The guys are positive: Kirsten

For Gary Kirsten, it is a first-time experience of being so close to an India-Pakistan final. But he is not letting the occasion get the better of his players.

"It is always a great clash," Kirsten said in Dhaka on Friday. "I know it is going to be a different Pakistan team out there, they (Pakistanis) are really motivated to play good cricket. But we like to trust ourselves rather than worry about Pakistan too much. If we execute our plans the way we want to we will come out on top.

"As I have seen it, the boys are motivated to play good cricket, no matter who they are up against. The guys are in a good space mentally."

Kirsten is well guarded even if his openers don't give the start they have given in the previous two clashes. "We know it (the start) is important. But we are not expecting things. We might not get that partnership but we have enough quality batting in the middle order that can apply themselves in any situation."

Unlike the day before the previous encounter, Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson did not make any predictions about the margin of victory. "We will win by 150 runs," was his cheeky remark but what turned out was a 140-run defeat at the hands of India last Tuesday. On Friday Lawson said that the e-mail from the PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf after the previous defeat was a routine one. "The players are concerned about playing well tomorrow," Lawson said.