Paul Stirling powered Ireland's chase of 307

Paul Stirling powered Ireland's chase of 307

Paul Stirling

The Mumbai crowds will be treated to an early look at Sri Lanka's powerful top order after Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and chose bat against New Zealand at the Wankhede.

Unlike the frenzied excitement in Group B, the qualifiers are already settled in the more pedestrian Group A, but the winner of this game can expect to finish in the one of the top two positions. Quite what that means in terms of quarter-final opposition is anyone's guess at this stage.

As expected New Zealand were without captain Daniel Vettori and senior seamer Kyle Mills, who are both being given all the time they need to recover from injury before the knockout stages. In Mills' place came fast bowler Hamish Bennett.

Sri Lanka, meanwhile, opted for a second spinner in Ajantha Mendis instead of Thisara Perera. Chamara Silva has been given the responsibility of shoring up a soft middle order ahead of Chamara Kapugedera, but the focus batting first will be, as ever, on Sri Lanka's eye-catching top four.

There was some thought that, with a generous grass covering at the Wankhede, it was a bowl-first pitch but Sangakkara said "It looks a bit soft, there will be spongy bounce and it will do more in the lights."

Sri Lanka: 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Upul Tharanga, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Chamara Silva, 7 Angelo Mathews, 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Lasith Malinga, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Ajantha Mendis.

New Zealand: 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Brendon McCullum (wk), 3 Jesse Ryder, 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Scott Styris, 7 James Franklin, 8 Nathan McCullum, 8 Jacob Oram, 10 Hamish Bennett, 11 Tim Southee.