India crush S Lanka to reach tri-series finals

HOBART (Australia)—India claimed a spot in the tri-series finals with a crushing seven-wicket win over Sri Lanka in their one-day match here on Tuesday. A spectacular middle-order collapse saw Sri Lanka make just 179 from 47.1 overs and India had few problems reaching the target in 32.2 overs, scoring 180 for three.
Although Sri Lanka still have one game remaining in the series, against Australia on Friday, they cannot reach the finals and it has been a disappointing tournament for last year’s World Cup finalists. Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene said his team simply hadn’t played well enough throughout the series, with just one win from seven matches.
“We don’t deserve to be in the finals because we haven’t been consistent in this tournament, simple as that,” he said. Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he was hopeful his team were peaking at the right time. “I think we’ve improved a lot,” said Dhoni. “Still we are not at our best, we can be a better side overall when it comes to batting, bowling and fielding.
“You can expect a bit more from the side but it depends on lots of other things.” Importantly for India, star batsman Sachin Tendulkar burst out of his form slump ahead of the finals against Australia with his first half-century of the series. Tendulkar was back to his brilliant best as he punished the bowlers, hitting three successive boundaries off seamer Ishara Amerasinghe in making 63 from 54 balls, including 10 fours. Gautam Gambhir continued his impressive form with an unbeaten 63, while Yuvraj Singh looked dangerous with a rapid 36. Sri Lanka had appeared to be cruising towards a big total at 72 for one after being sent in to bat, with veteran opener Sanath Jayasuriya back in some touch and Kumar Sangakkara continuing his good form.
However, Sangakkara’s dismissal for 33, caught behind by Dhoni from the bowling of the recalled Praveen Kumar, sparked a destructive collapse. Sri Lanka lost 6-21 in just over 11 overs to slump to 93 for seven. Kumar, who was named man of the match, and teenage paceman Ishant Sharma did most of the damage, claiming four wickets apiece.
Sharma again impressed with 4-41, while Kumar, playing just his second game of the series, grabbed three wickets in as many overs to tear the heart out of the Sri Lankan batting and finish with 4-31. The teenager has 13 wickets in the tri-series at 19.46. Sangakkara was quickly followed back to the pavilion by Jayawardene, caught by Rohit Sharma from the bowling of Kumar for just three.
With the skipper gone, the innings quickly fell apart. Chamara Silva’s struggles continued when he fell for a duck and Jayasuriya then threw his wicket away when he top edged an attempted pull from the bowling of Irfan Pathan on 34. Tillakaratne Dilshan made just eight and Chaminda Vaas played a poor shot to fall to Sharma for a duck. It was then left to Chamara Kapugedera and tail-ender Lasith Malinga to add some respectability to the innings, the pair putting on 46 before the latter became Sharma’s fourth victim. Kapugedera showed rare fight late in the innings, making a stylish 57.
In what was a pathetic batting display, Sri Lanka skid from a comfortable 1 for 72 to a perilous 7 for 93, blowing their chances on a flat deck. A composed fifty from Chamara Kapugedera avoided a debacle but couldn’t take away the one-sided nature of the contest.
Chasing 180 was never going to be too much of a challenge for India, especially when Sachin Tendulkar started to cut loose. Gautam Gambhir added a polished fifty to what’s been a fantastic series, leaving Yuvraj Singh to add the final touches on a comprehensive win which got India a bonus point they no longer need. Sri Lanka travel to Melbourne for their final league match but that will now be only of academic interest.
The conditions were overcast, and the bowling accurate but nothing could explain the batsmen pretending to be kamikaze artists. Praveen Kumar, a seamer relying on gentle swing, triggered the collapse before Ishant Sharma, a taller, pacier gunman, pierced the soft underbelly further. Kumar Sangakkara’s poor shot selection opened up the flood gates and the rest seemed more intent to catch the next flight out of Hobart.—Agencies