Win toss, field first has been the mantra of the Idea Cup 2010. Sri Lanka won the toss and no prizes for guessing who won. But Sri Lanka did more than win the toss; they delivered the goods in the final in an all round performance and were richly rewarded.
mahela jayawardene 1
Mahela Jayawardene steered Sri Lanka home with an unbeaten seventy-one that assumed greater revelance after Sri Lanka's solid second wicket partnership was broken to gave a ray of hope to India.
However, there was only one team on the field that truly deserved to win and sadly, in yet another final, it was not India. After faltering badly with the bat, India's hopes rested heavily on the decent target set largely due to the exploits of Suresh Raina and resilience of Ravindra Jadeja.
Upul Tharanga departed with a run on board (incidentally Ashish Nehra's only wicket with the bowler failing to go further after bowling just 1.2 overs) but Kumar Sangakkara, the Sri Lankan captain, and Tillekeratne Dilshan put Sri Lanka on a firm foundation with a ninety-three run partnership. Sangakkara's fifty-five and Dilshan's forty-nine runs then assumed enormous importance because Sri Lanka suffered a wobble on the way as Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh turned their arm but not to victory, lending a closer affair than the Sri Lankans would have perhaps liked.
It was a day when the Indian batsmen failed to get going and never gave their bowlers a real chance. But Sri Lanka had the likes of Jayawardene and new find, Suraj Randiv, to guide Sri Lanka home safely to grab the tri series Idea Cup at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, Bangladesh.
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Tri Series ODI 6: Kohli Ton Gives India Facile Win Despite Bangladesh's Fightback
Tri Series ODI 5: India Overpower Sri Lanka for Second Final Spot
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Tri Series ODI 4: Timid Bangladesh Hand it to Sri Lanka
A Look Back on the First Three ODIs of the Idea Cup Tri series
Remaining Tri Series Matches to Start Half Hour Early
Tri Series ODI 3 Full Time: Captain's Knock Saves the Day
Tri Series ODI 3 Half Time: Bangladesh Set Impressive 297 Target for Do-Or-Die India
India's Big ODI Problem: The Number Seven Slot
Tri Series Schedule: Idea Cup in Bangladesh Wants Teams to Show Some New Faces/Thoughts
Dhoni Feels Gary's Running Ragged, Needs a Bowling Coach to Complement
Sri Lanka Field a Virtually New Squad for Bangladesh Tri Series
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