The Indian Oil triangular series in Sri Lanka started out with a belief that the presence of a third team besides neighbouring India and host Sri Lanka was a mere formality. As the tournament got underway, it was obvious that Sri Lanka had warmed up sufficiently with the two tests against the West Indies while the latter were in turmoil due to the battle between the Board and Players' Association.

With Greg Chappell making his debut as coach and Sourav Ganguly playing second fiddle to Rahul Dravid, the captain for the series, there was much to look forward to as far as India were concerned. Dravid himself was caught between a sense of pride in taking on the worthy mantle and yet facing the distinct possibility that Ganguly could well take back the reins if the selectors so wished. Ganguly's six-match ban was reduced to four and he made most of the opportunity, top-scoring for India in his comeback match and in the process, completing 10,000 one day international runs, a feat achieved only by Sachin Tendulkar and Inzamam-Ul Haq in the past.

But India struggled to get past Sri Lanka in both outings and largely so because of their inability and lack of resources in finishing off the good work they started. On both occasions, Sri Lanka were tested, but came through in the end as they held their nerve and their resolve to retain the 'favourites' tag. The second-string West Indies teamm, devoid of all their seniors save captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul, showed a lot of promise, but they have a long way to go.

Matters became more intriguing when Chanderpaul missed the fielding practice on the eve of his side's second league game against the home team at Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. His deputy Sylvester Joseph, not a regular in the full-strength West Indian side, took over the reins, but what followed was an abject performance from the Sri Lankan batting and a 'wake-up call' as stand-in skipper Mahela Jayawardene concluded. While it meant West Indies still possessed the fighting spirit, it meant greater headaches for Chappell and his wards as the final game became in effect a virtual semi-final.

India started sluggishly and an arm injury to Ganguly added to the tension. The situation had all but become hopeless at fifty-one for three before Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif, both keen to impress with Suresh Raina in the wings, pulled off a remarkable partnership that put India firmly in the driver's seat. Kaif scored eighty-three and Yuvraj his third one-day international century. Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit some lusty blows in the final stages to take the total past 250.

But India's woes in finishing off matters resurfaced, despite Kumble's inclusion, as the team from the Caribbean isles fought but in vain till the very end. That victory was India's seemed predetermined given that they had posted the highest score of the tournament, but the way they went about finishing the proceedings was faulty. The final against Sri Lanka will test the effectiveness of India's fifth bowling option and a Sri Lankan middle-order that has struggled to fire in unison. Let the final battle begin!