Setting aside all talk of revenge for the one-day series loss to India last year, Sri Lanka's wicketkeeper-batsman Kumar Sangakkara said his team is viewing the three-match series as a fresh start.
Sangakkara said the 6-1 thrashing in India in November was a thing of the past and won't matter when the two sides start their bi-lateral series on Friday.
"It is obviously nice to get one back. But if you are really concentrating on the end result, you will lose sight of all the processes that go into the game," the 28-year-old keeper told reporters.
"The 6-1 defeat has gone. Our 11 victories in a row is history as well. We start afresh when we go into this tournament.
"India have always been tough. I don't ever remember playing an easy game against them. So, we are going to take it match by match, play by play and see how we can overcome all the challenges that they present," Sangakkara said.
He was hopeful of the series producing some close contests, considering the fact that players of both teams are fit and raring to go.
"Sachin [Tendulkar] is back. Everyone is fighting fit in their camp. Everyone is fighting fit in our camp as well, except Marvan Atapattu. So, it is going to be an even contest and whoever performs better on a particular day and wants to win that game just a bit more than the other team will do well," the Sri Lankan said.
The series was reduced to a three-game affair between the two sides after South Africa pulled out of the triangular event citing security concerns in the post-bomb blast scenario in the Sri Lankan capital.
Sangakkara said the pull-out should not matter since a shorter series would only mean higher intensity in the games.
"In a round-robin series where you have the top two teams go into the final you might have games where certain players are rested and you might be able to take tactical decisions," the left-handed batsman said.
"But it is a three-match series and every match is absolutely vital. It will be much more intense.
"Anyway, in Asian conditions, even if it had been a three-team series, the odds were that India and Sri Lanka would have been in the final."
He said rain and South Africa's pull-out issue affected the players' preparations.
"It is not the best for our mental preparation. But cricket goes on, life goes on. Tomorrow, hopefully, we will get a good game," he said.
