A-one grade for Indians

And in the second, Sri Lanka lost their first wicket with the score at 83 (10.1 overs) after Upal Tharanga had smashed 61 off 42 deliveries. The score after five overs, in fact, was a whopping 55 with Tharanga India’s old nemesis Sanath Jayasuriya. Both are left-handed openers with a penchant for big sixes on the leg side.

But the difference between the two sides, once again, was three Indians: Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina and Dinesh Karthik. Dhawan continued with his good form, needing just 136 balls for his 146 (his third ton of the tournament), Raina scored a patient 54, and then it was mayhem as Karthik served another reminder to the national senior selectors with a 39-ball 70, following which he performed superbly with the wicketkeeping gloves.

If these three were stars with the bat, Praveen Gupta starred with the ball, picking three for 25 off eight overs.

After the match, Dhawan called the tournament ‘‘lucky’’ for him. ‘‘I want to continue playing like this, because this is superb form. We are confident but the basic aim would be to stay at the wicket through the 50 overs. Our batting is strong, so if we can do that, we should do well.’’ There is still one area of concern, though, for the Indians. The same set of people have starred for India in all matches so far. But team coach Robin Singh didn’t appear too perturbed with that when he spoke to newspersons afterwards: ‘‘I know it’s been like that, but we work to a plan. And in ODIs, some people always put their hands up. I am not bothered with who is doing the job as long as the job gets done.’’

Next up for India is England — if, as expected, Pakistan win tomorrow’s match. That will pit Pakistan against the West Indies, and form must favour a subcontinental final.

On a Friday, at a packed Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka, that match will be more than just an India-Pakistan under-19 encounter. More so with the senior-level series starting a week later.

Robin Singh, though, is unfazed. ‘‘We played Pakistan recently and did well against them. I think it all depends on how we play, and there isn’t anything to be worried about, though we must guard against complacency’’, the Indian coach said.

If it gets to that, complacency will be the last thing on anyone’s mind.

BRIEF SCORES:

316-5 (S Dhawan 146, D Karthik 70 no, S Raina 54; Manoj Chanaka 3/63) vs SRI LANKA: 260-10 off 46 overs (U Tharanga 61, H Vithana 37; P Gupta 3/25, A Rayudu 2/47).