Jayasuriya Leads Sri Lanka to Win Over India
MUMBAI (BOMBAY): Dashing Sri Lankan batsman Sanath Jayasuriya blasted a career-best unbeaten 151 to steer the world champions to a comfortable five-wicket win over India in the Independence Cup on Saturday.
Sri Lanka scored 229 for five in 40.5 overs in reply to India’s modest 225 for seven off their full quota of 50 overs.
The left-handed Jayasuriya’s swashbuckling innings contained 17 fours and four huge sixes in 121 balls. He reached his fourth century in one-day matches off 85 balls.
It was the highest score by a Sri Lankan in limited-overs cricket and won Jayasuriya the Man-of-the-Match award.
Sri Lanka got off to a shaky start. Diminutiveng batsman Romesh Kaluwitharana was out for a duck with the score at eight but the home crowd had little to cheer about.
Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu hit 138 runs in 23.5 overs to scotch hopes of an Indian victory. Jayasuriya also contributed in bowling when he took the wicket of India’s highest scorer Jadeja when he was at 72.
India briefly threatened a fight back late in the Sri Lankan innings when they claimed two wickets in one over.
Atapattu was run out for 38 by a direct hit from Sunil Joshi fielding at mid-off, while Aravinda de Silva was trapped lbw by Anil Kumble for naught as Sri Lanka slipped from 146 for one to 151 for three. But Sri Lanka rallied and won comfortably.
For the hapless Indians, only paceman Abey Kuruvilla commanded any respect from the marauding Sri Lankan batsmen. Playing in his home-town stadium, packed with 45,000 fans, Kuruvilla claimed two wickets for 22 runs off seven overs.
Earlier a gallant 72 by Ajay Jadeja and a whirlwind 51 by all-rounder Robin Singh helped lift India to 225 for seven in 50 overs after a disastrous start.
r Saurav Ganguly was bowled by Chaminda Vaas on the first ball of the innings and Captain Sachin Tendulkar fell for two in the fourth over leaving India reeling at four for two.
Left-hand medium pacer Vaas bowled a miserly 10 overs, giving away just 13 runs, and fellowng bowler Sajeeva de Silva grabbed three wickets to tie down India.
A fighting stand of 95 runs in 21.5 overs for the fourth wicket between stylish Rahul Dravid and Jadeja put India on the recovery path. Dravid scored 61 off 103 balls with eight fours before he was bowled by spinner Muthiah Muralitharan.
Jadeja continued the repair work, adding 58 runs for the fifth wicket with Singh. He top-scored with 72, hitting four fours and a six.
Singh struck 51 off 52 balls with four fours and one six, his first 50 in 19 one-day internationals.
Vinod Kambli, recalled after a long time, could not settle and was out for four. (Reuter)
Score Board
India
S. Ganguly b Vaas 0
S. Tendulkar c Dharmasena b S. de Silva 2
R. Dravid b Muralitharan 61
V. Kambli c Tillekeratne b S. de Silva 4
A. Jadeja b Jayasuriya 72
R. Singh b S. de Silva 51
N. Mongia not out 21
A. Kumble c Muralitharan b Vaas 0
Extras (lb-6 w-7 nb-1) 14
Total (for seven wickets, 50 overs) 225
Fall of wickets: 7-225
Did not bat: S. Joshi, A. Kuruvilla, V. Prasad
Bowling: Vaas 10-3-13-2, S. de Silva 10-0-59-3, Muralitharan 10-0-37-1,
Dharmasena 10-2-38-0, Jayasuriya 8-0-55-1, A. de Silva 2-0-17-0
Sri Lanka
S. Jayasuriya not out 151
R. Kaluwitharana c Tendulkar b Kuruvilla 0
M. Atapattu run out (Joshi) 38
A. de Silva lbw Kumble 0
A. Ranatunge c sub b Kumble 17
H. Tillekeratne c Mongia b Kuruvilla 6
R. Mahanama not out 4
Extras (lb-2 b-4 w-7) 13
Total (for five wickets, 40.5 overs) 229
Fall of wickets:
Did not bat: K. Dharmasena, C. Vaas, M. Muralitharan, S. de Silva
Bowling: Prasad 10-1-57-0, Kuruvilla 7-1-22-2, Kumble 10-0-55-2,
Joshi , Singh 2-0-20-0, Tendulkar 2-0-13-0
Result: Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets.
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