India sparked wild celebrations among their billion supporters after beating Sri Lanka by six wickets in the World Cup final at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
After Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and opted to bat first, Mahela Jayawardene smashed 103 not out off just 88 balls and featured in half-century stands with Sangakkara (48), Thilan Samaraweera (21) and Nuwan Kulasekara (32) to take Sri Lanka to 274-6.
Yuvraj Singh (2-49) was once again the pick of the Indian bowlers, while Zaheer Khan also grabbed a couple of wickets.
India’s chase got off to a wobbly start but the 109-run partnership between Gautam Gambhir (97) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (91 not out) hauled them back on track and they overwhelmed the target in the 49th over.
For Sri Lanka, Lasith Malinga (2-42) shone with the ball, cheaply removing Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar but his bowling colleagues could not drive home the advantage.
India won their second World Cup title after a wait of 28 years. – Reuters
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