Skippers hope for a smooth final

“We try to avoid controversy as far as possible,” the Indian captain said. “We will go out hard at the opposition but our strength is not to go out there and be very verbal. We chat a lot, we cheer up the bowlers but we try not to get very personal with the batsmen. We have always kept a distance from the opposition batsmen. Hopefully, it will be a non-controversial final.”

Sangakkara said the India-Sri Lanka rivalry didn’t need extraneous factors to generate interest. “India and Sri Lanka have had a great rivalry for a very long time and it’s getting better and better,” he remarked.

“Players are performing well even though you are playing each other a lot. Each new match, new venue is interesting. There’s been one specific incident with the no-ball. I think the players have got on with their jobs pretty well.

“Cricket depends on the entertainment value,” he went on. “If the spectator values good cricket and if the interest is heightened, unfortunately maybe because of an incident that was not so nice, so be it. Our job is to play cricket as well as we can every time we go out to the middle.”