Hosts Sri Lanka got off to the best possible start in the Champions Trophy thrashing Pakistan by eight wickets at the Premadasa Stadium on Thursday. Lanka skipper Sanath Jayasuriya led the way with a blistering, unbearten 102 (120b, 10x4) after his bowlers had done wonderfully well to restrict the Pakistanis to 200.

It was, on the face of it, a great toss to win for Waqar Younis. The conditions were perfect for batting, with the pitch having enough carry in it to allow for stroke play. But the toss was the only thing that went Pakistan’s way on the day. If their batting went to pieces in the face of some very accurate and clever bowling from the pace trio of Chaminda Vaas, Pulasthi Gunaratne and Dilhara Fernando as also some excellent spin from Muthiah Muralitharan, the Pakistani bowlers had no clue on how and where to bowl to Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva, who put on an unconquered 156 between them for the third wicket.

The day also saw the onfield umpires using television technology to rule on a leg before decision. That even that decision went against Pakistan tells the tale. Australian umpire Darryl Harper, obviously unsure if a Vaas delivery had pitched on line before it struck Shoaib Malik on the top of his pad, turned to third umpire Rudi Koertzen for help. TV replays showed that the ball had indeed pitched on the leg stump and Malik became a part of history.

By now the decibel levels in the packed stadium had really risen. The Lankan bowlers stuck to their task and struck at regular intervals, never allowing the Pakistanis to settle down. Veteran Saeed Anwar, fortunate to be put down twice, came up with a scratchy 52 (82b) but the substance to the innings was provided by a cameo 35 from Younis Khan and a fighting 47 from young Misbah-ul-Haq. The other batsmen just didn’t have it in them to deal with either the guile of Muralitharan or the clever mixture of pace that the seamers came up with. Of course, the run out of Yusuf Youhana didn’t help.

If the Pakistani batsmen had struggled to cope on a wicket that held no devils whatsoever, Jayasuriya, who registered his 13th one-day hundred, and De Silva handed them a lesson on how to bat in a one-day international. Every shot in the book was played, all with a touch of class and most with impunity. The faster Pakistan’s quicks bowled, the harder Jayasuriya hit. The shoulder injury he had suffered in the Morocco Cup final was forgotten as he went on the attack from the word go.

Jayasuriya lost the dependable Marvan Atapattu early (run out) and just a little later watched Kumara Sangakara being trapped plumb in front by the great Wasim Akram, but allowed neither dismissal to deter him from going after the bowling. For his part, De Silva (66 not out, 81b, 5x4) was not expected to stand and watch and he didn’t.

All of this reduced the Pakistanis to bystanders. They seemed to be in the match only to make up the numbers and soon it was all over, the deserved Lankan victory coming about in the 37th over. Both teams have a league game remaining against Holland but whatever happens in those games, the Lankans are assured of a semifinal place.

Statistical Highlights:
---By Daniel Puran Singh

• This was the 96th clash between these two teams in One Day Internationals.
• Leg-spinner Upul Chandana was appearing in his 100th ODI. He became the 14th Sri Lankan to do so.
• Pakistani middle-order batsman Yousuf Youhana made his ninth duck in ODIs.
• Wasim Akram the unenviable record-holder of most ODI ducks with this first-ball dismissal extended it to 26.
• When Sri Lankan wicket-keeper/batsman was dismissed without scoring, it was the third such instance for him in ODIs.
• Jayasuriya (102*), when on 72 reached the milestone of 8000 ODI runs. He is the eighth batsman in ODIs and the second Lankan to achieve this distinction.
• Aravinda de Silva during his unbeaten 66 became only the second batsman after Pakistani Inzamam-ul-Haq to make 60 fifties or more. Inzamam has 62 fifties.
• De Silva with this fifty has now gone to third place with batsmen making over 50 inclusive of 100s. Totaling his 11 tons he now has 71 scores of 50+ in ODIs.
• Just for the record Indian ace batsman, Sachin Tendulkar is way ahead with 89 such scores – 33x100 and 56x50.
• With this century, Sanath Jayasuriya has now made three ODI tons against Pakistan equaling former West Indian skipper Richie Richardson's tally of three centuries against Pakistan. Now only Richardson's former team-mates Desmond Haynes and Brian Lara with four each have registered more ODI tons against Pakistan.
• It was also his seventh hundred in the capacity of a captain and his first of the like versus Pakistan.
• The unbroken stand of 156 between Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Siva was the 12th partnership of 150 or more for the second wicket by the Lankans and the fifth such instance against Pakistan. However the undefeated 213 by the same batsmen in 1998 at Lahore remains the best against Pakistan for this wicket.
• This was Sri Lanka's 168th ODI win overall and the 35th versus the Pakistanis.
• Jayasuriya won his 31st Man-of-the-Match award and extended his tally of the same against Pakistan to eleven.