Dilshan steers Sri Lanka home

Tillakaratne Dilshan hit a superb century as Sri Lanka coasted to a seven-wicket win over Bangladesh in the opening match of the tri-series in Dhaka.
Bangladesh, invited to bat first, were bolstered by a 75 from former captain Mohammad Ashraful, while useful knocks from Mohammad Mahmudullah (45), Tamim Iqbal (40) and Mushfiqur Rahim (35) helped the home side finish with a decent 260 for seven.

Dilshan, however, made short work of the target, the opening batsman hitting 104 and putting on a century stand for the second wicket with Kumar Sangakkara (74) as the visitors overhauled the target with 5.1 overs to spare.

Openers Imrul Kayes and Iqbal had given Bangladesh a brisk start, although they were more courageous than convincing with their strokeplay.

Kayes gave his side the initial push, but Sri Lanka's bowlers - wayward at the start - tightened their line and stemmed the runs.

Iqbal, who was dropped on 11 by Nuwan Kulasekara off his own bowling, cut loose by clubbing Chanaka Welegedera for four boundaries in an over - three of them coming after he was struck on the helmet by a bouncer from the left-arm paceman.

Kulasekara produced the first breakthrough, luring Kayes into a pull shot which the batsman mistimed and top-edged to Thilan Samaraweera at fine leg.

Dilshan then removed Iqbal in the next over and Suranga Lakmal further undermined Bangladesh's progress by extracting Raqibul Hasan - caught brilliantly by Samaraweera at slip - and captain Shakib Al Hasan in his first spell.

From 65 for no loss the home side had slipped to 74 for four when former captain Ashraful and Rahim came together, the duo arresting the slide with a 58-run stand for the fifth wicket.

Off-spinner Suraj Randiv broke that partnership by trapping Rahim in front as he attempted to sweep, but Ashraful forged a 95-run stand with Mahmudullah which helped lift Bangladesh's score beyond the 200-run mark.

Sri Lanka's openers began their reply with a flurry of boundaries, but Bangladesh secured early success when Rubel Hossain snared Upul Tharanga in the fourth over.

There was no respite, however, as Dilshan and Sangakkara flayed the bowlers around the park.

Debutant Shafiul Islam, who was handed the new ball, leaked 25 runs from his first three overs forcing the Bangladesh skipper to opt for spin inside the first powerplay.

The move helped only briefly and although Bangladesh delayed the bowling powerplay considerably, Dilshan and Sangakkara found the boundaries easily as they closed in on the target.

Both batsmen reached their 50s within a couple of deliveries of each other and had moved onto add 148 for the second wicket when Sangakkara steered a rising delivery from Shafiul straight to wicketkeeper Rahim.

Dilshan, however, continued the chase and, although hampered severely by a thigh injury, went on to raise his sixth ODI century off 119 deliveries.

He fell soon after, but Samaraweera (41 not out) ensured victory.
The teams:

Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Mohammad Ashraful, Raquibul Hassan, Shakib Al Hasan (C), Mushfiqur Rahim (W), Mahmudullah, Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam

Sri Lanka: Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (C) (W), Chamara Silva, Thilan Samaraweera, Thilina Kandamby, Muthumudalige Pushpakumara, Suraj Randiv, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Kulasekara, Chanaka Welegedara

Dilshan ton puts Sri Lanka on top

Tillakaratne Dilshan hit a century as Sri Lanka gained a slender edge on the opening day of the third Test against India in Mumbai.

Dilshan's 109 was the centre piece in a scorecard which also featured half-centuries from fellow opener Tharanga Paranivatana (53) and Angelo Mathews (86 not out) as the visitors, batting first for the first time in the series, took fairly good advantage of the conditions.

Harbhajan Singh, who found turn throughout, had threatened to wreck Sri Lanka's day, but the off-spinner had to be satisfied with a haul of four wickets as the visitors closed the opening day of the final Test on 366 for eight as they looked for a series-levelling win.

Kumar Sangakkara had won the toss and, from the turn which India's spinners gained, it appeared a good toss to win.

Dilshan traded his pyrotechnics for a more conservative approach in the morning, playing second fiddle to Paranavitana.

Although not quite fluent, the left-hander dominated a breezy opening stand worth 93, hitting seven boundaries en route to his first half-century of the series.

Harbhajan, introduced inside the first hour in the morning, immediately found considerable turn and he broke the opening stand by removing Paranavitana.

The left-hander, who had driven well, attempted a drive off the off-spinner but only managed an edge which flew straight to Rahul Dravid at slip.

Sri Lanka ended the morning session in the ascendancy, but India hit back in the afternoon session.

Sangakkara, scratchy at the start of his innings, opened up by driving Pragyan Ojha for a couple of boundaries, but the left-arm spinner landed one on leg and induced the edge which Mahendra Singh Dhoni neatly gloved down the leg side.

Mahela Jayawardene steadied nerves with a 59-run stand for the third wicket with Dilshan, the pair putting India's attack to the sword during their partnership.

But Sreesanth, in the midst on an excellent spell, broke that stand by removing Mahela Jayawardene.

The former Sri Lanka captain had attempted the pull against a short delivery, but hit straight to Virender Sehwag at fine leg.

Harbhajan then had Thilan Samaraweera caught at forward short-leg in the next over, as Sri Lanka's batting showed signs of unravelling as they slipped from 128 for one to 188 for four.

While wickets tumbled around him, Dilshan had moved serenely along, building another partnership with Mathews and helping the visitors gain the edge.

He went to 99 by clubbing Ojha for a six, the second of his innings, and reached his 11th Test century and second on this tour by easing Harbhajan to deep point for three runs.

Dilshan, who also crossed the milestone of 1000 runs in a calendar year, fell to a poor decision from umpire Nigel Llong, Harbhajan the lucky bowler.

Dilshan played forward to a delivery which hit the pad and spiralled to Murali Vijay at forward short leg, Llong ruling out although replays indicated there was neither bat nor glove involved.

The balance titled Sri Lanka's way again as Mathews and Prasanna Jayawardene revived the innings with a 67-run stand for the sixth wicket.

India had leaked runs behind square and the duo had rebuilt quickly until Prasanna Jayawardene threw it away, launching down the track to hit Ojha over the top, but only finding Harbhajan at mid-on.

Zaheer then snaffled Nuwan Kulasekara in the final session for his first victim, while Harbhajan removed Rangana Herath for his fourth, but Mathews prevented the visitors from going under.
Teams
India: V Sehwag, M Vijay, R Dravid, SR Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, VVS Laxman, MS Dhoni (Captain & WK), Harbhajan Singh, PP Ojha, Z Khan, S Sreesanth

Sri Lanka: TM Dilshan, NT Paranavitana, KC Sangakkara (Captain), DPMD Jayawardene, TT Samaraweera, AD Mathews, HAPW Jayawardene (WK), KMDN Kulasekara, HMRKB Herath, M Muralitharan, UWMBCA Welegedara

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Dilshan breaks his nose

Sri Lankan batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan has suffered a fracture on his nose while playing football.

But his team manager says he will be available for the second Test match, starting on Tuesday.

Dilshan collided with one of his teammates while playing football after the first Test in Ahmedabad on Friday and he was immediately rushed to a hospital for an X-ray examination.

Brendon Kuruppu, the Sri Lanka's team manager, though said there was no need to worry as the injury was not serious.

"The injury was put right by the surgeon before we left for Kanpur and Dilshan is out of danger," Kuruppu said.

"He is not in any kind of great discomfort. He will resume practice with the rest of the team tomorrow," he said.

Prior to the first Test, Dilshan sprained his ankle during practice but recovered in time to score a century.

Teams arrive in Kanpur

India and Sri Lanka arrived in Kanpur for the second Test match, beginning on Tuesday at Green Park Stadium.

However, the Indian trio of Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir did not arrive with the Indian team as they have gone to Delhi and will reach on Sunday.
The teams landed in the city in the afternoon and amidst a tight security were taken to a city hotel.

Indian run-machine Sachin Tendulkar was presented a memento for completing 20 glorious years in international cricket.

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Fighting NZ overcome Dilshan blitz

New Zealand put a small part of their tour blues behind them by clinching a thrilling three-run win over Sri Lanka in the first of two Twenty20s at the R Premadasa Stadium. The coloured clothing was out and with it a fresh look to New Zealand's Twenty20 unit, but it was Ross Taylor, Daniel Vettori and Jacob Oram, with a hat-trick, who ultimately gave the tourists something to smile about.

With the openers dismissed early, the pressure was on Taylor, who carried the team almost single-handedly with a busy innings until the 18th over after which, Lasith Malinga returned to stifle the tail. A total of 141 appeared under-par when Tillakaratne Dilshan blazed to 57 off 28 balls, but Vettori reminded everyone of his worth in Twenty20s with a niggardly spell and, aided by some dedicated fielding, New Zealand hauled themselves back in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Dilshan's assault on Shane Bond in the first over had the crowd in raptures, and New Zealand almost cowering. What was touted to be a seminal moment in New Zealand's bid for a comeback was smashed in four deliveries as Dilshan welcomed Bond back to international cricket with disdain. After bouncing Dilshan first ball, Bond was slapped for four consecutive fours.

It didn't look good for New Zealand when Dilshan unfurled his patent scoop to Kyle Mills' second delivery and got four, but there was a moment of relief when Sanath Jayasuriya top-edged to Bond at fine leg three balls later. Bond's second over only cost four, but Dilshan resumed against Mills in the fourth over, pulling and lofting sixes.

Then New Zealand launched a stirring comeback. Jesse Ryder's direct hit got rid of Mahela Jayawardene, after which Vettori got Kumar Sangakkara in his first over. Ian Butler struck in successive overs as Ryder cupped an excellent catch at backward point to cut off Dilshan and Chamara Kapugedera missed an ugly slog. At this stage Sri Lanka were 85 for 5 with 57 needed from 60 balls.

Angelo Mathews took fours off Jacob Oram, but the pressure built up by Vettori was excruciating. Having given three runs in his first over, Vettori wheeled away off an nagging line and conceded five in his second and, crucially, just a single in his third. The debutant Gihan Rupasinghe found Vettori tough to score off and, backed by some alert close-in fielding, was frustrated into sweeping and missing. With his final delivery, Vettori trapped Rupasinghe lbw for 15 off 21 balls to finish with figures of 4-0-11-2.

With 20 needed off 19, Mathews popped a return catch to Oram. Suddenly New Zealand, who till now had been athletic in the field, started diving over the ball and failing to back-up errant throws. Scampered single and doubles kept Sri Lanka ticking. With 13 to defend off 12, Vettori called back Bond. It was a wicketless return for Bond, but four singles in the final over sure beat four fours. Two wickets in the first two balls of the final over - that gave Oram his hat-trick - left Sri Lanka's last pair too much to do.

New Zealand's bid to gain momentum after last week's Test series defeat looked like it had hit a potential roadblock as they were kept to 141. Brendon McCullum appeared in the mood to get back into form, slashing a wide delivery from Malinga over point, but the combination of Ryder's straight drive and Nuwan Kulasekara's fingertips cut short his nine-ball innings. Ryder couldn't lift the tempo in a lovely second over from Malinga, full of crafty changes of pace, and with Kulasekara cutting down the boundary options, he gave himself room and lofted a catch into the hands of Malinga Bandara running back from mid-off.

Taylor and Martin Guptill were left to consolidate matters, and when Sangakkara called on Mathews, Taylor weighed in with consecutive boundaries, slashing past point and driving wide of cover. Another fortuitous deflection followed off Ajantha Mendis, when Guptill drove and edged past slip. New Zealand took 38 off the Powerplay overs.

Taylor's entertaining 60, including five fours and a six, went well with the festive atmosphere at the ground but he lacked support. Guptill, who was dropped by Mathews in the deep off Jayasuriya, launched Bandara for a straight six but miscued the next delivery to deep midwicket for 29. Jayasuriya's left-arm spin was to Taylor's liking and he slog-swept for four and six in successive deliveries in the 15th over.

Oram looked as if he was at the wrong party before he fell for 8 off 13 deliveries, holing out to Kulasekara at mid-off in Mendis' final over. Trying to get some momentum going, Taylor fell in Mathews' next over, giving Kulasekara another catch in the deep. Mathews returned a flat throw to help run out Peter McGlashan and Malinga returned to york Kyle Mills and Vettori with consecutive deliveries in the 20th over.

But Malinga and Dilshan's efforts were not enough to deny a New Zealand side piloted to victory by two of their established stars.

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Dilshan Powers Sri Lanka to T20 World Cup Cricket Final

Tillakartne Dilshan's memorable tournament continued as he produced an almost single-handed display to give Sri Lanka a total to defend at The Oval. While his team-mates struggled to find much momentum, Dilshan batted through the innings to hit an unbeaten 96 off 57 balls, the highest score of the event, as Sri Lanka reached 158 for 5.

The innings was limping at 77 for 3 in the 12th over after three wickets had gone for four runs in nine balls when Dilshan and Chamara Silva added 50 to set a platform for the closing overs. It looked as though Dilshan would have time to register the first hundred of the tournament, but he lost the strike during the closing stages and needing six off the final ball to reach three figures could only clubbed a two over midwicket. However, the final five overs had brought 60 and this is the sort of target Sri Lanka have defended throughout the two weeks.

Jayasuriya and Dilshan began cautiously as 12 came off the first three overs, but Dilshan sparked the innings into life with two flicks over short fine-leg against Jerome Taylor, the second which carried for six such was Dilshan's brilliant timing. In the next over, Dwayne Bravo's first, he took three more boundaries through the off side, but it was shaping as a one-man show for Sri Lanka.

Jayasuriya was having a major struggle and changed his bat four times during a painful 37-ball 24. He has a host of mannerisms at the crease and Jayasuriya rarely looked comfortable with each new blade even though he managed two leg-side boundaries off Sulieman Benn.

Dilshan was having no such concerns as he deftly guided Chris Gayle through third man and followed that with a thumping six over deep midwicket. It was like watching two different games, but the opening stand was ended in the 11th over when Jayasuriya's stay was ended when he top-edged Bravo to short fine-leg.

Two balls later a cracking catch at point by Kieron Pollard sent back the key figure of Kumar Sangakkara for a duck. West Indies were suddenly full of energy and their mood improved further when Mahela Jayawardene managed to pick out short fine-leg when clipped a ball from Pollard, which should have gone for four, straight to the fielder.

It was down to Dilshan to give Sri Lanka's strong attack something to defend. Darren Sammy produced a superb comeback as he hit his yorkers to allow just three from the 13th over, but in the next over Dilshan, who reached his fifty off 30 balls, cashed in on two full tosses by Pollard. Placement was key to Dilshan's innings and each time the bowlers strayed he managed to make the most of it.

The innings found some vital momentum in the 17th over when Bravo was taken for 18 as he struggled to find his length. Dilshan cracked three boundaries and Silva then joined in when he swung the final delivery one bounce to the square-leg rope. Silva's contribution to a stand of 50 in six overs was just 11 before he fell trying to reverse hit Benn.

Jehan Mubarak found the boundary once before falling to an acrobatic catch by Sammy at deep square-leg, who initially misjudged the ball on a gloomy evening before throwing himself forward to cling onto the ball. It was West Indies best fielding display of the tournament, only marred by a couple of slips in the final over.

And the last over could prove the key. Angelo Mathews swung a big six over long-on then followed it with a straight boundary and although Dilshan fell short of a memorable century there was a feeling the momentum was just with Sri Lanka. But it's still too close to call.

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