Nuwan Kulasekara removed Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir and claimed two important catches as Sri Lanka beat India by 51 runs on Tuesday to replace the World Cup champions in second spot in the Tri-series. Skipper Mahela Jayawardene won the toss and elected to bat, then scored 45 in a 95-run opening stand with Tillakaratne Dilshan (51) to set Sri Lanka on course for an imposing 289-6. Lahiru Thirimanne contributed 62 and Angelo Mathews finished unbeaten on 49 as the Sri Lankans piled on 91 in the last 10 overs.
India’s reply started badly, losing stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag on the second ball before slipping to 54-3 when Kulasekara dismissed Tendulkar (22) and Gambhir (29). He finished with 3-40 and Thissara Perera had figures of 4-37, finishing with a sharp return catch from Irfan Pathan (47) as India was bowled out for 238 in 45.1 overs.
Virat Kholi top-scored with 66 for India, but was dropped twice in an unconvincing innings. Sri Lanka improved to 11 points in the tournament, three behind Australia and one in front of India, which has slipped from first to last following back-to-back losses. India struggled without Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who was suspended for a match due to a slow over-rate in Sunday’s 110-run defeat by Australia at the same venue.
Sehwag, returning from a back complaint to deputize as skipper, took a tremendous diving catch but didn’t contain the Sri Lankan innings. Parthiv Patel, Dhoni’s replacement as wicketkeeper, was sloppy with the gloves and missed a routine chance late on that could have curbed the onslaught of runs late in the Sri Lankan innings.
Thirimanne was spared a potentially controversial run-out before he scooped a catch to Suresh Raina off Ravi Ashwin’s last ball. India appeared to withdraw the appeal after Sehwag and Tendulkar consulted with the umpires, saving umpire Paul Reiffel from having to adjudicate.
Thirimanne continued and posted his second ODI half century before he mistimed a pull shot at the end of the 46th over and Raina took a good, diving catch in the outfield. Pathan (2-54) and spinner Ashwin (2-50) took two wickets apiece for India in humid conditions and with storm clouds looming to the north of the stadium.
Needing 290 to win, India lost three wickets for 54 with Kulasekara having a hand in each dismissal. Sehwag slashed rashly to a wide and short ball from Lasith Malinga and edged to Kulasekara at deep third man. Tendulkar was in commanding form, stroking 22 from 23 balls before bottom-edging a Kulasekara ball onto his stumps to make the total 38-2 and ensuring his quest for a 100th international century will drag on. Tendulkar hasn’t scored a hundred since last March and has now gone 30 innings since reaching triple figures in Tests or one-day internationals.
Kulasekara struck again when Gambhir guided a good-length ball to Perera at gully in the 12th over. Raina was on four and the total was 69-3 when Dilshan put down a sharp chance at backward point off Mathews in the 16th over, then Kohli had two reprieves on 14 and 32 both times dropped by Dinesh Chandimal at deep mid-wicket.
The 92-run fourth-wicket partnership ended when Raina (32) fended a short-pitch Farveez Maharoof ball to Thirimanne at short cover. Kohli was finally out, cramped by the extra bounce of a Perera short ball and popping a simple catch to Kulesakara at mid-on. Sri Lanka will play Australia on Friday in Hobart. It will be Australia’s first match since former skipper Ricky Ponting was dropped from the squad.
