It146;s do or die today

High up over the sprawling savannah in Port of Spain, looking down over the hotel balcony at a bubbly bunch of school kids setting up cricket nets on Trinidad8217;s own version of the maidan, coach Greg Chappell struggled to keep the balance.

High up over the sprawling savannah in Port of Spain, looking down over the hotel balcony at a bubbly bunch of school kids setting up cricket nets on Trinidad8217;s own version of the maidan, coach Greg Chappell struggled to keep the balance.

8220;We have got to win, and we8217;ve got to win well,8221; he told The Indian Express, adding, 8220;Our recent record against Sri Lanka is good, we are looking forward to the game.8221; But then, he admitted, 8220;It8217;s going to be tough, yes. The guys have still not really recovered from the Bangladesh defeat.8221;

Only minutes before, a Team India veteran had asked on his way back to the room after practice, flicking the sweat away from his forehead with one finger, 8220;You guys are still praying for us, aren8217;t you?8221;

It sinks in, finally. This is not just another cricket match, whatever they say. Of course, not. If the dice rolls the other way on Friday, India 8212; winners in 8217;83, semifinalists in 8217;87, semifinalists in 8217;96, super six challengers in 8217;96, finalists last time 8212; will crash out of the qualifying stages.

And within minutes, the cameras will go berserk, the fans will hit the streets, the sponsors will collapse, the BCCI will go ballistic, the axe will loom over skipper Rahul Dravid, the door will shut on the coach.

No wonder, Chappell didn8217;t even want to discuss that possibility. No wonder, Yuvraj Singh, usually unflappable, confessed: 8220;I don8217;t want to say that there is no pressure. There is. The whole country is looking for India to win that match, we really want to climb the ladder.8221;

No wonder, with over a day to go, the team is still working on the final XI: Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble or Harbhajan Singh for Anil Kumble; Virender Sehwag at No 3 or Virender Sehwag at No 1; Irfan Pathan for Robin Uthappa, or even Sreesanth.

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Chappell wouldn8217;t get into that either, not now. 8220;One thing is sure,8221; he said, 8220;We need to pick up our fielding. That could be the big difference if you look at what has happened so far.8221;

But what everybody is really hoping for is that the Indian batting will click, that Sehwag will pick up from that 114 against Bermuda, that Sourav Ganguly will hold fort at the other end, that Dravid will bat through the end, that Sachin Tendulkar will take charge of the middle overs, that Yuvraj will finally win the battle against the world8217;s best off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

Net runrate? 8220;Let8217;s win this match first,8221; said Chappell.

What is really crucial, he believes, is the first couple of hours 8212; whether India bats first or not. Because no one here is completely convinced that the team has the mental strength, after that shock result against Bangladesh, to mount a fightback 8212; a flurry of early Indian wickets, or an opening surge by Sanath Jayasuriya and Co could end it all.

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Of course, you can still point to India8217;s 49-36 record against Lanka, the recent one-day series win at home. But Murali will be the first to tell you that history doesn8217;t count, and that he wasn8217;t there in India last month, nor his friend and one of the most dangerous opening bowlers in one-day cricket, Chaminda Vaas.

The Lankans will also show you the Word Cup stats 8212; 3-2 in their favour 8212; and pull out their scorecard against Bangladesh: demolition by 198 runs, seven runs more than what India had scored against them.

Maybe, we should ask Bangladesh skipper Habibul Bashar. 8220;Both are champion sides. India has a very strong batting line-up, but Sri Lanka is a better all-round side, they have good bowling and fielding, too.8221; Maybe, we should just hold our breath and pray.