As the sun rises in the East

…It will be a toss up between comeback man Sehwag and Gambhir for the opening slot, while the return of Shoaib Akhtar adds to the drama as the series kicks-off today

GUWAHATI: The Ulfa has called a truce, even if for two days, just for this game. The sleepy capital city has been spending sleepless nights for the last few days, just for this game.

The army, the police and the paramilitary forces have turned it into a virtual fortress, just for this game.

After all, you can never take any India-Pakistan clash lightly, particularly when it’s the opening match of the series.

The Nehru Stadium here is hosting the two teams for the first time in its history, so the organizers have left no stone unturned to ensure that everything passes off smoothly.

The last match here, between India and England in April last year, was washed off but was marred by crowd disturbances which spilled into the ground and fans had to be lathicharged.

So this time the officials are taking no chances. Even if it means painting the town in khakhi, even if it means there are just a few thousand tickets for the paying public, even if it means denying passes to the media.

But it’s a different story once you enter the ground. The intensity of the two teams is striking, particularly the Pakistan side which has had to bear the shocking news of an emergency being imposed in their country just a day before the match.

There’s much in similar between the two sides. After the World Cup debacle in the Caribbean, both sides are undergoing a transition.

For both it’s more about the power of youth than experience, both have two new and young skippers at the helm, and both have a brittle middle order exposed — Pakistan have lost the comforting physique of Inzamam-ul-Haq to retirement, while India have Rahul Dravid proving himself all over again in a Ranji Trophy game.

There are also comeback tales. India have Virender Sehwag returning to the ODI fold after a nearly six-month break, while fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar returns to the Pakistan side after a 13-match ban.

Pakistan also suffered a blow they day they embarked for the India tour when pace bowler Mohd Asif was ruled out with an elbow injury.

But Shoaib Malik doesn’t sound concerned. “Asif is a class bowler and it would have been great had he been here. But we have Shoaib who is bowling at his best. Our batsmen are in good form, and we now also have Mohd Yousuf back.

We have a fairly balanced side now. We just had a tough series against South Africa, which ran quite close. India are always tough customers at home, but I think we are fully prepared,” he said.

Indian skipper Dhoni, on the other hand, said this was like any other series.

He avoided the question on the impact of Dravid’s absence. “It’s a good chance for the youngsters to excel. This is a young side, and all of them are keen to prove themselves,” he said.

Though he didn’t reveal the playing XI, saying only “we will decide on it after taking a look at the wicket in the morning,” there’s likely to be a toss-up between Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir for the sixth batsman’s slot.