Army promotion for Mendis after Asia Cup victory

Sri Lanka's new spin sensation Ajantha Mendis has been given a double promotion in the army after his exploits in the Asia Cup final, officials said on Wednesday.

Mendis, 23, a gunner, was promoted to 2nd lieutenant by President Mahinda Rajapakse, who is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

Mendis destroyed India with record-breaking figures of 6-13 as Sri Lanka won Sunday's Asia Cup final in Karachi by 100 runs.

It was the best bowling performance in the continental tournament, surpassing Pakistani Aaqib Javed's 5-19 against India in Sharjah in 1995.

Mendis, who hails from the Colombo suburb of Moratuwa, finished with 17 wickets in the tournament.

"I am delighted to have played a part in Sri Lanka's victory,"

Mendis said after returning from Pakistan.

"I just want to bowl as best as I can every time I come to the bowling crease. I did that on Sunday."

The young Mendis uses an unusual grip in which he appears to squeeze the ball out of his fingers, bowling off-spin, leg-spin, googly, the top-spinner and the flipper.

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the first to concede that Mendis was simply unplayable.

"We just could not read him and we knew he was a surprise bowler,"

he said.

"You need to be there in the middle to understand what he bowls. It was tough to pick his deliveries. It is not that the batsmen played badly, they played expecting something and the ball did something else."

India will face Mendis again when they tour Sri Lanka from next week for three Tests and five one-day internationals.

India v Sri Lanka, Asia Cup final, Karachi

Sri Lanka 273 (Jayasuriya 125, Dilshan 56, Ishant 3-52) beat
India 173 (Sehwag 60, Mendis 6-13) by 100 runs

Eight years ago, , Sanath Jayasuriya scored a magnificent 189 before Sri Lanka's bowlers sent India tumbling to 54 all out, and a humiliating 245-run defeat. At Karachi's National Stadium, Jayasuriya, now 39, smashed another superb century before Ajantha Mendis, the mystery spinner still classed as a slow-medium bowler, bamboozled a highly rated batting line-up to finish with astonishing figures of 6 for 13.

Virender Sehwag's blistering early onslaught was rendered irrelevant as Sri Lanka stormed to a 100-run victory, retaining the Asia Cup and extending India's miserable record in tournament finals.

With Sehwag hammering an exhilarating 60 from just 35 balls, India had romped to 76 from just nine overs. Muttiah Muralitharan prefers not to bowl during the Powerplays, and it was to Mendis, who the Indians had never faced before, that Mahela Jayawardene turned as he sought to staunch the flow of runs.

Even he couldn't have predicted the impact that Mendis would have. Like a combine harvester scything through a field of corn, Mendis sliced through a line-up that has quite a reputation when it comes to playing spin. Sehwag charged his second delivery and watched helplessly as it drifted away from him. Kumar Sangakkara did the rest. Two balls later, Yuvraj Singh was utterly befuddled by one that skidded on. Suddenly, 274 appeared a long way away.

That Sri Lanka got anywhere near that was down to a man who refuses to bow to Father Time. India picked up four wickets in the first 12 overs, with Ishant claiming three of them, but Jayasuriya's 114-ball 125, and a 131-run partnership with Tillakaratne Dilshan utterly changed the complexion of the game.

It's perhaps no coincidence that India haven't won the Asia Cup since Jayasuriya became a regular at the top of the Sri Lankan order, and his mastery over the opposition was best revealed in the 16th over, bowled by RP Singh. RP had managed to escape relatively unscathed in his opening spell, conceding 24 from five overs, but when he returned, Jayasuriya took to him like a bull that had been riled by the matador's cape.

Sixes on either side of the sightscreen were followed by two wallops over cover, and after a one-ball lull, he pulled one over midwicket for six more. With Dilshan then taking three successive fours off Irfan Pathan, Mahendra Singh Dhoni had no option but to turn to spin, with Pragyan Ojha and Virender Sehwag managing to have something of a fire-extinguishing effect.

India had started poorly, with RP conceding two boundaries to fine leg in the opening over, but a mix-up between two experienced hands gave them the opening they so desperately needed. Jayasuriya tapped one to short mid-off, and Sangakkara had already hared halfway down the pitch before he realised the striker had no interest in a single. Suresh Raina's underarm flick was the ultimate punishment.

But with two maiden overs bowled in the first five, India wrested back a measure of control, despite Jayasuriya's sporadic bursts of aggression. With the pressure building, it was Ishant who struck, as Jayawardene slapped one straight to Rohit at point. No bother for Jayasuriya though. A swivel pull sent an Ishant delivery for six, and Pathan's introduction was greeted with three fours in the over.

The problem was at the other end, where Ishant was wreaking havoc with the extra bounce he extracted from a comatose pitch. Bounce and a hint of lateral movement had Chamara Kapugedera playing one off the leading edge to point, and two balls later, the other Chamara - Silva - inside-edged one back on to the stumps.

Jayasuriya's version of consolidation involved a pull for six off Ishant and a slice of luck as a as a miscue off Pathan evaded RP, who ran around in circles and failed to get his hands to the ball. Dilshan contributed only four to the first 50 the pair added, from 30 balls, but he did his part, turning the strike over to allow Jayasuriya to inflict maximum damage.

With Sehwag and Ojha - Rohit contributed three tidy overs too - taking the pace off the ball, it was a different story. With the field spread, the boundaries dried up and the runs came mainly in singles. India missed a couple of run-out opportunities and Dhoni put down a sharp chance offered by Dilshan when he was on 37, but the helter-skelter pace of the Powerplay overs soon gave way to relative calm.

Eventually, the lack of action got to Jayasuriya and a flat slog-sweep off Sehwag only found Ishant at deep midwicket. After that, Sri Lanka lost their way. Dilshan eased to 50 from 68 balls, but when Pathan returned to bowl round the wicket, he popped a catch to Dhoni. Vaas, back in the fray after missing the last game, square-drove Ishant for the first four in more than 20 overs, but was castled by RP soon after.

Nuwan Kulasekara flailed the bat to finish with an unbeaten 29, but a target of 274 was expected to be well within reach for an Indian side that had included seven specialist batsmen. But after his extraordinary first over, Mendis soon set about making a mockery of the predictions.

Raina had been fortunate to survive a vociferous leg-before shout before he decided to play the worst shot of the evening, an ugly pull to a delivery that pitched on middle stump. Rohit soon followed, struck on the back pad by one that deviated away a touch, and by the time Jayawardene decided to take him out of the attack, Mendis had stunning figures of 4 for 8.

No one including the umpires knew quite what to expect, and the batsmen appeared unsure whether to play him as a slow bowler or a medium-pace one. That indecision was to prove fatal, especially against the carrom ball that was being propelled by a flick of the middle finger. As eye-catching was his accuracy. There was no width for the batsmen to work with, and hardly a loose delivery. Only Dhoni, who played the ball as late as he possibly could, showed any signs of coming to grips with him.

With Mendis casting such a spell, Murali's introduction went almost unnoticed, but with him in parsimonious mood, the tourniquet was tightening around India. Robin Uthappa and Dhoni added 38 in attritional fashion before Murali struck from round the wicket. Uthappa missed a flick, and the appeal from the bowler was just a formality.

Jayawardene waited a while longer and then brought back Mendis for the 30th over. India somehow survived that, but the game was up in his next. Pathan's attempt to flick through the leg side ended up at slip, and RP walked off bemused after one deviated away to take off stump. He should have had the hat-trick too, only Simon Taufel was as perplexed by a ball that pitched in line as Pragyan Ojha was.

Dhoni had watched it all from the other end, defending stoutly and striking the odd four when he could. But once he inside-edged Chaminda Vaas to the keeper, the Sri Lankan dressing room readied for the celebrations. When Kulasekara cleaned up Ishant with 63 balls still to be bowled, they could begin in earnest. The combination of the six-hitting veteran and the six-wicket carrom-ball spinner had been far too much for India to handle.

India v Sri Lanka, Super Four, Asia Cup, Karachi

India 310 for 4 (Gambhir 68, Dhoni 67, Raina 54) beat
Sri Lanka 308 for 8 (Kapugedera 75, Jayawardene 50, Silva 50) by six wickets

For the second day in succession, a target of 309 was overhauled without much trouble. Each of India's batsmen played their part as India reached the final with a convincing six-wicket win over Sri Lanka. Muttiah Muralitharan was the only bowler to unsettle the batsmen but, with little support from the rest, India triumphed with 19 balls to spare.

In contrast to their bowling effort, four of Sri Lanka's top six made significant contributions to help them post an imposing total. However, having already qualified for the final, they rested the experienced Chaminda Vaas as well as their new spin sensation Ajantha Mendis, a decision that worked in India's favour.

Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag provided their now-familiar blazing start as India started their chase in earnest. It wasn't an all-out assault from them. Runs were scored with a combination of well-timed boundaries and a host of sharp singles - even Sehwag's six over midwicket was an effortless pick-up off his pads. In fact, the only shot in the first Powerplay, based on brute force, was an on-drive from Gambhir off Nuwan Kulasekara in the 10th over.

With little in the pitch for the fast bowlers, the openers were only troubled when taking some ill-judged singles. Gambhir demonstrated his confidence level by repeatedly charging the fast bowlers while Sehwag nonchalantly pulled even length deliveries to midwicket. Though India had raced to 71 in the first 10 overs, Jayawardene decided to take the second Powerplay. The decision seemed to backfire as 21 runs came off the next nine balls but the breakthrough came when Sehwag tapped a slower ball down leg side to Dilhara Fernando at short fine leg.

Suresh Raina started off with a confident pull to midwicket but was fortunate to see a lofted drive dropped by substitute Jehan Mubarak at cover. He and Gambhir took India to 135 before Gambhir was trapped lbw for 68, failing to pick a straighter one from Murali. Dhoni promoted himself ahead of Yuvraj Singh probably to ensure two left-handers didn't have to deal with the wiles of Murali.

Dhoni hardly showed any effects of having kept in back-to-back matches and playing a long innings yesterday as he and Raina scampered quick singles and twos. He started out cautiously before opening out after the 30th over - four fours (including a powerful, fine paddle-sweep off Murali) and a six came in the next four overs as the required-rate dipped to manageable levels.

Raina was run out soon after when going for a tight third and Dhoni was foxed by a quicker one from Murali to leave with two new batsmen at the crease, and 56 runs in the arrears. Yuvraj and Rohit Sharma, though, settled India's nerves with a composed partnership and set up a rematch in Sunday's final.

Unlike the Sri Lankan bowlers, India started off well as the new-ball bowlers turned in a much-improved performance, so much so that the first convincing boundary came only in the seventh over.

Ishant Sharma was the pick of the bowlers, exploiting the variable bounce in the pitch and effectively using the slower ball to trouble the batsmen. In one of cricket's typical quirks, amid an excellent spell, Ishant got his wickets off two of the worst deliveries he sent down - both short and down the leg side.

His opening partner RP Singh was also economical and Sri Lanka were limited to 39 for 1 after eight. The introduction of Irfan Pathan, though, let them off the hook as 26 came off his two overs. Sanath Jayasuriya had just switched to fifth gear before gloving one to Dhoni off Ishant. With the pitch easing up, Jayawardene and Kapugedera collected the singles against the spinners while punishing the loose deliveries from the faster bowlers to put on 78. Kapugedera, in particular, was impressive with a series of classical off-driven boundaries early on.

Risk-free batting took Jayawardene on to his half-century but he perished soon after as he stepped out and chipped Pragyan Ojha straight to long-off. Kapugedera was next to go, trapped lbw by Praveen, but not before he added 68 with Chamara Silva. Silva used the cut and sweep shots well against the spinners to make a well-deserved fifty and cameos from Kaushalya Weeraratne and Thilan Thushara pushed Sri Lanka beyond 300.

India's cause wasn't helped by their fielding, which has been below par right through the Asia Cup - catches were misjudged, dives at the boundary rarely saved the fours and several run-out opportunities were spurned. Ultimately, though, their batting covered up the deficiencies in the other departments to take them to the final at the expense of Pakistan.

Bangladesh v Sri Lanka, Super Four, Asia Cup, Karachi

Sri Lanka 332 for 8 (Jayasuriya 130, Sangakkara 121) beat

Bangladesh 174 (Raqibul 52, Nazimuddin 47, Muralitharan 5-31) by 158 runs

As birthday bashes go, this was pretty special, with Sanath Jayasuriya bludgeoning Bangladesh into submission as Sri Lanka sauntered into the Asia Cup final. Kumar Sangakkara's elegant 121, just 24 hours after a century against Pakistan, was the supporting act, and with Muttiah Muralitharan at his supple-wristed best with the ball, Bangladesh were brushed aside by a massive 158 runs. Nazimuddin and Raqibul Hasan showed some defiance, but even against an attack missing Lasith Malinga and Farveez Maharoof, 333 was never on.

Some of the Bangladesh players were still in diapers when Jayasuriya made his debut, and they must have felt as helpless as babies when he celebrated his 39th birthday with the fluent shot-making and power-hitting that typified his halcyon years. He raced to a century off only 55 balls, and though it turned out to be a two-man show, Sri Lanka still had enough to pull off their fourth successive win of the tournament.

Having added 201 with Sangakkara in only 27.5 overs, Jayasuriya finally ran out of puff in the Karachi heat. A poor delivery from Alok Kapali was lofted to deep cover where Tamim Iqbal took the catch. There was scarcely any joy from the fielders, because by then Jayasuriya had pounded 130 off only 88 balls, with a heady rhythm of cuts, pulls and drives.

Sangakkara carried on though, having been reprieved by Kapali off his own bowling on 51. He drove beautifully down the ground and made good use of both the orthodox sweep and the slogged version. Occasionally, he would also come down the track and loft the ball over the infield, and Bangladesh appeared bereft of options.

When Jayasuriya lashed Mashrafe Mortaza's opening delivery past point for four, it appeared to be a sign of things to come, but with Shahadat Hossain bowling a maiden first-up, Bangladesh conceded only 20 in the first five overs. The trouble started after that, with Jayasuriya dusting off his pull stroke and driving over the infield with immense power.

Sangakkara wasn't to be left behind, piercing the packed off-side field cleverly occasionally, but after a while he gave up trying to keep pace. Jayasuriya was unstoppable. When the bowlers dropped short, he would pull over midwicket. If they were too full, the disdainful flick was unveiled. Too much width and the hoardings behind the point boundary were battered with short-arm cuts. And if all that wasn't punishment enough, he would also jump down the pitch before lashing the ball over the covers.

The half-century took only 31 balls, and when Abdur Razzak came on, he was taken for 19 runs in his second over. Two crisp fours off Farhad Reza and a single to long leg later, he had a century, the 26th of an illustrious career. Sangakkara, who had caressed some lovely drives himself, was the perfect foil, and Bangladesh's cause wasn't helped when Mushfiqur Rahim fluffed a catch behind the stumps off Razzak right after Jayasuriya had got his hundred.

His eventual departure, after slamming 16 fours and a mere six sixes, did stem the tide though, with the other batsmen unable to support Sangakkara. Mahela Jayawardene eased to 20 before pulling a long hop from Kapali to midwicket and neither Chamara, Kapugedera or Silva, could get going. Tillakaratne Dilshan was run out by a direct hit from Raqibul, and when Razzak finally sneaked one under Sangakkara's defence, Bangladesh had managed a comeback of sorts. But thanks to their openers becoming only the 18th pair to score centuries in the same game, Sri Lanka were nearly out of sight by then.

Bangladesh were notionally in the contest till the halfway stage of their innings, with Nazimuddin and Raqibul playing some fine strokes in the face of an imposing asking-rate. Nazimuddin took his time to settle, but then launched into some delightful cuts and drives. Ajantha Mendis, who had bamboozled the Pakistanis, was thumped for a four and a six, and only a miscommunication with Raqibul saw him run out when in sight of a half-century.

By then, he had already seen Tamim and Mohammad Ashraful, the side's leading lights, depart. With Chaminda Vaas and Nuwan Kulasekara giving nothing away early on, Tamim quickly became restless, and a tame nibble at a Vaas delivery was easily taken by Dilshan, deputising for Sangakkara behind the stumps.

Ashraful came in and took three fours off a Vaas over, but then had one of those brain-fades that he's become prone to. He was in no sort of position to try and pull Thilan Thushara, and the top-edge came down into Dilshan's hands.

But with Raqibul starting in strokeful fashion and Nazimuddin determined to tilt at windmills, the run-rate quickly soared, with Thushara coming in for harsh treatment. Nazimuddin's dismissal, halted the charge though, and after that it was all about Murali.

Mushfiqur edged one to slip and Kapali was trapped in front by a doosra. Raqibul's brave innings was curtailed by another that went the wrong way, and Razzaq cleaned up going for the sweep. When Mortaza top-edged a sweep, he had five wickets for the ninth time in ODIs. It may sometimes be a young man's game, but it was the old hands that blew the candles out on Bangladesh.

Bangladesh v India, Super Four, Asia Cup, Karachi

India 284 for 3 (Raina 116*, Gambhir 90) beat

Bangladesh 283 for 6 (Kapali 115, Tamim 55) by seven wickets

Alok Kapali's dazzling 115 gave Bangladesh a fighting chance, but their inability to hold on to catches meant that India breezed past another stiff target at the National Stadium in Karachi. Two days after making mincemeat of 300 against Pakistan, they overhauled Bangladesh's 283 with 40 balls to spare. Suresh Raina, with a century against Hong Kong and 84 against Pakistan earlier in the tournament, stroked a magnificent unbeaten 116, adding 139 for the third wicket with Gautam Gambhir to set up the game for India. Gambhir's 90 spanned just 84 balls, and there was enough time for Yuvraj Singh to thrash a couple of mighty sixes before the curtain came down.

Shahadat Hossain, all lively pace and whole-hearted grunting, had hinted at an upset with two wickets in the first Powerplay, but the partnership between Raina and Gambhir upset Mohammad Ashraful's best-laid plans. Butter fingers didn't help.

Gambhir had made 56 when his attempt to muscle Mashrafe Mortaza over the infield was sliced up in the air towards point. Farhad Reza made a mess of the catch. Soon after, still in the final Powerplay, Raina experienced his own adrenaline-rush moment, top-edging a pull. But again, Mortaza's celebrations were aborted as Mahmudullah spilt the chance at fine leg. Raina had made just 16.

Bangladesh had started well enough, with Robin Uthappa inside-edging a full delivery onto his stumps. That brought in Rohit Sharma, another batsman whose fortunes have waned in recent times. With Bangladesh especially generous with overthrows, India didn't need to take undue risks, and Rohit soon got going with an imperious pull and a cover drive for fours.

With Gambhir cutting and pulling anything that was slightly off target, the 50 came quickly enough, but soon after Rohit flicked Shahadat straight to midwicket. Raina was content to rotate the strike early on, and Gambhir quickly got to his half-century with a four and six off Mahmudullah. Then came the bloopers, and that was effectively that.

Slipshod fielding had played its part in Bangladesh's surge to 283 as well. Kapali had made just 25 when Manpreet Gony misjudged a catch at long-on off the bowling of Yusuf Pathan. Gambhir gave him another reprieve late on, but by then he had roared into three figures.

The innings exploded into life in the final eight overs, when 90 runs were amassed as Kapali cut loose with a ferocity that brooked no answer from the Indians. Mahmudullah turned over the strike at the other end, contributing only 24 to the 112-run partnership as Kapali struck the ball with power and precision.

Pragyan Ojha had bowled a tidy spell and taken two wickets on debut, Yusuf had given little away, and Ishant Sharma had kept things quiet when called upon. But when Yusuf came on to bowl his final over, Kapali, then on 47 from 64 balls, exploded into life. Two big slog-sweeps for six set the tone, and when RP Singh returned, both batsmen scythed him over backward point for fours.

Gony, whose second international outing was a great deal more taxing than the first against Hong Kong, then went for 4,6 and 6 as Kapali started to swing with genuine confidence. Mahendra Singh Dhoni once again turned to Ishant to apply a tourniquet, but to no avail. Kapali clipped a slow yorker beautifully through midwicket and then carved one past point as 61 came in just five overs. Of that, 50 had come off Kapali's bat.

Bangladesh had started sedately, but when Nazimuddin cut RP straight to third man, Mohammad Ashraful arrived to up the ante. With Gony straying on to the pads once too often, the runs came quickly. With Tamim Iqbal driving the ball fluently and Ashraful utilising both power and touch, the run rate soared to six.

Unfortunately for Bangladesh, Ashraful's profligate streak came to the fore just when his team were on top. Gony had been brought back for a second spell, and a half-hearted drive on the up went to Ojha at mid-off. A first international wicket for Gony, and a first catch for Ojha.

Raqibul Hasan and Tamim continued to pick up runs at a fair clip, and Dhoni threw Ojha the ball in the 17th over. He started tidily enough, giving little away, and was unlucky as a thick outside edge that took Tamim past 50 just evaded the man at slip.

Yet again though, a moment's carelessness cost Bangladesh dearly. Having creamed Ishant through the covers for four, Tamim then tried to deflect one fine off the pads. Too fine as it turned out, with Dhoni making good ground to his right to take a splendid catch. The second and third Powerplays had fetched just 42, and Bangladesh had to do it all over again.

Raqibul expressed the desire to push on with a big heave over long-off against Ojha, but was flummoxed soon after, as Ojha came up with a beautiful delivery that turned past the defensive prod to take off stump. Mushfiqur Rahim and Kapali consolidated with a 49-run partnership, but India's bowlers, with Ojha varying his flight cleverly, were slowly establishing a stranglehold.

Ojha's second wicket came courtesy a little extra bounce, with Mushfiqur's attempt at a cut finding only Dhoni's gloves, but the scent of a quick kill turned into a bloody nose as Kapali blazed away like a Catherine Wheel. Had Bangladesh taken their catches, there might have been even more fireworks to illuminate the Dhaka night. Raina and Gambhir certainly weren't anything like as generous.

Sri Lanka v UAE, Group A, Asia Cup, Lahore

Sri Lanka 290 for 9 (Udawatte 67, Jayawardene 61, Shah 3-49) beat

UAE 148 (Amjad 77, Mendis 5-22) by 142 runs

Sri Lanka scored another big victory to make it two wins in two days and progress to the second round with two points, by virtue of their win over fellow qualifiers Bangladesh. UAE, who are now out of the tournament, looked like they would make a match of it as opener Amjad Ali made a spectacular half-century, but they hurtled to defeat after his departure.

Shrugging away any exhaustion after having kept wickets earlier, Amjad made his aggressive intentions clear from the first over. He took three consecutive fours in the opening over by Nuwan Kulasekera. A wristy flick over square leg, a fine glance past fine leg and then a punch between mid-on and midwicket proved Amjad was not going to wait for the bowler to err.

Perhaps the shot of the day came in the next over when a mere forward punch from Amjad, powered by a Brian Lara-esque high backlift, sent the ball racing past mid-off. Even the loss of his opening partner Arshad Ali, who was beaten by a brilliant pick and throw by Chamara Kapugedera early on, did not hinder Amjad's approach.

His cavalier approach had UAE at standing firm at 83 for 1 after 15 overs and even forced Mahela Jayawardene to delay taking the third Powerplay. Although their hopes of reaching the target in 39.1 overs - in order to pip Bangladesh to the second round - looked unlikely, they were still in with a chance to pull off an upset. However, those hopes faded when Amjad fell trying to clear the long-on boundary off Tillakaratne Dilshan in the 24th over.

There was hardly any resistance from the others and with the tail unable to deal with Ajantha Mendis' mystery spin, UAE slumped to a 142-run loss. Mendis finished with career-best figures of 5-22 as UAE lost their last six wickets for 15 runs.

Despite the huge margin of defeat, it wasn't the easy game Mahela Jayawardene would have expected. Having elected to bat first Sri Lanka received an immediate jolt when yesterday's centurion, Kumar Sangakkara, was trapped plumb low on his back leg by the accurate Zahid Shah. Bowling a tight line and hitting the seam hard, Shah kept the batsmen guessing and was easily the best fast bowler on the day.

After that initial setback, Sri Lanka picked themselves up and sped to 76 for 1 by the end of the first Powerplay. Shah didn't get any support from Fahal Alhashmi, his new-ball partner, who was, at best, erratic. After bowling two wides in his first over, Alhashmi delivered four more in his next, conceding 15 runs off that over, including an exquisite straight boundary by Mahela Udawatte, who went on to make a patient 67.

There was a brief lull before Shah was clubbed by Jayawardene for four consecutive boundaries. But it was important to keep the tempo going in the muggy heat and Jayawardene, who had reached his half-century, looked tired after the drinks break and was run out off a direct hit when going for a tight single.

At one stage, Sri Lanka seemed likely to cross 300 for the second successive day, but a mixture of exhaustion, poor shot selection and impatience helped UAE, who had only played 10 ODIs coming into the game, restrict them.

The two Chamaras, Kapugedera and Silva, didn't show any patience and, attempting to force the issue, threw their wickets in quick succession. Though Sri Lanka raced to 147 in 20 overs, they had lost four top-order batsmen and were left with their last recognised pair of Udawatte and Tillakaratne Dilshan at the crease. The run-rate started to dip as just seven boundaries were scored after the 15th over. And there was not one six in the entire innings.

The onus fell now on the tiring Udawatte and Dilshan. But UAE sensed they had an opportunity as runs dried up in the middle overs. Alhasmi came back in style to first get rid of Udawatte, who mistimed while trying to clear the rope and holed out to midwicket. Dilshan then chased a wide off-side delivery and managed a thick edge to the keeper.

With just the tail to deal with and Sri Lanka stuttering at 189 for 6 after 30 overs, UAE failed to curb Kaushalya Weeraratne and Nuwan Kulasekara, who stopped the slide and constructed a valuable 53-run eighth-wicket partnership.

UAE managed to put on a much better show than the other Associate nation in the tournament, Hong Kong, but the big boys proved too strong for them.

Bangladesh v Sri Lanka, Group A, Asia Cup, Lahore

Sri Lanka 357 for 9 (Sangakkara 101, Kapugedera 74, Jayasuriya 72) beat

Bangladesh 226 for 7 (Mushfiqur 44, Mortaza 34*) by 131 runs

Mohammad Ashraful was left to rue his decision at the toss - on the sort of pitch where they had piled 300-plus the previous day, Bangladesh decided to field first and paid a heavy price as Sri Lanka, fired by some superb top-order batting by Kumar Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya, piled a massive target before inflicting a heavy defeat.

Chasing an insurmountable target, Bangladesh never seemed like waging a battle although a fourth-wicket stand of 78 between Mushfiqur Rahim and Raqibul Hasan played a major hand in delaying the inevitable. For a while the duo played with patience, character even tackled smartly the spin of Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan. But eventually, Muralitharan got the better of their grit, effectively ending the Bangladesh fight.

Earlier the responsibility, once again, fell on Ashraful to play the multiple role of anchor, hustler and finisher. Yesterday, Ashraful had scored a composed century. Today, after his top edge was spilled by Jayasuriya, Ashraful went for a brash pull against a short ball from Dilhara Fernando. The umpire Simon Taufel thought the ball had brushed his gloves but the batsman started his walk with disbelief.

If Bangladesh meandered towards defeat, Sri Lanka always seemed formidable with the bat. Such was the dominance of the Sri Lankans that rarely did their run rate drop below seven. Much of the credit went to the opening pair of Jayasuriya and Sangakkara, who quickly got into the groove once they had gauged that they had nothing to fear from the bowling or the pitch. What unfolded over the next hour was a spectacular batting display that resulted in a 116-run opening partnership, which was the perfect platform for the other batsmen to build on.

It didn't matter that this was the first time in two years the pair went out to open. After the World Cup, this was the seventh pair Sri Lanka had tried out and it proved decisive as it was the first century opening partnership since the 2006-07 New Zealand tour where Jayasuriya had successfully paired with Upul Tharanga.

As Sangakkara caressed the ball to the boundary from close to his body, Jayasuriya cut hard, charged, pulled and hit at everything. Dolar Mahumud suffered the worst carnage as his second over was taken for 25 runs by Jayasuriya, which included two spectacular cuts on his toes past the point boundary.

Bangladesh's bowling was erratic to say the least. Apart from the dependable Mashrafe Mortaza and the left-arm spin of Abdur Razzak, the rest of the bowlers never stuck to the thumb rule of bowling to the fields. Time and again, Ashraful rushed to his bowlers, but as Sri Lanka's final total indicated, that didn't do much good.

Sangakkara took command after Jayasuriya departed, bowled trying to cut Razzak's spin. One of the highlights of the innings came in the 20th over, as Sangakkara clobbered five fours off Mahmud. The first ball was a wide, while the next one was smacked low by Sangakkara past mid-off. The next, a slower one, was swept to long leg for another boundary, after which he smacked one over the bowler's head for the third four. Mahmud had a chance to make amends, but made a mess of a caught-and-bowled chance the next ball. Sangakkara celebrated by sending the last two balls - both of which drifted down the leg side - for fours as well to speed towards his eighth ODI hundred and the second this year.

He accomplished that feat by pushing a single off legspinner Alok Kapali, whose first two balls were pulled for consecutive fours. He fell soon after, though - increasingly tired in the energy sapping heat, he miscued a pull to give Mahmudullah his only wicket.

But Chamara Kapugedera made sure the momentum was never lost, as he piled an intelligent 74, stitching important partnerships with Chamara Silva and Tillakaratne Dilshan. He was especially severe on Kapali, regularly stepping down the pitch to loft.

Sri Lanka now have the leisure of rotating the line-up in tomorrow's final group-stage clash against UAE, while Bangladesh will enter the second round with mixed feelings.

Hong Kong v India, Group B, Asia Cup, Karachi

India 374 for 4 (Dhoni 109*, Raina 101, Sehwag 78) beat

Hong Kong 118 (Chawla 4-23) by 256 runs

Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his team marked the 25th anniversary of India's World Cup triumph with an emphatic 256-run win over Hong Kong in Karachi to begin their Asia Cup campaign in style. India rested Yuvraj Singh and Ishant Sharma for this game, but they weren't missed much: Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni helped themselves to centuries against a hapless bowling attack after Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir had built a platform, before Piyush Chawla's flummoxed the Hong Kong batsmen.

India put up a near-clinical performance, barring a middle-overs spell when Hong Kong's left-arm spinners stifled the batsmen and gave away 47 runs in 15 overs. Had it not been for that India could conceivably have ended the day surpassing the highest total in ODIs - Sri Lanka's 443 - and the largest victory margin in runs with ease. India's 257-run win against Bermuda in the World Cup last year remains the record.

Hong Kong were all but out of the contest once India amassed 374 for 4, but they would be disappointed to be dismissed under 150 and not being able to last 50 overs for the second game in a row. The defeat also ends their challenge in the tournament.

India's innings revolved around two partnerships: the opening stand of 127 between Sehwag - who blitzed 78 off 44 balls - and Gambhir, while Raina, whose 66-ball hundred is the second-fastest by an Indian, and Dhoni amassed 166 for the fourth wicket, an Asia Cup record. Both partnerships came at more than eight an over, and one can gauge how poor Rohit Sharma had been to score 11 off 29 deliveries.

The openers raced to 100 in just 10.5 overs, the quickest India have been to the mark. Hong Kong's opening bowlers didn't pose any menace with their pace, and the batsmen feasted on easy offerings. Tabarak Dar, Hong Kong's captain, then brought on his trio of left-arm spinners, who managed to rein in India's attack. Najeem Ahmed was once again impressive after having given Pakistan a scare on Tuesday, but it was fellow left-armer Najeed Amar who did the damage with the wickets of Sehwag and Gambhir. The two, along with Munir Dar, put the brakes on the scoring as India crawled from 127 in 15 overs to 159 after 25.

Dhoni and Raina, though, managed to more than double the 178 that India had scored after 30 overs. Dhoni , batting at No. 4, was off the blocks quickly, finding the gap through the covers for two fours off Nadeem. He lunged his front foot forward against the spinners, trying to smother the turn. Largely content with the singles, he kept the rate ticking along with Raina.

Raina, using his advantage as a left-hander, managed to push the left-arm bowlers into the gaps and takes the singles. His fifty came at a run-a-ball, but he cut loose against inexperience bowlers, with his second fifty coming in just 16 balls as India smashed 129 in the final ten overs.

Both batsmen targeted to clear the straight boundary, with Dhoni launching one onto the roof. Raina pummelled four sixes - all over long-on - off the 42nd over from Skhawat Ali, which cost 25 runs. Irfan Ahmed was then smartly chipped over extra cover for four, and a slower one was carted behind square to bring up his first hundred. Raina fell for 101, but Dhoni hung around to compile his fourth ODI hundred.

Not much was expected from Hong Kong in reply, but Tabarak and James Atkinson, the 17-year-old wicketkeeper, showed some resolve against the quicker bowlers. However, hewas out stumped as he was stepped out and was beaten by a legspinner in Chawla's first over. What stood out in Chawla's performance today was his ability to surprise the batsmen with turning legbreaks - he often has been guilty of relying on the googlies for picking wickets in the past. He managed to also induce Hussain Butt and Courtney Kruger outside their crease, leaving Dhoni to complete easy stumpings. A top-edged slog-sweep fetched him his fourth, and he finished with impressive figures of 10-2-23-4.

Irfan battled before he was run out for 25, and Sehwag wrapped up the game with wickets off successive deliveries. India now face Pakistan on Thursday, and definitely a much sterner test.

Bangladesh v UAE, Group A, Asia Cup, Lahore

Bangladesh 300 for 8 (Ashraful 109, Raqibul 83) beat

UAE 204 (Khan 78, Razzaq 3-20) by 96 runs

Mohammad Ashraful adopted a cautious approach to make the second century of his career as Bangladesh cruised to a comfortable 96-run over UAE during their Asia Cup opener in Lahore. He was supported by Raqibul Hasan, who made his second-successive 80-plus knock as the duo put on 141 off 122 balls. There was more reason to celebrate for Bangladesh when left-arm Abdur Razzaq became the third bowler from the country to take 100 wickets when he ended Khurram Khan's battling 78.

The UAE seamers had a tough time settling in after Bangladesh chose to bat, conceding six wides in the first two overs. Bangladesh, though, did not make use of the freebies when the over-eager Nazimuddin flirted with a perfectly-bowled outswinger from Zahid Shah. Ashraful, off the very next ball, had a lucky escape when an inside edge missed the stumps. Ashraful had two more doses of good fortune, but the signs were ominous when he latched on to a short delivery from Amjad Javed. Meanwhile, Tamim Iqbal, who struggled to get going initially, flicked Alhashmi to the fine-leg boundary to bring up Bangladesh's fifty and move into double figures. Ashraful then played a copybook extra cover drive against the wayward Javed Amjad to bring up the fifty-run stand.

The introduction of spin slowed things down, but suprisingly, offspinner Mohammad Tauqir was not used after conceding only six runs off three overs. Against the run off play, Tamim failed to heed Ashraful's call to avoid an unnecessary third run in the 24th over. As though venting his frustration at the run out, Ashraful played a stunning inside-out shot to reach his half-century followed by another scorcher to the extra cover boundary off Silva, though it grazed the hands of the cover fieldsman.

Raqibul, who batted with verve and purpose, made his intentions clear by lofting the left-arm spinner, Khan, one-bounce to long-on. Ashraful then hit two successive boundaries against the same bowler, and ran sharp singles and twos with Raqibul as he moved from 73 to 100 without the aid of a boundary.

UAE were suddenly under the cosh when Raqibul went on attack-mode, taking three boundaries apiece against Khurram and legspinner Arshad Ali as he picked up 27 from nine balls. Raqibul, though, missed out on a golden opportunity to reach his maiden ton, when a top-edged pull sailed to the 'keeper Amjad Ali, and UAE could have gotten two in two had Amjad held on to a catch off Ashraful at long leg. Ashraful was run out soon after and he was one of four wickets which fell within fifteen balls. Dollar Mahmud ensured that they did not muddle up the finish, making 19 off 9 to take Bangladesh to their highest score away from home.

Amjad Javed gave UAE a flying start by taking ten runs off the first over bowled by Mashrafe Mortaza to the cover boundary off the first ball of the innings before striking him over long-on on the sixth. But Mortaza extracted his revenge when he induced a top-edge from Javed, which was pouched by Tamim Iqbal. Indika Batuwitarachichi lasted only two balls, trapped by Shahadat Hossain.

The two Ali's, Arshad and Amjad did not the early wickets faze them, taking the attacking route. Amjad was particularly impressive, twice driving the ball past the covers and once straight down the ground, but the shot which stood out was a flick off Mashrafe to the midwicket boundary which had a certain Caribbean flair attached to it. Arshad almost matched that stroke with a powerful pull off Shahadat. The duo had raised 32 off 28 balls, but their promising stand was stalled when left-arm spinner Abdul Razzaq, introduced in the ninth over, got Amjad to edge to first slip with his first ball.

Arshad kept up the fight, punishing a couple of short balls from Dollar Mahmud. But when spin was introduced at both ends, UAE found the runs hard to come by. Mahmudullah, bowling quickish offbreaks, then accounted for UAE's captain, Saqib Ali, who cut him uppishly to Shahadat at backward point.

Khan survived a couple of close lbw appeals, but got going by striking Mahmudullah for a couple of attractive boundaries, one to long-on and then past extra-cover. The 47-run fifth-wicket stand between Khan and Arshad ended when the latter mishit Mahmudullah to Raqibul at midwicket. With the wickets falling in regular intervals, Khan let loose a barrage of aggressive strokes. He reached his maiden half-century in the 38th over bowled by Mahmud, during which a misdirected throw from Ashraful gave him four additional runs. After Khan holed out to Razzak, Alok Kapali helped himself to a brace of wickets to bring the match to a close.