A brilliant unbeaten ton from Mahela Jayawardene (103*) helped Sri Lanka to a score of 274-6 in 50 overs, setting India a target of 275 in the final of the Cricket World Cup 2011 at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

India's chase suffered a major blow as their burstful-opener Virender Sehwag was given lbw in the Malinga's second delivery. Malinga then invited Tendulkar to drive with an outswinger, getting a flick off his bat on the way to Sangakkara's safe hands. It left India with two down with 31 on the board, meaning they need a partnership from Gautham Gambhir and Virat Kohli if they are to save this match.

Choosing to bat, Sri Lanka were restrained by a spirited Indian fielding display. However, skipper Dhoni's decision to pick Sreesanth over Ashwin proved to be costly as the pacer went for figures of 0-52 in eight overs. After the early fall of Tharanga (2) and then Dilshan (33), skipper Sangakkara and Jayawardene built a 62 run partnership before the skipper was caught behind off Yuvraj Singh on 48.

Samaraweera had a short spell on the crease, making 21 before being given lbw on review off Yuvraj Singh. Kapugedera (1) soon followed suit, lifting Zaheer Khan to mid-on for an easy catch for Kohli. At that point, Sri Lanka were 182-5 with 10 overs remaining. However, with tha battling powerplay to go, and Jayawardene on the crease, Lanka went on to make 274, with Kulasekara (32) run out with the score at 248. Thisara Perera (22) came on to assist Jayawardene in the final surge , taking the score to a defendable total of 274.

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