India through to semis after Lanka rout

It was one of those rare days in Indian cricket when the batsmen and bowlers chose the same platform to show peak form. After Sachin Tendulkar’s special of 97 helped his team score 292 for six, Javagal Srinath’s amazing initial burst — with three wickets he reduced Sri Lanka to 15 for four — won India their second Super Six game by 183 runs.

As for the bigger picture, India sealed their place in the semi final while the Lankans now stare at a must-win situation against Zimbabwe, hoping for a spot in the last four.

From the time Tendulkar pushed Chaminda Vaas’ first ball to mid-on for a cheeky single to Mohammad Kaif’s catch of last man Muttiah Muralitharan at extra cover, there was never a moment in the match that the Lankans would remember fondly.

But just before the start, Lanka did have some good fortune. Lankan skipper Sanath Jayasuriya did win the toss, but his decision to field first raised more than a few eyebrows. The only logic was the rain yesterday and the prediction of a repeat today. But as the sun shone brightly all day, Jayasuriya’s plans went bust.

A big gain for India was also the return to form of Virender Sehwag. The man who has seen Tendulkar score 571 in the World Cup so far, did his bit today. The carefree 20-30 man showed great application today, and ensured that the Indians did not lose a wicket in the first 15 overs.

At times though, he couldn’t restrain himself, and even sent a rising Nissanka delivery over point for a six. Tendulkar, at the other end, was what they call ‘in zone’. Bowl to him on the legs, he flicks you to the square leg fence; bowl to him outside the off stump he cuts you through the point or directs the ball over the fence. Bowl to him on a length or slightly full, he just shows the full blade and we have another of those classic straight drives. If you pitch on the off stump, then it’s the job of the cover fielder to fetch the ball from the boundary.

The biggest mystery of this World Cup has been: Where do you bowl to Sachin Tendulkar? The right answer to the question might get you a ticket to the India-Australia final at the same venue.

When Tendulkar was out caught while guiding Aravida de Silva to the fine leg he missed his 35th ton by three runs. He was out second time in the 90s in this World Cup. But for the man who has 34 ODI tons an innings like this which sees India to victory is worth it.

Skipper Saurav Ganguly, after the boost in confidence following the ton against Kenya, played another great knock. His 48 and his association with the late order batsmen meant that the good work done by the openers did not go to waste.

As India finished at 292, there were whispers that Lanka can still chase the score going by the great record they have. But Srinath begged to differ. In four overs the game was as good as over. As the scoreboard showed bizarre figures like 2 for 1, 2 for 2, 3 for 3 and 15 for 4 and with Srinath accounting for Atapattu, Mubarak and Aravinda, it was just a question of how many overs the Lankans would last.

In a great show of line and length bowling on an unresponsive pitch, Srinath gave the greenhorns a lesson in pace bowling. While Atapattu and Jayasuriya drove uppishly and got out to bad shots Mubarak and De Silva were foxed by the movement of the ball, which landed on spots that the manuals call a good length.

Towards the end, Muralitharan entertained the 22,000-strong crowd with some funny strokes but they certainly did not bring any smiles on the Lankan faces.

With this win the Indians will now play the semi finals at Durban under lights. The Indians had raised objections about playing the game under lights but if they keep up the good form, any day or, for that matter, any night game shouldn’t bother the Indians.