JOHANNESBURG, Feb 21: Sri Lankan paceman Chaminda Vaas has joined Lance Klusener of South Africa at the top of the man of the tournament standings at the World Cup.

Vaas’s hat trick with the first three balls of the match against Bangladesh earned him the man of the match award while his role in the record-breaking defeat of Canada, where Lanka bowled out their opponents for just 36, provided him with two further points towards the man of the tournament title, taking him level with all-rounder Klusener on five points.

Vaas also leads the bowling averages with nine wickets at an average of 6.88.

The Man-of-the-Tournament is based on the cumulative man of the match results awarded by the match referee who selects the top three players in each game.

Current standings:

Lance Klusener (South Africa) 5pts, Chaminda Vaas (Sri Lanka) 5, Wasim Akram (Pakistan) 4, Tim de Leede (Netherlands) 4, Herschelle Gibbs (South Africa) 4, Jason Gillespie (Australia) 4, Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka) 4, Sachin Tendulkar (India) 4, Andre Adams (New Zealand) 3, James Anderson (England) 3, Ian Billcliff (Canada) 3, Jan Berry Burger (Namibia) 3, Austin Codrington (Canada) 3, Stephen Fleming (New Zealand) 3, Brian Lara (West Indies) 3, Damien Martyn (Australia) 3, Prabath Nissanka (Sri Lanka) 3, Thomas Odoyo (Kenya) 3, Andrew Symonds (Australia) 3, Craig Wishart (Zimbabwe) 3.—AFP