PAKISTAN WINS T20 WORLD CUP

Pakistan rose to the occasion in style as they outplayed Sri Lanka to win the ICC World Twenty20 final by eight wickets at Lord's on Sunday.

Runners-up to India in the last edition, Pakistan, who were beaten by the Lankans by 19 runs in the Super Eights,made sure there was no disappointment this time as they comfortably chased down 139 for two and won with eight deliveries to spare. In the process, they claimedtheir first World Cup trophy in 17 years, their last being the50-over crownin 1992.

Their convincing display with the bat was augmented by an unbeaten half-century from man of the match Shahid Afridi, who scored 54 from 40 deliveries, inclusive of two boundaries and two sixes. He was involved in an unbroken stand of 76 runs off 59 deliveries for the third wicket with Shoaib Malik, who made 24 from 22 deliveries.

Earlier, electing to bat, Sri Lanka were reduced to 70 for six before Sangakkara propped them with an unbeaten 64 from 52 deliveries, inclusive of seven boundaries. He was involved in an unbroken stand of 68 for the seventh wicket off 44 deliveries with Angelo Mathews, who stroked a vital 35 off 24 deliveries, inclusive of three fours and a six.

Abdul Razzaq was brilliant upfront with the new ball as he claimed three for 20 in three overs to trigger the collapse, while Shahid Afridi took one for 20 in four overs.

Tillakaratne Dilshan failed in the final, but his tournament returns of 317 from seven matches, at 52.83, inclusive of three half-centuries, earned him title ofplayer of thetournament.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka won the toss and had no hesitation in electing to bat. Both teams retained the line-ups of their semi-final victories.

Pakistan came in with a set plan againstDilshan, who thus far had been unstoppable with the bat. 17-year-old Mohammad Aamer started with a quick bouncer against the openerand followed it up with three more short deliveries on thebody whichthe Sri Lankantried to get away.

Finally, Aamer's persistence paid off, as Dilshan was out to the fifth short delivery, trying to pull it fine and caught by Shahzaib Hussain at short fine leg for a duck. (0-1, 0.5)

Abdul Razzaq also struck in his first over, claiming the wicket of Jehan Mubarak, who was promoted in a bid to take on the bowlers in the Powerplay overs.

Mubarak advanced down the wicket and tried to lift one over the leg side, but got a leading edge and was caught at cover for 0. (2-2, 1.3)

Sangakkara got Sri Lanka going with a couple of boundaries in the third over by Aamer. Jayasuriya then lofted Razzaq for a six over mid-wicket and hit the next ball for a boundary through fine leg. But the bowler had the last laugh when he Jayasuriya for 17 from 10 deliveries.

The left-hander tried to pull Razzaq but could only drag it on to his stumps, leaving Sri Lanka reeling at 26 for three in the fourth over.

Sri Lanka's position further worsened when Mahela Jayawardene [Images] (1) guided one straight to Misbah-ul Haq and became Razzaq's third victim of the innings. (32-4, 5.3)

Pakistan's spinners then set about drying up the runs, as just 20 came in four overs, as Sri Lanka put up 54 for four at the halfway stage.

The tournament's top wicket-taker Umar Gul, introduced in the 12th over, needed just three deliveries to claim a wicket. Chamara Silva, who had scored14 from 19 deliveries, mistimed a pull shot, hitting it straight to Saeed Ajmal [Images] at midwicket. (67-5, 11.3)

Shahid Afridi finished his spell with a wicket, bowling Isuru Udana for 1 with his wrong one, a delivery that spins into the batsman.

Afridi had once again made a vital contribution with the ball, claiming one for 20 in four overs, as Sri Lanka slipped to 70 for six after 13 overs.

Meanwhile, Sangakkara continued to wage a lone battle. He clipped Gul off his pads over mid-wicket to bring up his half-century off 44 balls, inclusive of five boundaries. The left-hander pulled the final delivery of that over for another boundary to fetch 15 runs from the over as Sri Lanka reached 103 for six after 17 overs.

Ajmal was also hit for a boundary each by Sangakkara and Angelo Mathews in the 18th over as Sri Lanka started closing in on a competitive total. The two batsmen brought up their 50-run partnership for the seventh wicket in just 35 deliveries to give Sri Lanka the much-needed boost in the final few overs.

Matthews went after youngster Aamer in the final over, hitting him for a boundary and six through midwicket. The last over fetched 17 runs for Sri Lanka as they put up a competitive 138 for 6 in their 20 overs.

Sangakkara was unbeaten on a fine 64 from 52 deliveries, while Mathews finished not out on 35 from 24 deliveries. The two batsmen were involved in an unbroken stand of 68 runs for the seventh wicket.

Sri Lanka, with the bowling attack at their disposal, must be really fancying their chances now. Pakistan will be disappointed not to have restricted Sri Lanka to a lower total. Nevertheless,they still have a good chance with the bat.

Pakistan:

Pakistan got off to a confident start when Kamran Akmal cracked Mathews through the covers for a boundary in the first over of the innings. A few quiet overs followed before Shahzaib Hasan and Akmal hit a boundary each off Udana to take Pakistan to 26 after just four overs.

Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis were introduced early, as Sri Lanka used five different bowlers for the first six overs. Akmal did not let Mendis settle down, sweeping him for a six over square leg, as Pakistan reached a comfortable 39 for no loss after six overs.

Akmal hit his second six in the next over, the seventh, pulling Mathews over mid-wicket for a six as Sri Lanka's desperation increased.

It was part-timer Jayasuriya who effected the breakthrough with his very first delivery. Akmal danced down the wicket but missed the ball completely and was stumped for 37 from 28 deliveries, inclusive of two sixes and two boundaries. (48-1, 7.1)

Hasan took over the initiative after Akmal's dismissal, hitting two boundaries off Mendis in the ninth over. But he lost his wicket rather tamely in the next over for 19 from 23 deliveries, when he top-edged a simple catch to the fine leg fielder, attempting a slog sweep off Muralitharan. (63-2, 9.1)

Surprisingly, Afridi played quite cautiously for the start of his innings, reaching 17 off 19 deliveries. But, with a few quiet overs, the Pakistan right-hander decided it was time to break the shackles and launched Muralitharan for a six and boundary off consecutive deliveries in the 14^th over.

Pakistan enjoyed a slight edge as the final quarter of the game approached, having reached 103 for three after 15 overs, needing another 36 runs off the last five.

Afridi and Malik played sensibly as they relied mostly on singles and twos to keep the scoreboard going and brought up their 50-run partnership in 47 deliveries, which had just a boundary and six in it.

With 26 needed from the last three overs, Sri Lanka brought in Udana and Afridi sensed this was the over to go in for the kill. He launched a full delivery over the mid-wicket fence for a six in perhaps what proved to be the decisive blow.

Afridi then played the next ball fine for a boundary to bring up his half-century in just 37 deliveries and put Pakistan on verge of the title.

Shoaib Malik got his first boundary off the 21st delivery he faced when he glided one fine through fine leg. Fittingly, Afridi got the winning runs when a leg bye off Malinga got Pakistan a deserving victory.

SRILANKA ENTERS FINAL

Tillakaratne Dilshan produced one of the best batting displays ever seen in Twenty20 cricket as Sri Lanka thrashed the West Indies by 57 runs at the Oval, in London, and entered the final of the World Twenty20 on Friday.

They will meet Pakistan, who beat SA in the first semi-final, in Sunday's title showdown.

The right-hand opener carried his bat through the innings with a glorious knock of 96 that helped the Lankans post a competitive 158 for five after being put in to bat.

His 52-ball innings, which was studded with 12 boundaries and two sixes, is the third best score in all Twenty20 internationals, after Chris Gayle's 117 (against South Africa) and Ricky Ponting's 98 not out (against New Zealand) in February 2005.

Indeed, Dilshan has been virtually unstoppable. This was his third half-century in the tournament and he now leads the run charts with 317 runs in six innings at 63.40, with a tally of 46 boundaries and three sixes overall.

With a mountain to climb, the West Indies run chase never got off the blocks as Angelo Mathews claimed three wickets in the opening over to write finis to whatever hopes they may have entertained of making it to the final.

Captain Chris Gayle helped avoid the blushes with an unbeaten knock of 63 from 53 deliveries, inclusive of eight boundaries and two sixes, and was the only Windies batsman to cross double figures.

Sri Lanka:

Electing to field, the West Indies must have been quietly pleased watching the Sri Lankan openers struggle for the first three overs. But Dilshan decided he had enough of playing with the straight bat and started to unleash his typical behind-the-wicket shots.

Jerome Taylor bowled a good short delivery and Dilshan played an almost late pull shot, tipping the ball over the wicketkeeper for a boundary. The next ball he played a fine paddle sweep and dispatched a full toss for the first six of the innings that took Sri Lanka to 23 from four overs.

Dwayne Bravo suffered in his first over when Dilshan slashed him through point for consecutive boundaries and followed it up with a straight boundary two balls later. Dilshan had raced away to 27 from 12 deliveries, but Jayasuriya was struggling with just eight from 18 deliveries.

The introduction of spinners -- Sulieman Benn and Chris Gayle -- after the fifth over did help slow down the proceedings a bit. Benn bowled his first two overs for 10, while Gayle conceded just three in his first over as Sri Lanka reached 50 after eight overs.

Dilshan then decided it was time to take on Gayle and promptly hit him for a boundary and a slog sweep for a six in the ninth over.

Even though Jayasuriya was struggling to find his bearings, Sri Lanka were comfortably placed at 72 for no loss after ten overs.

Hammered for three boundaries in his first over, Bravo single-handedly scripted a turnaround with two wickets in his second over.

The struggling Jayausriya, who changed his bat twice, was the first wicket to fall. He walked across his stumps and flicked straight to the short fine leg fielder after a subdued innings of 24 from 37 deliveries, inclusive of three boundaries. (73-1, 10.3)

Two balls later, captain Kumar Sangakkara was out for a duck off the second ball he faced. He lashed at a wide delivery from Bravo but Keiron Pollard jumped to pluck a sharp catch. (73-2, 10.5)

Pollard then did the trick with the ball too. The medium pacer was lucky to get Mahela Jayawardene, who flicked it straight to the short fine leg fielder and was out for 2. (77-3, 11.3)

With three wickets in the space of eight deliveries, the West Indies managed to keep things tight as just 26 runs came from five overs, with Sri Lanka reaching 98 for three after 15 overs.

Bravo's rollercoaster day continued and he was taken for 18 runs in his third over. Dilshan took the medium pacer to the cleaners with four boundaries in that over to race to 85 from 49 deliveries, and a hundred in sight.

At the other end, Chamara Silva fell for 11, trying to play a reverse sweep against Benn. (127-4, 17.2)

Jehan Mubarak also departed early in the pursuit of quick runs when he was caught for 7 off Taylor in the 19th over. (134-5, 18.3)

But Dilshan slammed Taylor for a boundary through square off the final delivery of the over to move into 90s, with the final over to come.

In the final over, Dilshan could not get away his big shots. At the other end, Angelo Mathews smashed a six and boundary off consecutive deliveries to keep the runs coming. With six needed to get his hundred and the final delivery to come, the entire crowded started cheering "Dilshan, Dilshan" but he could only manage two of it and finished four short of a hundred.

Dilshan was unbeaten on 96 from 57 deliveries, inclusive of 12 boundaries and two sixes, as Sri Lanka collected 158 for five in their 20 overs.

With the bowlers Sri Lanka have at their disposal, the West Indies face an uphill task.

West Indies

All hopes that the West Indies had of chasing down the target effectively ended in the first over when Mathews claimed three wickets. He knocked down the stumps thrice in the space of six deliveries for the wickets of Xavier Marshall, Lendl Simmons and Dwayne Bravo for ducks.

Sri Lanka had made a roaring start with the ball.

Marshall fell to the second delivery he faced when he played on to his stumps and was bowled for a golden duck. (1-1, 0.2)

Simmons shuffled across his stumps but ended up losing his leg stump to register another duck for the Windies. (1-2, 0.4)

Two deliveries later, Bravo made a late decision to leave a delivery that took the inside edge and disturbed his stumps. (1-3, 1)

The entire stadium was left stunned; many could not believe what they had just witnessed, and you wouldn't want to hear about the plight of a few West Indies fans in the stands.

The first boundary for the West Indies came in the third over when Gayle got an edge off Mathews. In the next over from Lasith Malinga, he brought a few smiles back in his camp by hitting three boundaries to take the West Indies to 20 for three after four overs.

Isuru Udana was dispatched quite easily by Gayle over the long-on fence for the first six of the West Indies innings in the sixth over.

Sri Lanka's wrecker-in-chief with the ball Mathews bowled his four overs on the trot to finish with top figures of three for 16.

Ajantha Mendis then struck in his second over, with the wicket of Shivnarine Chanderpaul for 7. The left-hander moved across his stumps and tried to sweep but was beaten by the quicker delivery and trapped right in front of the stumps. (43-4, 8/2)

Ramnaresh Sarwan, on 2, got a lifeline when his lofted shot off Malinga, in the 11^th over, was dropped by Mendis at long-on. However, he fell in the next over attempting the same shot and was caught for 5 as Muttiah Muralitharan started with a wicket in his first over. (64-5, 11.1)

Gayle despatched the next delivery for a boundary, cutting a short delivery to the point region. He then took a single to complete his half-century off 39 deliveries, having hit eight boundaries and a six.

Pollard never really got going as he made 3 from 10 deliveries before he was stumped down the leg side off Muralitharan. (75-6, 13.3)

Denesh Ramdin started with a couple of boundaries to race to 9 but became Udana's first victim of the innings when he lofted a simple catch to the cover fielder. (86-7, 14.5)

Gayle continued to battle despite the flurry of wickets at the other end. He slammed Muralitharan for a huge six over midwicket.

Jerome Taylor tried a wild heave across the line against Muralitharan but was caught on the leg side for 2. (95-8, 15.3)

In the next over, Mendis got the wicket of Darren Sammy, caught at point region for 1 to finish with amazing figures of two for nine in four overs. (97-9, 16.2)

Malinga ended in style when he bowled Benn with a fast swinging yorker for a duck in the 18^th over. Gayle finished unbeaten on a fine knock of 63 from 50 deliveries, inclusive of eight boundaries and two sixes, as the West Indies were dismissed for 101 and lost by 57 runs with 14 deliveries to spare.

It was a pitiful performance by the Windies batsmen; only Gayle managed to get into double figures as four batsmen went for ducks.

Ramdin was the only other batsman other than Gayle to register a boundary when he hit two fours in his innings of nine.

It was Matthews who finished off the West Indies even before they could start their chase, claiming three wickets in the first over of the innings

KKR ON OVERDRIVE

Following the team's dismal show in the second edition of the Indian Premier League, where they finished last, Kolkata Knight Riders have reportedly sacked director of coaching John Buchanan, a year before the Aussie's contract expires.

While the team management remained tight-lipped on the issue, a KKR source said Sourav Ganguly might be given the role of player-cum-coach, even as the names of Dav Whatmore, Steve Waugh and Lalchand Rajput were doing the rounds. "There is a possibility that Sourav would be given the job to plan strategies from the dugout. He might also play some matches," said the source.

The Knight Riders will discuss their future course of action in a meeting in Mumbai once franchise owner Shah Rukh Khan, who is out of the country, returns. Buchanan hasn't been invited to the proposed meeting.

Meanwhile, players have welcomed the move. "It's a result-oriented world and the coach has to face the music if he fails to deliver," said KKR all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla. "I think it's a change for the better."

The source also said that the squad was set for an overhaul and there would be new faces in the support staff, with Buchanan's methods, especially the multiple-captaincy theory and his handling of the team not going down well with the owners. The team lost nine matches in a row in the tournament.

"Buchanan was never in Shah Rukh's good books, especially after the team's dismal show in South Africa. In fact, he (Shah Rukh) refused to meet the coach and refused him an appointment at his bungalow in Mumbai," he said.

why did india loose????????

The sudden and dramatic exit of Team India from the race for the semi-finals of the ICC World Twenty- 20 Cup 2009 has shocked onlookers and confounded experts. Being the joint favourites along with South Africa for winning the Cup, the defending champions displayed a lack of innovation as also the absence of sheer desperation that resulted in their amazing success in South Africa in 2007 when they lifted the trophy as rank outsiders.

The ten main reasons that led to their shocking elimination are-

Complacency - There seemed to be an air of 'nothing-can-go-wrong' in the team's approach. They appeared to feel all along that the Cup was rightfully theirs and that no other team had the fire power to gun them down. That they lost to both the West Indies and England, two of the less formidable teams in the draw, indicated a sense of false superiority which did not result in runs on the board or wickets in the bag.

Sehwag's unavailability - Despite a star-studded line-up, India had no other batsman who could scare the wits out of the opposition bowlers quite like Virender Sehwag does. Yuvraj Singh is India's batting hero in this version of the game, but the task proved too much even for him, in the absence of the Sultan of Multan, whose shoulder injury cost India dear.

Wrong team selection - India bungled by playing an extra bowler in a batsman oriented format of the game. As a result, there was not enough ammunition in the late middle order to test the opposition seriously enough. Dinesh Karthik should have played instead of Ravinder Jadeja in the match against England. Yusuf Pathan and Rohit Sharma could have bowled spin along with Yuvraj Singh to fill the breach. Ishant Sharma could have been dropped in favour of Praveen Kumar whose swing bowling was suited to English conditions. RP Singh should have played all the matches, given that he was the highest wicket taker in the IPL, and the in-form bowler in the team!

Fielding lapses - In the match against the West Indies especially and also on some other occasions, misfielding hurt India badly. Two clear boundaries went through the legs of the fielders against the Windies, and could have made the difference in a close match. More over, India's field placing was such that the slower fielders in the team found the ball coming towards them on more occasions than did the best fielders. Ishant Sharma and Zaheer Khan were cases in point!

Easy early matches - A factor that Team India could not do anything about, given their top-seeded billing! They had Bangladesh and Ireland for company in their group and found them to be easy meat. But the lack of serious opposition at that stage meant that they had to suddenly up the ante against better teams in the super-league, which they could not manage!

Jadeja's dilemma - By pushing green-horn Ravinder Jadeja up the order the team management exposed him to some accurate and hostile bowling from the England pacers in the crucial tie at Lords. Jadeja is a talented player and had claimed two key wickets with his left-arm spin earlier in the match but he appeared to be overawed by the occasion and could not really handle the pressure. In a match that India lost by just 3 runs, Jadeja's 22 off 30 balls was surely a match-losing effort.

Short-pitched challenge - The manner in which the West Indian fast bowlers, followed by their English counterparts, tested India's top order with short-pitched bowling was revelatory. Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina just could not get going and were tied down and then forced to find ungainly ways of hitting out or getting out while facing the bouncy stuff. India's top order has seldom looked as ruffled as it did in this tournament. Perhaps a realization that the conditions in England are such that they require pure cricketing shots in the first few overs may have done the trick.

Dhoni was out of sorts - Captain cool, MS Dhoni kept wickets reasonably well, and marshalled his forces to the best of his ability, but his batting was a let down. Even in the match against England when he and Pathan almost chased down the target, he could not really get the big shots going. His bat seemed to have lost its potency, for his shots simply lacked the explosiveness that they are known for.

Media trouble - Another factor was surely the off-the-field distraction especially the manner in which the Sehwag issue was dealt with. The media flayed the present Captain's attitude for the first time ever and the foolhardy attempt at displaying a sense of camaraderie by presenting the whole team at a Press conference was most bizarre.

Too much cricket - The current Indian team plays all around the year and big matches obviously lose their aura for the players when so much cricket is played. This was the World Cup after all, but from the look of them, Team India could well have been playing any other international series. Gautam Gambhir, who has been the most prolific scorer in world cricket in the past one year, looked totally jaded, and exemplified the mal-effects of excessive international cricket.

Fans of the Indian team are distraught and shocked at their early exit from the ICC World Twenty 20. Let's see if the team can re-group from here and win back our admiration in the coming months

Super Eight Stage

Super Eight Stage:

Placement for the Super Eight stage is determined as follows:
The first two teams in each group are placed 1 or 2. They will retain this position for the Super Eight stage, irrespective of whether they finish first or second in their group, unless they are knocked out by the team 3 in their group. In this instance, team 3 replaces the position of the team they knock out.

Group E: A1 - India, B2 - England, C1 - West Indies, D2 - South Africa
Group F: B1 - Pakistan, A2 - Ireland, C2 - Sri Lanka, D1 - New Zealand

Thursday, June 11
Ireland v New Zealand		Nottingham	18:00 IST
England v South Africa		Nottingham	22:00 IST
Friday, June 12
Pakistan v Sri Lanka	Lord's		18:00 IST
India v West Indies	Lord's		22:00 IST
Saturday, June 13
South Africa v West Indies		The Oval	18:00 IST
New Zealand v Pakistan		The Oval	22:00 IST
Sunday, June 14
Ireland v Sri Lanka		Lord's	18:00 IST
England v India		Lord's	22:00 IST
Monday, June 15
England v West Indies		The Oval	18:00 IST
Ireland v Pakistan		The Oval	22:00 IST
Tuesday, June 16
New Zealand v Sri Lanka		Nottingham	18:00 IST
India v South Africa		Nottingham	22:00 IST

The teams finishing first and second in groups E and F, based on points obtained in the Super Eight stage will compete in the semi-finals

Thursday, June 18
E1 v F2, 1st Semi-Final	Nottingham			22:00 IST
Friday, June 19
F1 v E2, 2nd Semi-Final		The Oval			22:00 IST
Sunday, June 21
Final		Lord's	19:30 IST

bangaladeshis are out tooooooooooooooooo

O'Brien brothers Niall and Kevin's scintillating knocks gave Ireland a six-wicket victory over Bangladesh and a berth in the Super Eight stage of the World Twenty20 championship, at Trent Bridge, in Nottingham, on Monday.

Niall blasted a 25-ball 40 that was studded with three fours and as many sixes, while Kevin fired an unbeaten 17-ball 39, inclusive of fours and a couple of sixes, as Ireland attained the target with 10 balls to spare.

Earlier, all-rounder Trent Johnston's three-wicket haul restricted Bangladesh to 137 for eight in the Group A match.

Niall stitched a 55-run partnership for the first wicket with skipper William Porterfield (23) to lay the foundation for victory before the left-handed batsman was dismissed by Shakib Al Hasan in the 10th over.

Ireland then lost two quick wickets in Porterfield and GC Wilson (10) before Kevin steadied the ship in a 49-run stand off 24 balls with John Mooney (17).

For Bangladesh, Mashrafe Mortaza took two wickets for 30 runs, while Shakib and Abdur Razzak bagged one each.

Earlier, Johnston had ripped through the Bangladesh top order, ejecting opener Junaid Siddique (13), skipper Mohammad Ashraful (14) and Shakib Al Hasan (7) after Ireland skipper William Porterfield won the toss and inserted Bangladesh in the seventh match of the tournament.

Bangladesh were in dire straits at 94 for seven before Mashrafe Mortaza cracked a quickfire 16-ball 33, that was studded with one four and two sixes, to take give the total respectability.

Needing a victory to keep their hopes alive in the tournament after their disastrous start against India in the opening match, Bangladesh struggled as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Had it not been wasn't for the late charge given by Mortaza, things could have been embarrassing for them.

Alex Cusack bowled the last over which yielded 20 invaluable runs for Bangladesh with Mortaza twice clearing the rope with two huge sixes

srilanka shuts aussies out of game!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Australia's hopes of capturing the only title that has evaded their grasp vanished when they were eliminated in the first round of the ICC World Twenty20.

World champions in ODIs and the top-ranked team in Tests, Australia showed they still have a lot to learn in Twenty20 cricket after losing to Sri Lanka by six wickets and an over to spare, at Trent Bridge, in Nottingham, on Monday.

This was the Aussies' second defeat in as many matches in the tournament, having lost to the West Indies by seven wickets in their first outing.

Tillakaratne Dilshan set Sri Lanka on the victory path with a blazing knock of 53 from just 32 deliveries at the top of the order. Captain Kumar Sangakkara, with an unbeaten 55 from 42 deliveries, then showed great composure in the closing stages to guide his team home and into the Super Eights of the tournament.

Jehan Mubarak hit 21 from 12 deliveries as Sri Lanka scored 160 for four in 19 overs, in reply to Australia's 159 for nine in 20.

Earlier, Ajantha Mendis crippled the famed Australian batting line-up with a haul of three for 20 in four overs and left Ricky Ponting's men facing the ignominy a humiliating first round exit. Lasith Malinga also chipped in with vital wickets at the end to finish with three for 36 in his four overs.

Australia:

Sri Lanka just about managed to reach the stadium as Tamils, protesting against the Sri Lankan government's "human right abuses" attempted to block their way. The protestors called for the British government to ban the Lankan cricket team for crimes against Tamils during the recent offensive against the LTTE.

But it was a smooth passage for the Lankans inside the ground, as Kumar Sangakkara won the toss in his debut game as Sri Lanka captain and elected to field.

It took them just four deliveries to strike -- pacer Angelo Mathews claiming the wicket of David Warner, caught at point for a duck.

Debutant Isuru Udana got off to a rough start in international cricket as Shane Watson clubbed him for two boundaries and a six in his first over.

Lasith Malinga was despatched by Ricky Ponting for three straight boundaries off the first three deliveries he bowled as Australia raced for 47 for one after five overs.

Ajantha Mendis nearly struck with his first delivery when he beat Watson with a quicker one that struck him in line, but the umpire ruled him not out.

However, Mendis was not to be denied five deliveries later when he bowled Ponting in the sixth over. The batsman had scored a quick 25.

The Sri Lanka leggie then pegged Australia further when he trapped Watson leg before wicket for 22.

With three wickets already in their bag, Sri Lanka tried to restrict Australia with some quick bowling as the boundaries dried off. The pressure paid when Brad Haddin (16 off 17 deliveries) gave himself room but was foxed by a slower delivery from Malinga. Australia had slipped to 74 for four after 11 overs.

Udana came up with a spectacular return catch off his bowling to send back Michael Clarke, who scored a subdued 11 from 15 deliveries, leaving leave Australia reeling at 79 for five in the 13^th over.

With wickets falling regularly, the flow of runs also dried up, especially against the spin duo of Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan. David Hussey tried to break the shackles when he danced down the wicket and lofted Mendis for a huge six straight down the ground.

Mendis, though, had something to smile two balls later when he scalped Michael Hussey for 1. The left-hander shuffled across the stumps but was beaten by a quicker delivery and trapped right in front.

The two spinners -- Muralitharan (3-0-8-0) and Mendis (3-0-11-3) -- had spun a web around the Aussie batsmen, bowling six overs between themselves for just 19 runs, with three wickets to boast of.

Mitchell Johnson counter-attacked right from the start and ruined Muralitharan's figures by smashing for two sixes and a boundary in his final over. Johnson raced to 19 from 5 deliveries as 21 runs came from Muralitharan's final over as Australia reached 115 for six after 16 overs.

David Hussey clubbed a length delivery from Udana over midwicket for a six but fell of the next delivery attempting a similar shot. Hussey scored 28 from 22 deliveries, with a four and two sixes, before ending up spooning a simple catch to the point fielder in the 19^th over.

But Udana continued to suffer as Brett Lee came out and hammered for a boundary and six off consecutive deliveries.

Lee made a quick 15 from five deliveries before he was bowled by an unplayable yorker from Malinga in the final over of the innings. In the same over, Nathan Hauritz fell caught behind for four before Australia finished on 159 for nine in their 20 overs.

Australia could well be ruing not making another 15-20 runs since they scored 169 for seven in their first match against West Indies, but went down by seven wickets.

Even Sri Lanka boasts of great firepower in their batting and if the explosive Sanath Jayasuriya gets going Australia could well start packing their bags.

Sri Lanka:

Tillakaratne Dilshan, who enjoyed a great run in the IPL with the bat, started with a cracking boundary off Brett Lee in the first over of the innings. He then smashed a couple more off Johnson's next over, one pulled through midwicket while the second one was driven handsomely through the covers.

Sanath Jayasuriya, however, struggled to make an impression and fell for 2 off seven deliveries. He pulled a short delivery from Lee in the third over, but David Warner came up with a brilliant catch, jumping high and completing the catch behind him just inches inside the boundary line.

Kumar Sangakkara made sure Australia did not capitalize from that opening wicket as he unleashed consecutive boundaries in that same over off Lee.

Ponting felt the heat as the pacers went for plenty of boundaries early on. Nathan Bracken was also hit for a boundary each by the two batsmen as Sri Lanka reached 37 for one after four overs.

The Lankans were in no mood to relent. Dilshan hammered Watson for four boundaries in his first over. He welcomed Watson to the bowling crease with a lofted boundary over midwicket. Two balls later he played a fine paddle sweep against the medium pacer for the same result and followed it up with two more boundaries over the point region.

Sri Lanka raced to a comfortable 53 for one after five overs -- 44 of those runs coming through boundaries.

There was no stopping the two batsmen as they added 50 runs for the second wicket in 32 deliveries, having hit nine boundaries between them.

Dilshan brought up his own half-century in amazing fashion when he scooped a good length delivery from Watson over the wicketkeeper for a boundary. It took him just 26 deliveries to reach the landmark and included 10 boundaries. He merely repeated what Chris Gayle did to the Aussie bowlers a few days back.

Australia then got a wicket out of nowhere when part-timer Michael Clarke bowled Dilshan with his first delivery of the match. Dilshan, who made 53 from 32 deliveries, inclusive of 10 boundaries, came down the wicket but was beaten by the flight and bowled.

Slowly but steadily Australia were trying to make a comeback through their spinner, who gave away just 14 runs in his first three overs while picking a wicket.

The pressure tactics seemed to pay off when Mahela Jayawardene gave his wicket away trying to hit Nathan Hauritz. He charged down the wicket to Hauritz to loft him over the cover region but ended up slicing it to Bracken at point to fall for 9 from 12 deliveries.

Sri Lanka reached 98 for three after 13 overs as the required run rate kept creeping with 62 more runs needed from the last seven overs.

Hauritz was proving to be difficult to score off as he gave away just 11 runs in his first three overs. But with the run rate on the rise, Sangakkara decided to take on the off-spinner in his final over and smashed consecutive sixes to take Sri Lanka to 122 for three in 15 overs.

Lee kept Australia in the hunt when he claimed the wicket of Chamara Silva for 11 in the 17^th over. He followed it up with three dot deliveries to pile on the pressure on newcomer Jehan Mubarak, who made up for it with a six over midwicket to make it 24 needed from the last three overs.

Bracken kept it tight in the 18th over before Sangakkara restored parity with a boundary through fine leg. That also brought up his half-century off just 40 deliveries, inclusive four boundaries and two sixes, leaving Sri Lanka an easy task of chasing 14 from the last two overs.

Mubarak ensured there was no late drama by slamming Lee for a huge six over midwicket in the 19th over and following it up with a boundary over mid-off.

It was a wide that ended it all as Sri Lanka reached 160 for four in 19 overs and won the match by six wickets with a full over to spare.

Sangakkara was quite pumped at the end, having finished unbeaten on a fine knock of 55 from 42 deliveries, that included four boundaries and two sixes.

Mubarak also made a good contribution, scoring 21 from 12 deliveries, with a boundary and two sixes, as the two batsmen added 33 runs for the fifth wicket in just 2.5 overs.

The victory ensured Australia were knocked out of the tournament, while Sri Lanka and West Indies advanced to the Super Eights