September 28, 2002	Saturday	Rajab 20, 1423

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COLOMBO, Sept 27: Sri Lanka powered their way into the final of the ICC Champions Trophy with a crushing seven-wicket win over world champions Australia Friday.

Superior in every area, Sri Lanka bowled out Ricky Ponting’s side for 162, their lowest ever score batting first in meetings between the two, and then knocked off the runs with 10 overs left.

It was a humiliating defeat for Australia in the first meeting between the teams in three years and just six months before they defend the World Cup in southern Africa.

For Sri Lanka, the win meant a place in Sunday’s final against India, both those sides vying to win the title for the first time.

The match turned in more ways than one on Sri Lanka’s reliance on spin bowling, with five slow bowlers used by the home side, and Australia’s inability to cope with it on a surface that offered significant turn but was by no means unplayable.

Australia made a flying start after Ponting won the toss with Adam Gilchrist (31) and Matthew Hayden (13) rattling up 49 inside seven overs against Sri Lanka’s only two seam bowlers, Chaminda Vaas and Pulasthi Gunaratne.

In the face of that onslaught, Sanath Jayasuriya threw the ball to part-time spinner Aravinda de Silva and he immediately snared Hayden, bowled charging down the pitch.

In the next over Gilchrist slogged Kumar Dharmasena’s off-spin up in the air, Atapattu accepting the catch at extra-cover and from then on Australia lost their way completely.

De Silva bowled his ten overs straight through to take one for 16 in an impressive display but Australia also did little to help themselves.

Darren Lehmann (0) and Damien Martyn (28) were both run out, the victims of direct hits from Jayasuriya and Russel Arnold as the Sri Lankan players responded to the encouragement of a noisy full house.

With Ponting (3) lbw to Vaas after a referral to the third umpire and Bevan (12) caught at mid-wicket sweeping, Australia’s top six were blown away for only 97, two wickets going down in successive overs three times.

It took some dour defence from Warne (36) and Brett Lee (18) to see Australia to relative respectability as the pair added 46 for the eighth wicket. But Australia were still bowled out with eight balls left, Muttiah Muralitharan mopping up the tail and finish with three for 26.

If they were to have any chance Ponting’s men needed early wickets but, although Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie went past the outside edges of openers Atapattu and Jayasuriya on more than one occasion, the breakthrough would not come.

Both players also took full toll of a wayward Brett Lee when he was introduced, the fast bowler conceding 23 runs in three overs.

Jayasuriya made 42 from 51 balls before Australia’s main threat, Warne, bowled him with a straight top-spinner.

Sri Lanka were content to simply survive against Warne, who took one for 25 from 10 overs, knowing he was Australia’s only front-line spinner. They picked off the runs at the other end with Sangakkara (48) playing a series of attractive pulls, cuts and drives.

When Hayden dropped Atapattu at slip off successive Warne deliveries it seemed to confirm it was not Australia’s night and although Sangakkara fell to McGrath with 21 still required the destiny of the match had long since been settled.

Atapattu was happy to play around the strokeplayers at the other end, his 50 coming off in 118 balls with his fifth four off Lee before falling lbw to McGrath for 51 with only three required.

Australia will remain in Colombo ahead of the first match of their Test series against Pakistan that begins on Oct 3.