The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Colombo

India captain Anil Kumble believes his team's batting lineup has enough quality and is experienced enough in test cricket to cope with the threat posed by new Sri Lankan spin sensation Ajantha Mendis.

"Obviously, he is somebody we have to watch out for," Kumble said Tuesday at a news conference. "But test cricket is different.

We have the quality and our middle order has more than 30,000 test runs, four of them have played more than 100 test matches.

"It will be challenging, but I am sure our batsmen will definitely cope with that."

The 23-year-old Mendis took six wickets for 13 runs against India in the Asia Cup final on July 6 to help Sri Lanka successfully defend its title.

India one-day captain Mahendra Dhoni later conceded that his batsmen failed pick Mendis' subtle variations.

However, the prolific Sachin Tendulkar returns to bolster India's star-studded batting lineup that also comprises Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, V.V.S. Laxman and Virender Sehwag.

Tendulkar has 11,782 test runs, 172 from overtaking former West Indies batsman Brian Lara as the No. 1 in the world.

"It will be nice to go back with a victory and that's what we aim for," said Kumble, adding that his bowling attack will be better balanced with the return of left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan and offspinner Harbhajan Singh.

India begins with a three-day practice match from July 18, followed by three tests and five one-day internationals.

Meanwhile, former captain Hashan Tillakaratne was appointed Sri Lanka team manager for the India series on Tuesday.

The 41-year-old Tillakaratne scored 4,545 runs in 83 tests. In 200 one-day internationals, Tillakaratne compiled 3,789 runs. He was a regular national player for 15 years from 1989 and led the team in 10 tests from 2003.