Lanka go hammer & tons

Unbeaten centuries from Tharanga and Dilshan help hosts beat England by 10 wickets

Slouched near the bowling crease and struggling to lift his cramped body off the ground,Tillakaratane Dilshan threw his arms up in delight and with slight anguish as firecrackers that customarily welcome cricketing victories in the subcontinent went off in unison all around the R Premadasa Stadium.

And while the England players bent down to pass on their congratulations to one of their subjugators,his partner-in-crime Upul Tharanga stood at the other end,brandishing his bat to a roaring crowd before embracing team mate Chamara Silva,who had been running for him.

Not many minutes later,as he posed questions to Andrew Strauss during the post-match presentation ceremony,former England captain Michael Atherton must have experienced an uneasy sense of nostalgia. Just over 15 years earlier at Faisalabad,it was Athertons English brigade which had been brought to their knees after receiving a mauling at the hands of former Sri Lankan opener Sanath Jayasuriya the last time the two sides met in a World Cup quarterfinal.

Record stand

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In Colombo on Saturday,Strauss & Co had been dealt double the hammering,with both Dilshan and Tharanga scoring unbeaten centuries and leading their team to a comprehensive 10-wicket win. Though not as savage as Jayasuriyas whirlwind 88 back then,the two openers literally rubbished a hapless English attack and almost seemed to be competing amongst themselves to reach the three-figure mark en route to recording their second 200+ partnership of the tournament.

Lankas 231 for no loss was the highest successful chase in an ODI without losing a wicket.

Back in 1996,with India having already beaten Pakistan in another quarterfinal,Arjuna Ranatungas merry bunch had ensured that at least one Asian team would make it to the final by setting up a semifinal encounter against their neighbours before eventually going on to lift the Cup.

As a result of their resounding conquest of England,Kumar Sangakkara & Co have guaranteed that Asian supremacy will be on full show in the final week of the World Cup this time around,with all three major teams from the subcontinent booking their slots in the semi-finals; New Zealand being the odd one out following their dramatic win against South Africa.

Formidable bowling

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With three spinners of differing variety and each in possession of a plethora of individual variations,not to forget the enigmatic Lasith Malinga firing up with the new-ball,the Sri Lankans have now settled upon a formidable bowling attack,good enough to pose stringent tests to all comers. And with useful contributors with the ball in Dilshan and Angelo Mathews,the Kiwis will have to play out of their skins to get the better off the Lankan attack on the low-slow and sticky wicket at the Premadasa Stadium.

Despite Jonathan Trotts 86 and the Lankan fielders generosity in the outfield,the English never looked comfortable. While they did manage to stop the hosts from running roughshod through their batting,the runs came only in a trickle. Even Dilshan and Mathews ended up being economical while Ajantha Mendis went through his 10-over quota without being hit for a single boundary.

Not long after the match ended,coach Trevor Bayliss and bowling consultant Champaka Ramanayake made a quick recce to the pitch and had a brief chat with the groundsmen. Its very likely they would have requested for nothing more than cosmetic changes to the pitch for the Tuesdays semi-final.

And though they did display commendable gumption in overcoming the self-destructive South Africans at Dhaka,winning their first semi-final in their sixth attempt might end up being a hurdle too steep for New Zealand. An all-Asian final almost seems a certainty.