Sachin Tendulkar hit 112 not out off just 105 balls to lead India to a comfortable eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, on Sunday.
India, chasing a modest Sri Lankan total of 202 for 9, won with 16.5 overs to spare thanks largely to an opening stand of 161 between Tendulkar and Manoj Prabhakar, who scored 60 from 81 balls, including seven fours, before driving a catch to Hashan Tillakaratne at square leg.
Although India lost Navjot Sidhu cheaply, Tendulkar made sure of victory. Driving and pulling with conviction, Tendulkar hit 15 fours and a six and, when he had reached 93, became the eighth Indian to score 3,000 runs in one-day internationals.
Sri Lanka had struggled earlier against the accurate Indian attack, Venkatesh Prasad taking 3 for 37. Tillakaratne (48) and Kumar Dharmasena (30) lent some respectability to their score, putting on 71 for the seventh wicket after Sri Lanka had slumped to 113 for 6.
The win almost certainly assured India's passage to a final against Pakistan, who play Sri Lanka in the last qualifying match. Only a big win by Sri Lanka would earn them a place in the final of the tournament which also included Bangladesh, beaten in all three of their matches. Pakistan top the league with a run rate of 5.22, followed by India (4.85) and Sri Lanka (4.35).
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