Cricket: Team overview: Sri Lanka

Despite not qualifying for the recent triangular series finals in Australia, Sri Lanka are in a buoyant mood with captain Sanath Jayasuriya back in form and key bowler Muttiah Muralitharan fully fit.

Down and out at the end of last year, with Jayasuriya struggling and Muralitharan recovering from hernia surgery, Sri Lanka slipped from being the most favoured Asian side in the tournament to being unlikely qualifiers for the Super Six stage.

Form had slumped after their shared ICC Champions Trophy with India in September, their batsmen struggling to adapt to the unfamiliar fast and bouncy pitches in South Africa, where they lost a test and one-day series.

The former world champions appeared to be facing certain cup humiliation after three straight losses during the opening part of their triangular series in Australia and then being skittled for just 65 by Australia A.

Jayasuriya's form during that period was dreadful, the left-hander opener scoring just 130 runs at 16.25 in eight matches. Famed for the gloriously combustible potential of his strokeplay, Jayasuriya had become increasingly timid and diffident as he tried to regain form.

But, at the start of the year, his desperation forced him to return to the more natural high-octane style that added "pinch-hitting" to the cricketing lexicon during the 1996 cup.

He vowed to back his natural instincts and attack right from the start and did so to spectacular effect. Although he rode his luck at first, he plundered two consecutive hundreds.

Meanwhile, the return of the talismanic Muralitharan after a six-week lay-off brought Sri Lanka fresh optimism and immediate success.

With Jayasuriya back in free-flowing form and Muralitharan adding teeth to the bowling attack, the make-up of Sri Lanka's best cup team has quickly slotted into place. A long-term experiment with "bits-and-pieces" seam bowling allrounders had already been abandoned as the team management decided instead to play seven specialist batsmen and four frontline bowlers.

Sri Lanka's historic weakness against quick bowling on bouncy pitches also prompted one-day recalls for veteran batsmen Aravinda De Silva and Hashan Tillakaratne.

The 37-year-old De Silva, one of only three players to have scored 9,000 one-day runs, was drafted back into the one-day side in July after shedding 12kg and proving his fitness to the selectors. Left-hander Tillakaratne, an adhesive accumulator of runs previously considered to be a test specialist, was included in the 15-man squad to add solidity to the top order.

The bowling attack is headed by Muralitharan, rated by Wisden as the best bowler in test history, who recently became the fourth bowler to take 300 wickets in tests and ODIs.

The off-spinner is Sri Lanka's key wicket-taker as well as their most economical bowler.

His mere presence instills confidence in his team-mates, a fact graphically illustrated by Jayasuriya's declining win ratio as captain - from 58 percent to 22 percent - when Muralitharan is absent.

- REUTERS

INSIDE TRACK

Captain: Sanath Jayasuriya.

Coach: Dav Whatmore.

Strengths: Well-versed in the one-day game and blessed with considerable experience, including seven players with more than 150 caps. Off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan is a consistent threat. Batting can be destructive on flat pitches.

Weaknesses: Their batsmen are traditionally vulnerable on the fast, bouncy pitches common in South Africa. Running between the wickets can be sluggish, fielding dodgy. Fast bowlers, Chaminda Vaas apart, are prone to conceding a lot of extras.

Key man: Jayasuriya - has returned to his best form after struggling with the bat early in the triangular one-day series in Australia. The dashing left-hander (right) was a dominant figure at the 1996 cup, attacking from the start to exploit the field restrictions in the first 15 overs.

One-day form: Superb at home but inconsistent overseas. Have not lost a home series or tournament since July 1998. Won the Morocco Cup against Pakistan and South Africa in August 2002 and shared the ICC Champions Trophy with India a month later. However, form slumped after that in South Africa and Australia.

Past World Cups: Surprise winners in 1996, having not previously qualified for the knockout stages of the tournament. Crashed out in 1999 after first round.