Sri Lanka beat India to win IOC Cup

COLOMBO: India's Sri Lanka jinx continued on Tuesday as the home team thrashed them by 18 runs to win the one-day Triangular Series title at R Premadasa Stadium here.

India's batsmen let the team down as they buckled under Sri Lanka's imposing 281 for nine in 50 overs, falling 19 runs short of the target of 260 in 50 overs.

The only time India have won an ODI title on Sri Lankan soil was in 1997, when they lifted the Nidahas Cup.

Earlier, India barely managed to enter the final as their making the grade depended totally on their last league encounter against the West Indies here on Sunday. India won that match by seven runs.

Sri Lanka, who fielded their first choice XI for the first time in the seven-match tournament, displayed a professional approach to romp home in front of vociferous home supports who packed the galleries to the brim.

India, however, began the chase with a blitzkrieg as Virender Sehwag went berserk, especially against pacer Dilhara Lokuhettige. The vice-captain went hammer and tongs, scoring 26 runs, the sequence being 4, 4, 6, 4, 4 and 4.

But Sehwag, who failed to play a big knock in the previous four matches here, did not last long and chopped a Chaminda Vaas delivery on to his stumps. He scored 48 off just 22 balls, including nine boundaries and one towering six.

Sehwag, however, did the job of providing a brisk start well and he and Sourav Ganguly raised 62 for the opening wicket. The Delhi captain dominated the partnership so much that Ganguly's share was a mere six runs.

The momentum was maintained as captain Rahul Dravid joined Ganguly. India posted 100 off just 92 balls during their stint at the crease.

Ganguly, who was content playing the sheet anchor's role, was the next to depart for 26 (45 balls, 2x4s), leg before the wicket to part time off-spinner Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Dravid and Ganguly raised 40 for the second wicket and maintained the scoring rate at well over six runs until they were separated.

But India looked unaffected even by the loss of these two wickets, as Dravid and Yuvraj Singh kept a decent scoring rate even though it came down from over six runs. Dravid duly completed his 62nd ODI half-century (74 balls, 3x4s).

Off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was instrumental in checking the run rate and conceded just 15 runs in his first spell of five overs.

Yuvraj, who had returned to form with a century in the previous match, continued his good form and made 42 (58 balls, 2x4s) before Upul Chandana had the left-hander caught by Lokuhettige.

Yuvraj and Dravid added 84 off 116 balls. India's score then was 186 for three.

India effectively lost the plot with Dravid's dismissal. He was run out by a throw from Tillakaratne Dilshan after scoring 72 (99 balls, 3x4s).

There was some crazy running between the wickets thereafter and Harbhajan Singh was run out following a bad mix up with Mohammed Kaif (31, 36 balls, 3x4s).

In the absence of an experienced hand at the crease, the tail-enders just did not know what to do and India folded up in due course leaving Sri Lanka victorious.

Earlier, Mahela Jayawardene top scored with 83 (97 balls, 5x4s) as Sri Lanka posted the biggest total of the tournament.

Captain Marvan Atapattu, who missed the previous league match with a stomach ailment, returned to lead the side. He and Sanath Jayasuriya gave the home side a good launching pad by putting up 32 off 36 balls.

Left-arm pacer Ashish Nehra opened the floodgates when he castled Atapattu for 11.

Sri Lanka received the second jolt just 12 runs and two overs later when Nehra, now bowling with good rhythm, had Dilhara Lokuhettige leg before wicket. The score: 46 for two.

Even wicketkeeper Kumara Sangakkara did not last long enough and Nehra was again the bowler who did the damage as he forced him to give a simple catch to Sehwag at point.

Jayasuriya and Mahela Jayawardene stopped the rot and took control of the situation. Jayawardene, who scored an unbeaten 94 against India in a league game at Dambulla Aug 3, looked in good touch again.

The two took the score to 122 from 67 - an addition of 55 - when Jayasuriya, who was apparently not feeling well during his knock, was run out by a brilliant pick up-and-throw from Harbhajan Singh.

Wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni completed the formality.

It was a memorable day for Jayasuriya as he became only the fourth batsman ever to score 10,000 runs in this version of the game when he reached 10 during his 67-run knock (77 balls, 9x4s).

The other batsmen who have scored so many runs are Sachin Tendulkar (13,642), Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq (10,933) and Sourav Ganguly (10,046). At the end of his innings Tuesday, Jayasuriya's tally had reached 10,057.

Then, suddenly the Indian bowling attack, featuring two spinners for the first time in the tournament, started looking ineffective as Jayawardene, batting with a Made-in-India bat, and Russel Arnold occupied the driver's seat.

Nothing seemed to work for the Indians as left-handed Arnold, making a successful comeback to the national team, and Jayawardene scored at a rate of almost run-a-ball throughout their 125-run partnership.

It took Nehra to break the blossoming association as he had Jayawardene (83, 97 balls, 5x4s) caught by Kaif 17 runs short of what would have been his seventh ODI century.

Ten runs later, Arnold was back in the dressing room after Dravid broke the stumps with a direct throw as the batsman failed to reach the crease by a few centimetres.

Nehra was the pick of the six Indian bowlers as he finished with six for 59 in 10 overs - his second six-wicket haul after 6/23 against England at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.

For Sri Lanka, Muralitharan, left-arm pacer Chaminda Vaas and leg spinner Upul Chandana each captured two wickets.

Mahela Jayawardene was declared both Man of the Match and Man of the Tournament.

Sri Lanka:
M. Atapattu b Nehra 11
S. Jayasuriya run out (Harbhajan/Dhoni) 67
L. Dilhara lbw b Nehra 9
K. Sangakkara c Sehwag b Nehra 8
M. Jayawardene c Kaif b Nehra 83
R. Arnold run out (Dravid) 64
T. Dilshan b Nehra 7
C. Vaas not out 18
U. Chandana c Harbhajan b Nehra 2
M. Muralitharan run out (Sehwag/Nehra) 0
Extras: (leg byes 2, wides 8, no balls 2) 12
Total: (for nine wickets in 50 overs) 281

Fall of wickets: 1-32 (Atapattu, 5.6 overs), 2-46 (Dilhara, 7.5), 3-67 (Sangakkara, 13.1), 4-122 (Jayasuriya, 25.5), 5-247 (Jayawardene, 45.2), 6-257 (Arnold, 46.4), 7-262 (Dilshan, 47.6), 8-268 (Chandana, 49.2), 9-281 (Muralitharan, 49.6)

Bowling:
Irfan Pathan 9 0 59 0
Zaheer Khan 9 1 43 0 (no ball 1, wide 5)
Ashish Nehra 10 1 59 6
Harbhajan Singh 10 0 40 0
Anil Kumble 10 0 64 0 (1nb, 2w)
Virender Sehwag 2 0 14 0

India:
S. Ganguly lbw b Dilshan 26
V. Sehwag b Vaas 48
R. Dravid run out (Dilshan/Sangakkara) 69
Yuvraj Singh c Dilhara b Chandana 42
M. Kaif c Atapattu b Vaas 31
M.S. Dhoni lbw b Chandana 7
I. Pathan b Muralitharan 1
Harbhajan Singh run out (Maharoof/Sangakkara) 0
Z. Khan c sub (U. Tharanga) b Muralitharan 5
A. Kumble not out 9
A. Nehra not out 9
Extras: (b 8, lb 1, w 7) 16
Total: (for nine wickets in 50 overs) 263

Fall of wicket: 1-62 (Sehwag, 6.2 overs), 2-102 (Ganguly, 15.5), 3-186 (Yuvraj, 35.1), 4-205 (Dravid, 38.5), 5-216 (Dhoni, 41.6), 6-219 (Pathan, 42.6), 7-223 (Harbhajan, 44.1), 8-229 (Khan, 44.5), 9-246 (Kaif, 47.3)

Bowling:
Chaminda Vaas 10 1 38 2 (w 1)
Farveez Maharoof 6 0 48 0 (w 2)
Dilhara Lokuhettige 5 0 41 0
Tillakaratne Dilshan 7 0 42 1
Muttiah Muralitharan 10 0 35 2
Sanath Jayasuriya 0.1 0 1 0
Chandana Vaas 9.5 0 38 2
Russel Arnold 2 0 12 0

Result: Sri Lanka won by 18 runs
Man of the Match: Mahela Jayawardene
Man of the Tournament: Mahela Jayawardene
Toss: Sri Lanka
Umpires: Simon Taufel (Australia) and Asoka de Silva (Sri Lanka)
Third/TV umpire: T.H. Wijewardene (Sri Lanka)
Match referee: Mike Procter (South Africa)