Tillakaratne Dilshan struck his second successive century to lead Sri Lanka to a three-wicket victory over India in a thrilling second one-day international on Friday.
Man-of-the-match Dilshan hit 123 off 113 balls and put on 102 for the first wicket with Upul Tharanga (37), as Sri Lanka chased down 302 for victory with five balls to spare to level the series.
“All credit to Dilshan, he’s batting out of his skin and he is batting without any rush and without any effort,” Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said.
PHOTO: AFP
Explosive Dilshan, who smashed a career-best 160 in the first match when the tourists fell three runs short of pulling off the second-highest one-day international run chase ever, was dismissed with his team needing 89 off 85 deliveries.
Left-arm fast bowler Zaheer Khan claimed the wickets of former captain Mahela Jayawardene (39), Thilana Kandamby (27) and Chamara Kapugedera (2) to put the pressure on Sri Lanka.
All-rounder Angelo Mathews braved a thigh strain with a runner and batted solidly for an unbeaten 37 to see the tourists through in the company of Ajantha Mendis (2 not out), after spinner Suraj Randiv, who took three wickets on his debut, was run out.
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni lashed his sixth one-day century (107) to guide India to a commanding 301 for seven after choosing to bat first in the day-night game.
Dhoni, who slammed 72 in the opening match, shared in a 126-run fifth-wicket stand with Suresh Raina (68) to help the hosts recover after a shaky start.
“We needed a couple of wickets with the new ball, but that didn’t happen and it puts tremendous pressure on the spinners,” Dhoni said. “The only way we could have won this game was to take wickets, especially after Dilshan got out.”
India lost Virender Sehwag (4) to left-arm quick Chanaka Welegedara in the first over of the match and Gautam Gambhir (2) was run out with the total on 19.
Opener Sachin Tendulkar (43) and Virat Kohli (54) put India on the path to recovery with a third-wicket stand of 62, before Tendulkar was stumped off Mendis.
Dhoni, who had reprieves on 49 and 94, shared a 51-run stand with Kohli, before the latter was Randiv’s first victim.
Raina fell in the 47th over, giving fast bowler Angelo Mathews the charge and Dhoni was dismissed in the last over by Randiv, who had Harbhajan Singh stumped for a duck off the last ball of the innings.
The tourists were cruising at 213 for two when left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra yorked Dilshan.
Zaheer forced Jaywardene to edge behind, triggering a collapse, before Mathews bravely guided the visitors to victory.
The third match will be played in Cuttack tomorrow.
Marta Kostyuk’s maiden WTA 1000 title in Madrid came on Saturday thanks to her power, poise and a pair of unexpected lucky shorts. The world No. 23 beat eighth-ranked Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 in under 90 minutes to secure the most prestigious trophy of her career, her third professional singles title and second in less than a month after Rouen. Yet as the 23-year-old Ukrainian posed for photographs at the Caja Magica, it was not just the silverware that caught the eye. Held alongside her team and her two dogs, Kostyuk showed off a piece of black men’s underwear, prompting
Lin Yun-ju on Thursday handed Taiwan two key victories as they advanced to the semi-finals of the ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in London. The Taiwan men’s table tennis team beat Sweden 3-2 in five singles matches. The 24-year-old Lin, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7 and nicknamed the “Silent Assassin,” opened the tie by defeating world No. 2 Truls Moregard 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 13-11) before clinching the deciding fifth match with a 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-5) win over Anton Kallberg to hand his team the overall victory. Kuo Guan-hong put Taiwan up 2-0 with a 3-2 (4-11, 11-8, 8-11,
Throwing more than US$5 billion at a divisive new tour and walking away after five seasons does not look like good business, but LIV Golf was not all bad news for Saudi Arabia. Oil-funded LIV, which poached top stars and sent golf’s establishment into a tailspin, helped push the conservative kingdom into global view — one of its key aims, experts said. The exit, confirmed on Thursday after weeks of speculation, does not signal a flight of Saudi money from sport, even after the Middle East war that sparked Iranian attacks around the Gulf, they said. “Saudi Arabia is not
Arsenal stormed six points clear at the top of the English Premier League as Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyokeres put Fulham to the sword in a 3-0 win, while West Ham United’s defeat at Brentford offered Tottenham Hotspur a lifeline in the battle for survival. The Gunners have stumbled toward the finish line in their quest for a first league title in 22 years, blowing a sizeable lead over Manchester City in a series of nervous displays. However, the return of Saka, making his first start in six weeks, freed up Mikel Arteta’s men in a dominant performance that shrugged
RSS