PUNE (India), Nov 2: Sri Lanka’s former World Cup-winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga on Wednesday predicted a 7-0 sweep for resurgent India in the current one-day series unless the tourists quickly stop the rot.

Sri Lanka, beaten in the first three games, must win the fourth one-dayer at the Nehru stadium here on Thursday to stay afloat in the seven-match series.

Ranatunga, who led Sri Lanka to victory in the 1996 World Cup, believes poor tactics and lack of commitment by Marvan Atapattu’s men had placed the world’s second-ranked side in a precarious position.

“I am disappointed with a few of our tactics,” Ranatunga wrote in his column for the Press Trust of India. “The bowling and fielding have been unimaginative and routine.

“If the team is honest they would admit Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene alone have been leading the batting charge in recent months.

“Others need to pull their weight. This Indian side can only be subdued by 11 charged and committed men, marauding like a hungry pack of wolves.

“Otherwise, I suspect a 7-0 drubbing, so much has Sri Lanka fallen behind in the present series,” Ranatunga wrote.

In a further blow to the tourists Jayawardene will miss Thursday’s crucial match, having been granted leave to fly home to Colombo to get married.

He will return in time for the fifth match in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

Ranatunga has been impressed by India’s remarkable rise under new captain Rahul Dravid and coach Greg Chappell after losing two one-day finals — to Sri Lanka and New Zealand — earlier in the season.

India thrashed the Sri Lankans by 152 runs in the first match in Nagpur and won the second by eight wickets in Mohali. They then rode on Mahendra Dhoni’s 183 not out to surpass a target of 299 in the third game in Jaipur last Monday.—AFP