Kumar Sangakkara powers Sri Lanka to 215

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NAGPUR: Sri Lankan Captain Kumar Sangakkara hits a shot during the first Twenty20 match between India and Sri Lanka here Wednesday. — AFP Photo

NAGPUR, Dec 9 (Cricinfo): Kumar Sangakkara hit his highest Twenty20 score, a classy 37-ball 78, as Sri Lanka charged to 215 in the first Twenty/Twenty game in Nagpur. Chamara Kapugedera pitched in with a lovely cameo and India helped Sri Lanka's cause by dropping five regulation chances, including two off the openers.
Sangakkara, though, stole the show. There was just one dot ball till he reached his fifty - from just 21 deliveries, the quickest for Sri Lanka - but it wasn't a conventional Twenty20 knock with the batsman going hell for leather. There weren't many ugly shots and anything unconventional was designed with the field in mind.
His innings was sparked off in the ninth over by the spin of Ojha. He chipped the first delivery he faced from Ojha over mid-on, swept the next to the boundary and lifted the third for a six over long-on. There were more classy strikes, the highlight being a chipped-shot over mid-on to a length delivery from the debutant Ashok Dinda. He also seemed to pre-determine perfectly today: When he shuffled to the off-side, the ball was invariably so full that it was easily lapped around the corner; when he moved outside leg, he flat-batted short-of-length deliveries over mid-on or mid-off and it all looked easy.
It wasn't a solo show from him, though. He found support from someone or other at various points of the innings.
Sri Lanka 215 for 5 (Sangakkara 78*, Kapugedara 47) v India 152/7 .