Lankan run-machine nails Pakistan

Aravinda De Silva was named Man of the Match, while Jayasuriya bagged the Man of the Series award. This was the second time that the world champions have pipped Pakistan in a title clash, after the Singer Akai Cup final at Sharjah, earlier this year. Today, the issue was more or less clinched, when Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga, experienced by the Wills World Cup semi-final, won the toss and elected to bat.

The Pakistani innings began in disastrous fashion when they lost Chennai hero Saeed Anwar with just 14 runs on the board. Anwar played a little early at Vaas and spooned an easy catch to Muralitharan at mid-off.

Shahid Afridi was shaping dangerously when he was brilliantly caught by Aravinda de Silva, running quite a few steps behind cover, off the bowling of Sajeewa de Silva. Afridi had earlier hit Vaas for a huge six over cover. That was 34 for two in the sixth over.

Then, Ijaz Ahmed joined hands with skipper Rameez Raja and the two comfortably tackled the pace bowlers. Aware that spin will be the key here, Ranatunga pursued with Vaas and Sajeewa till the 13th over. The introduction of off-spinners Kumara Dharmasena and Mutthiah Muralitharan slowed the pace considerably.

When Dharmasena replaced Sajeewa, the score read 81 for two. The spinners did what was expected, and the next seven overs yielded just 28 runs.Ijaz, who hit a six of Sajeewa, reached his 50 and immediately departed when he was smartly stumped by Kaluwitharana, off Jayasuriya.

All this while, Raja seemed to be having problems in forcing the pace. He was milking those ones and twos, but that was not what Pakistan wanted. It was only after reaching his fifty that Raja opened up, hitting Jayasuriya thrice through covers. However, Salim Malik did not last long, and was leg before to Murali while trying to sweep the bowler. He lasted just five balls. Youngster Mohammed Wasim, who came in at the fall of Malik, gave good support to Raja. They added 58 runs for the fifth wicket in 68 balls. But, under the circumstances, this was not the kind of impetus Pakistan was looking for.

Pakistan’s misery was complete when both fell in consecutive overs. Raja, who tried to step out and drive Dharmasena, yorked himself and was bowled for 77. Wasim stepped out to Murali, missed, and Kalu did the rest behind the stumps.

Still, if there was one man who could have still conjured up a miracle for Pakistan, it was Moin Khan. However, the dashing wicketkeeper-batsman hit Murali straight to Marvan Atapattu at deep square-leg after making two.The end came fast when Saqlain was bowled by a huge Aravinda off-spinner and Arshad Khan was run out by a direct throw from Mahanama.

Earlier, Pakistan took the field with a definite plan against Sanath Jayasuriya after Arjuna Ranatunga won the toss. Yet, Pakistan skipper Rameez Raja was left wondering what went wrong after making all the right moves as Sri Lanka crossed the 300 barrier for yet another time.

Raja did a Martin Crowe and pitch-forked off-spinner Arshad Khan, who came in as a reinforcement after the Mohali match, as Aaquib Javed’s opening partner. The move paid dividends, with Khan removing the opening pair of Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu by the 12th over. But, by that time, the harm had been done.

Just when it looked that Pakistan finally got Jayasuriya’s number with the first four overs yielding only 16 runs, Atapattu disturbed all equations. In Javed’s 3rd over, the stylish right-hander cut loose, hitting two exquisite cover drives and one to the square-leg boundary. That perked up Jayasuriya and he suddenly caught fire. The man from Matara hit two boundaries in the next over of Khan and was lucky to be dropped by a diving Saeed Anwar at cover when on 21 off Javed. He celebrated the reprieve by pulling Khan for a six, and later hit Javed for perhaps the straightest boundary of the tournament.

Khan had gone for 32 runs in his first four overs, when he mostly strayed outside the leg stump with only three fielders in that region. But once he removed Atapattu, who flicked straight to substitute Hasan Raza at short mid-wicket, he was a different bowler.

Sri Lanka gambled sending Romesh Kaluwitharana at Atapattu’s fall, and failed. The dapper ‘keeper was adjudged leg before to Shahid Afridi after making just five.

That brought to the crease Sri Lanka’s most experienced pair captain Arjuna Ranatunga and vice-captain Aravinda de Silva. The two, seemingly without any effort, added 67 runs in 12 overs.

De Silva looked in extremely good touch as he cut and drove repeatedly with aplomb, before finally being bowled off Saqlain Mushtaq.SCOREEBOARD

SRI LANKA

Sanath Jayasuriya c sub (Azhar Mehmood) b Khan (55m, 40b, 7×4, 2×6) 55

Marvan Atapattu c sub (Hasan Raza) b Khan (42m, 30b, 5×4) 29

Romesh Kaluwitharana lbw Afridi (26m, 10b) 5

Aravinda de Silva b Saqlain Mushtaq (64m, 49b, 8×4) 57

Arjuna Ranatunga run out (Saqlain) (127m, 78b, 3×4, 1×6) 59

Hashan Tillekeratne c (sub) Hasan Raza b Malik (54m, 48b, 2×4, 1×6) 38

Chaminda Vaas c Ejaz Ahmed b Saqlain (4m, 6b) 3

Roshan Mahanama b Malik (29m, 28b, 3×4) 27

Kumar Dharmasena b Saqlain (14m, 12b, 2×4) 16

Muttiah Muralitharan not out (5m, 0b) 0

Sajeeva de Silva lbw Saqlain (4m, 2b) 0

Extras: (6lb, 1nb, 13w) 20

Total: (all out in 49.4 overs) 309

Fall of wickets: 1-69 (Atapattu, 9.2 overs); 2-90 (Jayasuriya, 11.5); 3-110 (Kalu, 14.5); 4-177 (A de Silva, 26.5); 5-250 (Tillekeratne, 40.4); 6-254 (Vaas, 41.4); 7-276 (Ranatunga, 45.3); 8-304 (Mahanama, 49); 9-308 (Dharmasena, 49.2); 10-309 (S de Silva, 49.4)

Bowling: Aaquib Javed 6-0-49-0 (2w); Arshad Khan 10-0-54-2 (1w); Shahid Afridi 5-0-40-1; Saqlain Mushtaq 9.4-0- 53-4 (9w); Mohammed Hussain 9-0-46-0; Salim Malik 10-0-61-2 (1w, 1nb)

PAKISTAN

Saeed Anwar c Muralitharan b Vaas (11m, 8b, 1×4) 6

Shahid Afridi c A de Silva b S de Silva (29m, 14b, 1×4, 1×6) 17

Rameez Raja b Dharmasena (151m, 101b, 8×4) 76

Ejaz Ahmed st Kaluwitharana b Jayasuriya (82m, 59b, 6×4, 1×6) 55

Salim Malik lbw Muralitharan (4m, 5b) 2

Mohammad Wasim st Kaluwitharana b Muralitharan (52m, 35b) 20

Moin Khan c Atapattu b Muralitharan (15m, 9b) 2

Mohammad Hussain not out (24m, 18b, 1×4) 18

Saqlain Mushtaq b A de Silva (4m, 5b) 0

Arshad Khan run out (Mahanama) (2m, 3b) 0

Aaqib Javed run out (Dharmasena) (8m, 4b) 4

Extras: (b4, lb8, nb2, w10) 24

Total: (all out in 43.1 overs) 224

Fall of wickets: 1-14 (Anwar, 2.4 overs), 2-34 (Afridi, 5.5), 3-132 (Ijaz, 24.1), 4-135 (Malik, 25.1), 5-193 (Raja, 36.3), 6-195 (Wasim, 34.4), 9-204 (Moin, 39.2), 8-207 (Saqlain, 40.2), 9-207 (Arshad, 40.5).

Bowling: Vaas 7-0-40-1 (1w), S de Silva 6-0-41-1 (2w, 1nb), Dharmasena 8.1-0-23-1, Muralitharan 10-0-40-3 (2w, 1nb), Jayasuriya 7-0-42-1, A de Silva 5-0-26-1 (4w)

Result: Sri Lanka won by 85 runs.