LONDON, 15 September 2004 — Sri Lanka set up a Pool D decider against England in the ICC Champions Trophy with a four wicket win over Zimbabwe here at the Oval yesterday. Set 192 to win in 50 overs the Sri Lankans finished on 195-6 with 6.1 overs remaining but were made to work hard throughout by a spirited Zimbabwe side.

And in Elton Chigumbura the Zimbabweans look to have unearthed a star of the future as the 18-year-old, playing in only his eighth One-Day International, hit a half-century, took 3-37 and a catch.

It was another 18-year-old, Tinashe Payangara, who struck first having Avishka Gunawardana caught brilliantly at slip by Mark Vermeulen to leave Sri Lanka 4-1. Douglas Hondo ripped out the other opener Sanath Jayasuriya before Saman Jayantha unleashed a barrage of shots to make 36 from 41 balls as he tried to get Sri Lanka’s net run-rate above England’s. Their failure to finish the game in 27.5 overs means that if Friday’s game against England in Southampton is washed out England will advance to the quarterfinals.

Jayantha perished when he drove Chigumbura to extra cover and Sri Lanka were 54-3. Marvin Atapattu batted steadily for 43 before he became Chigumbura’s second victim and the favorites were starting to wobble by the time Mahela Jayawardena was trapped leg before by Chigumbura for 28 Sri Lanka were 162-6.

But Tillakaratne Dilshan showed a steady nerve to guide his side home with 25 not out and Upul Chandana made 20 not out. Nuwan Zoysa and Farveez Maharoof were the stars of the Sri Lankan bowling effort taking 3-19 and 3-38 respectively. Zoysa took his 100th One-Day International wicket when he had Panyangara caught at mid-off to add to the scalps of Stuart Matsikenyeri and Dion Ebrahim.

Maharoof, a former under-19s captain who has just turned 20, bowled with pace and hostility for his three wickets as Zimbabwe struggled at the start of their innings.

However some good lower order batting from Chigumbura (57) and Prosper Utseya (31) propelled Zimbabwe from 120-7 to their eventual 191. Zoysa reached 100 ODI wickets when he had Panyangara caught at mid-off by captain Marvin Attapatu, innings. The youngster took 2-6 in six balls at one stage getting rid of Mark Vermeulen for 17 and Zimbabwe captain Tatenda Taibu for a dogged 16.

The ball that got rid of Taibu was a beauty, rearing up at the diminutive keeper and kissing his glove as he attempted to get his hands out of the way. Sangakkara took an athletic catch behind the stumps to leave Zimbabwe 85-6.

But a partnership of 64 between Chigumbura and Utseya for the eighth wicket upped the tempo and took Zimbabwe comfortably past the 147 they scored in their first match against England.

Pakistan-Kenya Match Abandoned for the Day

Play in the ICC Champions Trophy Pool C match between Kenya and Pakistan at Edgbaston here yesterday was abandoned for the day because of rain without a ball being bowled. Rain on Monday was followed by a further downpour overnight and more showers yesterday. The umpires abandoned play for the day 45 minutes before the scheduled start.

However, all Champions Trophy matches come equipped with a reserve day and play is now due to start today. The game will still be a 50 overs per side contest and Duckworth Lewis will only come into operation if there is a further stoppage for bad weather.

This match was Pakistan’s first of the tournament. Kenya went down to a 98-run defeat against India at the Rose Bowl on Saturday.

Bowlers Will Blast Us Through, Says Ponting

Australian captain Ricky Ponting is backing his four pace bowlers to blast a way through to the ICC Champions Trophy final. Ponting went into the opening group match with the quartet of Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee, Michael Kasprowicz and Jason Gillespie and was rewarded with the nine-wicket demolition of the United States.

But their inclusion meant no room for all-rounder Shane Watson or spinner Brad Hogg. Ponting said both of those could be in action against New Zealand on Thursday at Edgbaston in Australia’s next match.

“There is an option to play a spinner against New Zealand, just as there was against the United States. “Our four seamers are bowling really well at the moment but that is not to say they will all be in the team to take on New Zealand. We went in against the United States with four quicks and it worked well for us.

Ponting believes his whole squad including spinner Hogg will have a part to play in the group matches along what he hopes will be the path to the final the Brit Oval next week.

Leipus Upbeat About Tendulkar Injury

India physiotherapist Andrew Leipus was cautiously optimistic about Sachin Tendulkar’s chances of being fit for next month’s home Test series against Australia, saying he expected the injured star batsman to pick up a bat “in the next 10 days or so”.

A “tennis elbow” problem has already forced Tendulkar to miss three successive One-Day events, starting with last month’s Dutch triangular and including the ongoing Champions Trophy in England.

He now has only a few weeks to get fit for the first of four Tests against Australia, starting at Bangalore on Oct. 6.