CRICKET:For India and South Africa, this weekend's games against Ireland at Stormont represents an opportunity to put a disappointing World Cup behind them and begin to build for the next tournament, in 2011. For Ireland the games are a chance to show what they are made of in front their home support and a huge global TV audience.

Ireland play India today and South Africa tomorrow, before the two visiting countries meet in a three-game series starting on Tuesday. The final games in that series are next weekend.

India in particular are a team in transition. The star names of Tendulkar, Ganguly and captain Rahul Dravid are approaching the end of illustrious careers; younger men such as Mahendra Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh are taking more central roles.

The little master Tendulkar is still the biggest draw, and Ireland cricket fans would do well to catch him while they can; his ability to play the match-defining knocks of five years ago seems to be waning. Tendulkar's contributions these days tend to be shorter, and he is a marginal rather than central force.

But he remains one of the great players of his generation, perhaps only Brian Lara matching him for range of shot, weight of runs and sheer charisma.

Of the new group, Dhoni catches the eye most often. Combining wicketkeeping with prodigious hitting in the middle order, he will surely test the Ireland attack to the full should he be at the crease with 10 overs to go.

But India's early exit from the World Cup, at the hands of Bangladesh, means Dravid's men are under pressure at home. Any slip-ups this weekend will worsen that situation, and so Ireland will receive few favours.

Before the team left India, the BCCI took the extraordinary step of issuing a two-page letter, listing a series of does and don'ts to players and staff.

"Indian cricket is passing through a difficult phase after our poor showing in the World Cup, and along with the BCCI, the players have also gone through some tough time," wrote the board's chief administrative officer, Ratnakar Shetty.

Following the post-World Cup resignation of Greg Chappell in May, India come to Ireland without a recognised full-time coach. The future direction of the team, and its selection, will wait until a new man is appointed.

In the meantime, all the present squad can do is make runs, take wickets and win matches in the hope of avoiding the mass clear-out some predict.

The top players remain icons to a fanatical Indian support, and their value on the commercial market is undimmed.

Such a mix of money and ego does not always make for team spirit, however. Given this backdrop, it's unsurprising Dravid came out fighting this week: "Suggestions are welcome, but it's important that the captain is comfortable with the XI that's chosen. That is the way it is and that's how it should be."

One way or another it is always fascinating being in the orbit of the Indian cricket team.

South Africa's expectations of a final place in the Caribbean were unhinged by the same Bangladesh team that did for India and were subsequently beaten by Ireland. The Proteas team for Sunday's match may show more new faces, including Vernon Philander, the all-rounder who pulled out as Ireland's overseas professional through injury in May. The team is led by Jacques Kallis, who scored an impressive half century against the Irish in Georgetown to see his side home.

It was the second of two keenly contested games between the sides over the past three months. Ireland's players will remember they had Sunday's visitors at 95 for eight in a World Cup warm-up before Andrew Hall took the game away from them.

South Africa coach Mickey Arthurs has chastening news for Ireland's batsmen. He suggests raw pace was missing from his team's World Cup armoury, and as a result the returning Dale Steyn is likely to feature prominently in the series, especially as Shaun Pollock is resting at home.

"We saw how important pace is at the World Cup," said Arthurs, "and Shaun Tait and Lasith Malinga were probably the two most destructive bowlers there. Dale has the ability to do what they did and his return has added greater depth and variety to our attack."

Whoever plays will be seen by millions. Setanta will show the games exclusively in Ireland, and the matches are screened across Asia, Australia and the Middle East. Trent Johnston, the Ireland captain, said "These are two vital games for us as we seek to establish ourselves on the world stage.

"It's a marvellous boost to the players to know hundreds of millions of fans will be watching . . . It's another motivation for us, and hopefully we'll give viewers something to be proud of. We're well aware of the importance of television exposure to our sponsors, who I'm sure will be delighted by the global audience."