Adam Parore: Caps must sort out in the series against Sri Lanka

New Zealand should start the one-day series against Sri Lanka as warm favourites, and there should be no excuses for not dominating the five-game contest.

The series will offer a contrast in approaches to the limited-overs game.

New Zealand have traditionally relied on the team model, in which everyone chips in to make a contribution to getting the team over the line. The idea is that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

But that's not the way of the Asian nations.

Look back through the scorecards over the years and you'll see more often than not Sri Lanka and Pakistan in particular have tended to rely heavily on three or four players carrying them through.

In Pakistan's case that was perhaps more apparent, with the likes of Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Imran Khan time after time proving decisive figures in a team which carried a few lightweight performers.

For Sri Lanka, Aravinda de Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga were heavy contributors, and in the current side the same applies to Sanath Jayasuriya, Marvan Atapattu, Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan.

I remember Jayasuriya introducing himself to us at Bloemfontein in the 1994-95 tri-series with 140, smearing us around the park.

He's hit four ODI tons off us altogether. That one, plus 103 in 83 balls at Eden Park four seasons ago stand out, as I stood behind him on both occasions. The ball just kept sailing into the stands - which is great entertainment, if you're a spectator.

Atapattu is more solid but very effective. Vaas is a good quality left-armer and will spearhead a useful pace attack, and Dilhara Fernando is a distinctly slippery operator.

Muralitharan is due here for the tests, which is good and bad news - good that he won't be around to damage us in the one-dayers, bad that he will be rolling up for the longer matches.

He could spin a marble on glass and he will as always be a real handful. Enough has been said about his bowling action. Everyone has an opinion, but he's been passed to continue, he's playing, so best just get on with it.

New Zealand's strategy in the one-dayers might be to target the key individuals, on the basis that they will feel the players in between do not amount to enough to unduly trouble them.

In the case of their batsmen, that might be easier said than done, and in any case it's worth remembering that Sri Lanka are the second-ranked ODI side, behind Australia and one spot ahead of New Zealand.

They've played 27 ODIs this year and won 20 of them. That's good going. New Zealand have won 17 out of 21, and are playing in their own back yard. They should win.

In my time in the national side, we always reckoned Sri Lanka and India were the two teams we should always beat in New Zealand.

The pitches generally suited us and in some cases the visitors weren't up for it, as with India on their last trip a year ago.

It's good to see Daryl Tuffey back to spearhead the new ball attack, although I'm sure the selectors will take it easy with him. My pick would be that he'll play games one and three and then they'll reassess his progress after his injury layoff.

From what I saw in Australia, we certainly need him, but the selectors will be conscious of not pushing him too hard before Australia arrive in a couple of months.

There is the incentive for these teams of being in with a chance of edging Australia out of the No 1 ODI spot, and therefore getting the chance to face the Rest of the World in a three-game series in Melbourne at the end of this season.

I don't take much notice of those world rankings, but they are operating and we have a chance of finishing top so let's go for it. I'd imagine it's a perfect incentive for the New Zealand players.

There was no such concept in my days but I know I'd have regarded it as a highlight of my career if I'd had a chance to share a dressing room with the world's best.

That's what you play for ... and the idea of nudging the Aussies out of that top spot and spoiling their party on their own turf should also inspire the Black Caps.

* Adam Parore is a former New Zealand test and one-day player.