The Indians arrive in Johannesburg (Getty Images).

By Myles Hodgson, PA Sport Cricket Correspondent, Johannesburg

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India's attempt to halt the Australian juggernaut and lift the World Cup in Sunday's final at the Wanderers has earned support from one of the unlikeliest of sources with newly-appointed Pakistan captain Rashid Latif backing their challenge.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Latif, recently promoted to captain following the sacking of Waqar Younis in the aftermath of their dismal World Cup campaign, has been following India's campaign closely since they beat his side by six wickets at Centurion to all but ensure Pakistan's exit at the first stage of the tournament.

He has been impressed with the manner in which India, led superbly by Sourav Ganguly, have bounced back from a convincing defeat against Australia by nine wickets during the preliminary round to win eight successive victories and reach their first final since Kapil Dev lifted the trophy at Lord's in 1983.

"The general perception is that Australia deserve to win the final," said Latif, quoted in the Times of India newspaper.

"Yes, Australia have played some excellent cricket in this World Cup, but one cannot forget the way India have fought back after their dismal performance against the Aussies at Centurion five weeks ago.

"Their transformation has been remarkable, and purely on the basis of springing back from that debacle, I think the Indians deserve to win the World Cup - not too many teams in the world have the ability to come back from such a situation."

Perhaps because of the responsibility he has just been given by Pakistan, Latif has particularly appreciated the leadership of Ganguly, who hit an unbeaten century on Thursday to clinch India's emphatic 91-run semi-final triumph over Kenya.

"The remarkable comeback was made possible thanks to the leadership on and off the field of Sourav Ganguly," he stressed.

"Indian fans were really down after the defeat against Australia and their reaction back home could have completely demoralised any team.

"The way Ganguly handled the situation with complete confidence and determination speaks volumes for his faith in his team.

"The players, too, responded by backing their captain, and they were cool and calm in their approach."

Latif's praise is in stark contrast to the criticism Ganguly was receiving from home in the build-up to the tournament when India lost 5-2 in New Zealand and former Test batsman Martin Crowe suggested he should resign before the start of the World Cup.

Ganguly believes the support and faith of his team has enabled them to come together as a highly efficient unit to challenge the world champions' attempt to become the first side since West Indies in the 1970s to retain the trophy.

He said: "I've always taken the view that a captain is only as good as the players around him - and I've been blessed with the strongest hand of pace bowlers India has ever fielded.

"Ashish Nehra damaged his ankle in our opening game and will need an operation after the tournament, but he has the biggest heart of any of our fast bowlers.

"We've never thought of the World Cup as just another tournament and it's great to get to the final," he stressed. "It's not just about getting to the final, though, it's a question of winning and we're really looking forward to Sunday.

"We have played very good cricket for most of this tournament but this next game is the most important one of all so we must forget what has happened before and concentrate on playing well again against Australia.

"It's a huge thing for us to reach a World Cup final because back in India cricket is much more than a sport. The last two times we've qualified for the mini world final in the Champions Trophy and now we're in the World Cup final, so we've done well in the high pressure tournaments."

India expect key batsman Rahul Dravid to be fit to play in Sunday's final after damaging his finger on wicketkeeping duties during the semi-final against Kenya, but will give him a thorough work-out on Saturday just to test whether there is any reaction.