Dhoni, moving to his beloved No 3, came up with yet another typical new-age innings, only throwing hints of the old dasher while staying calm and calculated for a 96-ball 94 that was helped by a generous dose of fielding errors and dropped chances.

Crowd trouble

Even at the halfway stage, the match looked a no-contest. Unfortunately, one of the talking points of the run-chase came when a fan threw a stone at Pragyan Ojha, leading to a 22-minute interruption.

The Indian team, according to sources, have lodged a complaint with the ICC match referee over repeated incidents of stone-throwing in the series even as Chris Broad independently initiated an inquiry.

He also directed Sri Lankan Cricket to upgrade security measures. When contacted, manager Prakash Dixit denied giving a written complaint but admitted the management has reached an understanding with the referee that if the incident recurs, the Indian team would walk away from the match.

But Lanka, despite a bright start by the top order, crumbled long before the floodlights went off at the Premadasa.