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Sri Lanka beats India to make certain of top berth

Dew Delhi, March 2: Sri Lanka's six-wicket victory over India in a Wills World Cup match at the Ferozsha Kotla Grounds here today ensured they finished on top of Group 'A' and travel to Faisalabad for their quarter-final game on March 9.

Sri Lanka are certain to end on top of the standings provided that nothing untoward happens of them in their final qualifying game against Kenya at Asgiriya on March 6. A 'no result' would still keep them on top and probably provide Kenya a rare place in the quarter-finals ahead of the West Indies.

Chasing a tall score of 272 off 50 overs on any other ground would have looked impossible but not the Ferozsha Kotla. On a good batting track and lightning fast outfield getting 272 was not an incredible feat especially when the boundary lines at certain points were around 60 yards.

Indian Captain Mohammad Azharuddin had voiced his concern in his pre-match interview when he said even getting 270 or 280 may not be sufficient. How right he was!

Sri Lanka's strong batting line up scored the runs in a canter, winning with eight balls to spare and making the Indian total look woefully insufficient. Right start

They got the right kind of start they were hoping for from openers Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana. The pair made mincemeat of the Indian bowling racing to 53 off five overs. By the time Azaruddin was able to push back his field after the first 15 overs, Sri Lanka were already past the 100-run mark. They had lost Kaluwitharana by then for a well hit 26 off 16 balls which comprised six fours.

Left-hander Jayasuriya playing in his 100th one day international blazed away at the other and charging towards his half-century, which was achieved off just 36 balls with two sixes and seven fours. The pace with which he got his runs eased a lot of pressure from the middle- order batsmen.

Even when Sri Lanka suffered a mild slump losing Asanka Guruinha (25 off 27 balls). Aravinda de Silva (8) and Jayasuriya (79) for 12 runs in 24 balls, the incoming batsmen were not under any undue pressure to score the runs.

Skipper Arjuna Ranatunga and Hashan Tillekeratne finished the job for Sri Lanka in a grand manner, putting together an unfinished fifth wicket stand of 131 off 158 balls which is a World Cup record for Sri Lanka beating the 80 between Ranatunga and Duleep Mendis (the present manager) against Pakistan at Faisalaba in 1987.

Ranatunga enjoyed a stroke of luck at 28 when Salil Ankola put him down at long-off off Anil Kumble, made 46 off 63 balls with two fours. He was upstaged by Tillekeratne who played superbly for his unbeaten 70 which came off 98 balls with six fours.

Jayasuriya, however, took 'Man-of-the-Match' award for his swashbuckling knock of 79 which was scored off 76 balls with two sixes and nine fours. Move failed

India were left to rue why they opted for a fourth seamer - Salil Ankola, instead of off-break bowler Asish Kapoor, when the lefthanded partnership between Ranatunga and Tillekeratne began to assume match winning proportions. In the circumstances, they had no option but to try opening bowler Manoj Prabhakar as an off spinner, a move which eventually failed to pay dividends.

Prabhakar had already suffered from the assault provided by Jayasuriya and Kaluwitharana, conceding 33 runs from his opening two overs, which included a six and six fours.

Under overcast and misty conditions Ranatunga took the first step towards beating India by winning the toss and asking the opposition to bat first.

Although the bowlers were able to keep the in-form Sachin Tendulkar quiet in the first 15 overs - his contribution being 24 out of a total of 47, they were unable to stop him from completing his second century in the current tournament.

Unlike his previous innings where he dominated the bowling Tendulkar was forced to pace out his innings so that he stayed until four balls from the end before he was finally dismissed. Tendulkar - chanceless 137

In a chanceless innings Tendulkar hit five sixes and eight fours reaching a career best 137 off as many balls. It was his second one-day century against Sri Lanka (the first being an undefeated 112 at Sharjah in 1994-95) and his sixth overall thus making him the Indian with the most number of one-day centuries.

With skipper Azharuddin who completed his first half-century in the tournament following a succession of poor scores Tendulkar put on 175 runs for the third wicket in 26 overs equalling the Indian record for that wicket.

That partnership set up the Indian total of 271 for 3 wickets. Azharuddin remained not out 72 made off 80 balls with four fours.

Of the Sri Lanka bowlers to suffer most was Ravindra Pushpakumar who failed to justify his place at the expense of Pramodya Wickremasinghe. Pushpakumara conceded 53 runs in his eight overs 23 of them (including 2 sixes, 2 fours) being hit off one over by Tendulkar.