India's win two successive matches against Sri Lanka in their homes.
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| Raina was involved in a 54-run stand with captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for fifth wicket. |
India tour of Srilanka 2008, ODI Series third One-dayIndia Beat Sri Lanka By 33 Runs In Third One DayLast Update : 24-Aug-2008 22:00:00 IST
Colombo: Once again superb bowling by Zaheer Khan (3 for 23) and Munaf Patel (3 for 42). Good supports by other bowlers and Sri Lanka all out on 204 runs and India won third ODI match by 33 runs. Good efforts by Sri Lankan skipper 94 runs but this is not enough.
In afternoon Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss again and call Sri Lanka for bowl. One change each in this match. India replaced Gautam Gambhir with Irfan Pathan and Sri Lanka replace Chaminda Vass with Dilhara Farnado.
Dhoni and Suresh Raina hit half-centuries to help India reach a competitive 237-9. Skipper MS Dhoni made a brisk 76 and Raina a solid 53 under pressure to rally their team after four wickets falls on just 91 runs. The pair added 54 for the fifth wicket.
The Indian captain was instrumental in stepping up the run-rate with his bold hitting in the closing 10 overs, which yielded 70 runs. He hit eight fours in his 23rd half-century. He was also added 67-run stand for the sixth wicket with Rohit Sharma, who struck a run-a-ball 32.
Unorthodox spinner Ajantha Mendis finished with 3-56, including the wickets of Harbhajan Singh and Dhoni off successive balls in his last over.
Brief Score: India 237 (Dhoni 76, Raina 53, Mendis 3-56) beat Sri Lanka 204 (Jayawardene 94, Zaheer 3-23, Munaf 3-42) by 33 runs
