message given to the seniors that they will have to perform to retain their places has produced the desired results.

The Pakistanis are in touch as they have been playing in the West Indies, which might turn out to be their biggest advantage. Their main batting duo of Inzamam and Youhana have been among the runs and they need to carry on with their form for Pakistan to do well. Akram is still a force to reckon with but it will be interesting to see motivation levels as he has been involved in a long tour. At this stage of his career, it is his mental make up that will keep him going. The young all-rounders like Razzaq have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders.

The Indians have had a reasonably long preparatory camp before their departure and only time will tell how best this was utilised. Ganguly has to contend with a fair bit of inexperience in the medium pace department and may have bowl himself along with Tendulkar. The rain-affected wickets will probably assist the spin trio of Kumble, Joshi and Chopra and they have a major role to play if India has to win. The Indian batting should go down as the best in terms of experience and achievement. The match fixing controversy, which is at its peak, will put extra pressure on the Indians, as every action will be viewed with a lot of cynicism.

In the ultimate analysis, the tussle will be between India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan with batting, consistency and versatility being the main respective strengths. Going by the recent records and the fact that the Sri Lankans won the World Cup in the sub-continent they must go down as the favourites to win the Asia Cup. Hopefully the rains will subside and the enthusiastic public of Bangladesh will get to see some absorbing cricket.

© Woorkheri Raman