Sri Lanka's seamers, led by Suranga Lakmal, used swinging and seaming conditions in Dharamsala to rip through a tentative India batting line-up for 112, setting up a seven-wicket rout.
When Lakmal finished with figures of 10-4-13-4 to leave India at 29 for 7, it didn't look like the innings would last 38.2 overs, as per a espncricinfo report.
But MS Dhoni shepherded the tail with a calculated 65 to prevent India from the ignominy of falling to the lowest ODI total.
Sri Lanka's opening bowlers, Lakmal and Angelo Mathews, repeatedly hit the perfect length: just fuller than good.
On a surface with sufficient but not exaggerated lateral movement the length proved to be India’s bane.
The day was an inauspicious start to Rohit Sharma's India captaincy as the home team was shot out for 112 in 38.2 overs.
Suranga Lakmal (4/13), Nuwan Pradeep (2/37) and Angelo Mathews (1/8) stifled the hosts with a fine display of seam and swing bowling in ideal conditions as Thisara Perera won a crucial toss, says a report on Times of India.
Put into bat, Indian batsmen looked clueless as Lakmal, Pradeep and Mathews with half of the Indian batting line-up was gone for just 16 runs and at one stage.
Left tottering at 29 for seven, Dhoni and Kuldeep Yadav (19) stitched 41 runs in 47 balls for the eighth wicket which went a long way in India crossing 100-run mark.
In reply, the islanders breezed past India’s score in 20.4 0vers for the loss of 3 wickets.
