Close Sri Lanka 201 for 2, 36.5 overs (Jayasuriya 102*, de Silva 66*) beat Pakistan 200 (Saeed Anwar 52, Muralitharan 3-29, Fernando 3-30) by 8 wickets
Scorecard

A fabulous century from Sanath Jayasuriya, his 13th in one-day international cricket, and a delightful 66 from Aravinda de Silva guided Sri Lanka to a thumping eight-wicket win over Pakistan in the opening match of the ICC Champions Trophy in Colombo.

It was by no stretch of the imagination a typical Jayasuriya innings. He reached his century from a typically brisk 115 balls, and with a typically powerful cut for four off Shahid Afridi. But in all he managed only 10 boundaries, most of which came early on in the innings when the field was up. But, considering his participation in the tournament had been thrown into doubt when he dislocated his shoulder in the Morocco Cup final, it was a truly memorable knock. In the process he became the second Sri Lankan (after de Silva) and the eighth in all to pass 8000 ODI runs, in what was his 271st match. The pair added an unbeaten 156 for the third wicket to cruise home with 13.1 overs to spare.

Despite the margin of victory, the match was not without controversy, and Pakistan's bowlers, particularly Shahid Afridi who had a mid-pitch barging match with de Silva, were operating on short fuses. Much of the resentment stemmed from an early lbw shout against de Silva, which, under the tournament rules, umpire Harper could – and should – have referred to the third umpire. Wasim Akram was distinctly non-plussed, especially as Harper had sent Shoaib Malik on his way in a similar fashion in the first innings. But de Silva, who had yet to get off the mark, survived.

But there was no denying that Pakistan were second-best throughout. Despite winning the toss, their decision to bat first backfired spectacularly as they slumped to 17 for 3 in the sixth over, with Shoaib's little bit of history sandwiched between Afridi's edge to the keeper for 4 (12 for 1) and Yousuf Youhana's disastrous run-out, having faced just a solitary delivery. And though Saeed Anwar - complete with magnificent spade beard - and Younis Khan threatened to resurrect the innings with a 70-run partnership, the introduction of Muttiah Muralitharan in the 20th over ensured that a below-par score was the best Pakistan could hope for.

After Saeed had been dropped in Murali's first over, Younis was bowled round his legs in his second, and the innings slipped away. Murali added the wickets of Rashid Latif – spectacularly caught on the midwicket rope by Dilhara Fernando for 22 (120 for 5) – and Wasim Akram, bowled through the gate for a first-ball duck (175 for 8). Saeed, who has been struggling for form, was eventually snared by Dilhara Fernando for a laborious 52 (141 for 6). Only Misbah-ul-Haq, continuing his good run of form with a defiant 47, ever looked likely to hang around.

Barring a miracle, Pakistan's participation in the Champions Trophy is already as good as over. Only a victory for Holland over Sri Lanka – and a handsome one at that – can lift Waqar Younis's men into the next round. Thanks for turning up.

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