India 213 (Rohit 53, Rahul 39, Wellalage 5-40, Asalanka 4-18) beat Sri Lanka 172 (Wellalage 42*, de Silva 41, Kuldeep 4-43, Bumrah 2-30, Jadeja 2-33) by 41 runs
On a surface where India picked three frontline spinners and lost all ten of their wickets to spin for the first time in ODIs, it was the quality of their fast bowlers that made the telling difference. Defending 214, India had Sri Lanka three down before their batters had faced a single ball of spin, and that had repercussions that rippled through the rest of the game.
In the end, India won by 41 runs, a misleading margin in a contest full of tension, and sealed a place in the Asia Cup final while ending Bangladesh’s chances. Sri Lanka’s winning streak came to an end after 13 ODIs, but one of their players remained proudly undefeated at the finish. Wellalage, all of 20 and playing just his 13th ODI, was unbeaten having top-scored with a fluent and precociously composed 42, and it was his less significant contribution to the match; he had looked unplayable at times while taking his maiden five-for earlier in the day, each of his victims a member of India’s top six.
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Karthik Krishnaswamy is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
Source: ESPN Crickinfo