Sri Lanka beat India by 29 runs in the first T20I to take a 1-0 lead at Nagpur. The second game of the series will be held in Mohali on Saturday. 
India’s MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to field first. Sri Lanka began their innings rather slowly, despite the presence of two of their best batsmen in Sanath Jayasuriya and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Ashish Nehra and Ishant Sharma kept a tight leash on the openers in the first four overs, with only 17 coming off them. However, Jayasuriya was given a couple of lives, one when Yuvraj Singh dropped a sitter at cover and then by Ishant Sharma off his own bowling! 
Jayasuriya then went after Nehra in the fifth over of the game, drilling five boundaries in that over, as the Lankans ended the Powerplay on 43/0.
If one would have thought that the combination of Jayasuriya’s dismissal – to new comer Ashok Dinda – and the ending of Powerplay overs would bring the run-rate down, they were on for a surprise.
Kumar Sangakkara took off from where he had left off in Mumbai and smashed the Indian bowling all around the park. He started with a couple of fours in the Dinda over, and then gorged into Pragyan Ojha’s first over by hitting a couple of boundaries and a six. image”MS Dhoni:”When will we get into T20I groove?”>
At the other end, Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene departed in quick succession, but Sangakkara soon brought up his fifty off only 21 balls; a knock that included six boundaries and a couple of sixes – including one that got him to the half century.
Chamara Kapugedera did not let loose at the other end either and looked good for his half century as well. He scored 47 off only 21 balls, before falling to Nehra, whose the last two overs cost him nine boundaries! Angelo Mathews then rounded off the innings with a couple of sixes, to end the Sri Lankans on 215/5 in the 20 overs.
In reply, India began well through Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, with the right-handed batsman taking early toll of the quick bowlers. Sehwag did get out after the customary quickfire start he is so used to providing in the shorter format of the game, but Gambhir carried on batting in a manner that said that he had lost little of his form while being away from the game. His cover drives bisected well-set off side fields, and India got off to 88/1 in seven overs.
At this stage, it did look like the Indians had more than just an even chance to win the game, before Angelo Mathews provided the side a breakthrough. Gambhir went down on his knees to play the bowler over the fine-leg but only managed to play all over the ball and was bowled for a 26-ball 55.
This was just the breakthrough that the Lankans needed as the rest of the Indians did hold much resistance. Most of the top-order batsmen went for their shots and were caught in the deep, whereas Rohit Sharma was run-out by Lasith Malinga while going for a difficult-looking second run.
In the end, Mathews and Jayasuriya, both scalped two wickets to restrict the Indians to 186/9 in the twenty overs. Sangakkara won the man of the match for his captain’s effort, while Dhoni was left ruing the missed opportunity.