A crushing eight-wicket victory over India ensured that Sri Lanka, who were at risk of missing their own party, qualified for the final of the tri-series in Dambulla.

After a washed-out fixture against New Zealand on Thursday and Friday the hosts had to win this game to progress, and at times India must have wondered if there was some sort of conspiracy.

Although they did not bat well enough to lay the blame for defeat elsewhere, India were certainly put on the back foot by the impressionable Sri Lankan umpire Kumar Dharmasena, whose poor decisions early on proved crucial to India being bowled out for just 103.

While Dharmasena could be excused for raising the finger to send Virender Sehwag on his way, out lbw to Nuwan Kulasekara for 12 with Hawk-Eye predicting that the ball was clipping the outside of leg stump, more decisions would follow that left the umpire's legitimacy in question.

Dinesh Karthik and Rohit Sharma were both given out caught behind by Dharmasena despite the absence of any noise, giving onlookers the feeling that he was going more on the conviction of Kumar Sangakkara's appeal than anything else. It was no surprise, then, that towards the close of the innings Sangakkara was appealing enthusiastically for a caught behind when Pragyan Ojha played and missed the ball by at least an inch.

Nevertheless Sri Lanka deserved credit for the manner in which they capitalised on such good fortune, with their bowlers taking advantage of the bounce on offer in a greenish pitch. The Indian batsmen just never got any room to breathe as they were suffocated by the continuous pressure.

Thisara Perera picked up a maiden five-wicket haul, and both he and Nuwan Kulasekara were helped by Sangakkara's decision to stand up to the stumps. That inhibited the batsmen's strokeplay and led to the downfall of several.

Yuvraj Singh, back in the side after a bout of dengue fever, was the only Indian batsman to come to terms with it all. Yuvraj struck the ball well from the get-go and would doubtless have made more than his 38 from 64 deliveries had he not been forced to constantly rebuild the innings. Just when he was looking to showcase his big-hitting abilities, with India eight wickets down and the batting powerplay taken as a result, he was given out lbw to Lasith Malinga with the ball clearly missing off stump. This time the culprit was Asad Rauf.

That Sri Lanka would pick up the bonus point was not in doubt, but the manner in which Mahela Jayawardene (33 from 35 balls) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (35 from 23 balls) went about the chase suggested a team looking to make a statement.

The duo hammered their way to 63 without loss in eight overs before the dinner break was taken, but then fell to consecutive deliveries in Ishant Sharma's first over with Dilshan holing out to mid-off and Jayawardene pulling straight to midwicket.

Upul Tharanga (12) and Sangakkara (13) duly added the 25 runs still required for victory to see Sri lanka to their target in just 15.1 overs.

India now have two days to lick their wounds and prepare for a must-win clash against New Zealand on Wednesday, with the winner of that fixture advancing to the final.

Shot of the Day
There was an encouraging conviction about Yuvraj Singh as he made his way back from illness, and it was well illustrated by his second boundary of the day. Nuwan Kulsekara bowled ever so slightly full, and Yuvraj offered the full face of the bat as he drove it past mid-off for four.

Delivery of the Day
The pitch certainly leant itself to seam bowling after all the rain in Dambulla over the last week, and Thisara Perera showed how to use the surface to good effect when he had Ravindra Jadeja caught at gully in the 26th over. The ball nipped away off the seam, catching the edge as it squared the left-hander up.

Defining Moment of the Day
India's middle order continues to look vulnerable, so the first wicket was certainly key. Virender Sehwag was looking fairly comfortable until Nuwan Kulasekara swung one into him to trap him lbw, and 20 for none quickly became 26 for two. It's worth noting that the moment hinged on a 50-50 call from the umpire, with Kumar Dharmasena sending Sehwag on his way when Hawk-Eye had the ball clipping the outside of leg stump. It could have gone either way.

Tristan Holme