<P>Kapugedera steers Sri Lanka to six wicket win

<P>CRICKET: Chamara Kapugedera and Thilan Samaraweera steered Sri Lanka to a 6 wicket win to take a 2\0 win in their five match limited overs cricket series at the Rangiri Dambulu International Cricket Stadium yesterday.

<P> The Sri Lankans chasing a victory target of 169 runs to win achieved their objective with 6 wickets in hand in 43.4 overs as Kapugedera was unbeaten 67 facing 97 balls with eight fours and a six and Samaraweera unbeaten 38 facing 69 deliveries with two boundaries.

<P> Pakistan were sent into bat were restricted for 168. Only skipper Younus Khan (23) and Aameer Khan (24). Left arm paceman Thilan Thushara had the best figures of 3 for 33 while Muralidharan took 2 for 41.

<P>Chamara Kapugedera for his fine batting performance was declared as the Man of the Match. 

<P>Thilan Thushara and Muttiah Muralitharan shared five wickets as Sri Lanka bowled out Pakistan for 168 runs in the second one-day international at Dambulla yesterday.

<P>Pakistan, sent in to bat by Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara in overcast conditions, never recovered after losing a wicket off the first ball of the match and were bundled out in 47 overs. 

<P>The 26 extras sent down by the Sri Lankan bowlers, including 18 wides, were the highest contributor in Pakistan's dismal batting at the Rangiri International Stadium.

<P>The tourists were reduced to 128-9 before the last pair of Mohammad Aamer (24) and Saeed Ajmal (16) gave the top order a batting lesson by adding 40 runs.

<P>Pakistan captain Younus Khan, who made 23, was the only other batsman to pass 20 as left-arm seamer Thushara finished with 3-33 and off-spinner Muralitharan claimed 2-41.

<P>Sri Lanka need less than four runs an over to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series after winning Thursday's opening match at the same venue by 36 runs.

<P>Pakistan's gamble to play two 19-year-olds, Nasir Jamshed and Umar Akmal, in place of senior batsmen Mohammad Yousuf and Misbah-ul Haq did not pay off.

<P>Opener Jamshed was dismissed off the first ball of the innings when he chased a wide ball from Nuwan Kulasekera into the safe hands of Mahela Jayawardene at second slip. Debutant Umar, younger brother of the team's wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal, made a promising 18 during a fourth-wicket stand of 32 with Younus when he was caught behind off Angelo Mathews.

<P>But even the experienced batsmen failed to negotiate the spot-on Sri Lankan attack.

<P>Former captain Shoaib Malik was trapped leg-before by Thushara before he had scored and Shahid Afridi threw away his wicket with a wild slog off Muralitharan that was skied to deep mid-wicket.

<P>Pakistan were struggling at 87-7 before Abdul Razzaq (17) and Umar Gul (14) put on 38 for the eighth wicket to lift the total past the 100-run mark.