Half-centuries from Shoaib Malik and Misbah-ul-Haq were not enough to save Pakistan from a 64-run defeat by Sri Lanka in the Super Four phase of the Asia Cup on Sunday.
A century from opener Kumar Sangakkara helped the Sri Lankans post 7-302, then Pakistan faltered in its reply, reaching 9-238 in its 50 overs.
Sangakkara's ton helped Sri Lanka recover from a shaky start with Chamara Kapugedera (43) and Chamara Silva (46) also chipping in with useful knocks.
Pakistan fast bowler Sohail Tanvir had threatened to steal the show, claiming his first one-day five-wicket haul.
Tanvir first removed the crucial wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya in the fifth over by trapping him lbw for eight.
Mahela Jayawardene fared better and added a patient 29 but mistimed a cut off Tanvir and was caught by Misbah at point.
Kapugedera steadied the ship but fell seven runs short of his half-century to give Mansoor Amjad his first one-day international wicket.
Amjad pitched the ball outside off stump and Kapugedera, attempting to slog-sweep against the turn, top-edged high in the air towards deep midwicket where Younis Khan pouched the catch.
While the wickets fell around him, Sangakkara racked up the runs, hitting 10 fours on his way to 112 before being bowled to become Tanvir's third victim.
Silva added a useful 46 before he edged Tanvir to Sarfraz Ahmed and Thilan Thushara chipped in with a quickfire 28, eventually falling to the same bowler.
Tillakaratne Dilshan (eight) was bowled by Wahab Riaz in the final over.
Pakistan could not have made a worse start to its reply, losing Salman Butt with the first ball of the innings.
Chaminda Vaas delivered the killer blow, pitching one up which nipped back and crashed on to the stumps via a slight inside edge.
A visibly shell-shocked Pakistan struggled to just three runs from the first three overs, but Younis injected some spark by smashing Nuwan Kulasekara for consecutive fours.
It was slow progress, though, and it was not until the 12th over that the hosts reached 50 runs, Malik dispatching Thushara straight down the ground for four.
Sri Lanka made an important breakthrough when Younis tried to pull a slower Kulasekara delivery and lobbed up to Muttiah Muralitharan at midwicket, three runs short of a half-century.
Mohammad Yousuf then followed for 19 when Ajantha Mendis trapped him lbw.
Malik suffered no such nerves, however, and brought up his 50 with a single off Mendis, but his departure in the 32nd over left Pakistan stuttering on 4-133.
He was stumped by Sangakkara for 52 off the bowling of Mendis, and replacement Shahid Afridi followed him four balls later for a duck after skying Jayasuriya to long on.
The collapse continued with Mendis claiming his third wicket by trapping Amjad lbw for five, although Misbah was at least holding his own at the other end of the crease, bringing up his half-century in the 42nd over.
Misbah eventually reached 76 before he was bowled by Mendis, who claimed his fourth scalp of the innings, while Sarfraz quickly followed his team-mate back to the dressing room for 19, also bowled by a slower delivery from Kulasekara.
Iftikhar Anjum managed just seven before Muralitharan struck with Kulasekara taking the catch at short fine leg, and he was the last man to fall as Pakistan ran out of overs.
Sri Lanka innings
Jayasuriya lbw b Sohail Tanvir 8 (19)
Sangakkara b Sohail Tanvir 112 (202)
Jayawardene c Misbah-ul-Haq b Sohail Tanvir 29 (45)
Kapugedera c Younis Khan b Mansoor Amjad 43 (65)
Silva c Sarfraz Ahmed b Sohail Tanvir 46 (54)
Mirando c Wahab Riaz b Sohail Tanvir 28 (30)
Dilshan b Wahab Riaz 8 (16)
Vaas not out 4 (8)
Kulasekara not out 1 (2)
Extras (lb 10, w 11, nb 2) 23
Total 302 (7 wickets; 50 overs)
Did not bat: Mendis, Muralitharan
FoW: 1-22 (Jayasuriya, 4.1 ov), 2-62 (Jayawardene, 13.3 ov), 3-150 (Kapugedera, 28.4 ov), 4-243 (Silva, 42.3 ov), 5-271 (Sangakkara, 46.6 ov), 6-288 (Mirando, 48.4 ov), 7-298 (Dilshan, 49.3 ov)
Bowling
Tanvir 10-1-48-5 (2nb, 6w)
Riaz 9-0-52-1 (2w)
Anjum 8-0-60-0
Afridi 10-0-54-0 (1w)
Malik 5-0-34-0
Amjad 8-1-44-1
Pakistan innings
Butt b Vaas 0 (1)
Malik st Sangakkara b Mendis 52 (126)
Khan c Muralitharan b Kulasekara 47 (80)
Yousuf lbw b Mendis 19 (34)
Ul-Haq b Mendis 76 (80)
Afridi c sub (J Mubarak) b Jayasuriya 0 (5)
Amjad lbw b Mendis 5 (11)
Ahmed b Kulasekara 19 (48)
Tanvir not out 9 (16)
Anjum c Kulasekara b Muralitharan 7 (6)
Riaz not out 1 (4)
Extras (lb 1, w 2) 3
Total 238 (9 wickets; 50 overs)
FoW: 1-0 (Salman Butt, 0.1 ov), 2-72 (Younis Khan, 16.5 ov), 3-108 (Mohammad Yousuf, 25.6 ov), 4-133 (Shoaib Malik, 31.6 ov), 5-135 (Shahid Afridi, 32.3 ov), 6-153 (Mansoor Amjad, 35.5 ov), 7-219 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 46.3 ov), 8-223 (Sarfraz Ahmed, 47.2 ov), 9-236 (Iftikhar Anjum, 48.4 ov)
Bowling
Vaas 10-1-44-1
Kulasekara 9-1-35-2
Mirando 7-0-44-0
Muralitharan 10-0-46-1
Mendis 10-0-47-4
Jayasuriya 4-0-21-1 (1w)
A century from opener Kumar Sangakkara helped the Sri Lankans post 7-302, then Pakistan faltered in its reply, reaching 9-238 in its 50 overs.
Sangakkara's ton helped Sri Lanka recover from a shaky start with Chamara Kapugedera (43) and Chamara Silva (46) also chipping in with useful knocks.
Pakistan fast bowler Sohail Tanvir had threatened to steal the show, claiming his first one-day five-wicket haul.
Tanvir first removed the crucial wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya in the fifth over by trapping him lbw for eight.
Mahela Jayawardene fared better and added a patient 29 but mistimed a cut off Tanvir and was caught by Misbah at point.
Kapugedera steadied the ship but fell seven runs short of his half-century to give Mansoor Amjad his first one-day international wicket.
Amjad pitched the ball outside off stump and Kapugedera, attempting to slog-sweep against the turn, top-edged high in the air towards deep midwicket where Younis Khan pouched the catch.
While the wickets fell around him, Sangakkara racked up the runs, hitting 10 fours on his way to 112 before being bowled to become Tanvir's third victim.
Silva added a useful 46 before he edged Tanvir to Sarfraz Ahmed and Thilan Thushara chipped in with a quickfire 28, eventually falling to the same bowler.
Tillakaratne Dilshan (eight) was bowled by Wahab Riaz in the final over.
Pakistan could not have made a worse start to its reply, losing Salman Butt with the first ball of the innings.
Chaminda Vaas delivered the killer blow, pitching one up which nipped back and crashed on to the stumps via a slight inside edge.
A visibly shell-shocked Pakistan struggled to just three runs from the first three overs, but Younis injected some spark by smashing Nuwan Kulasekara for consecutive fours.
It was slow progress, though, and it was not until the 12th over that the hosts reached 50 runs, Malik dispatching Thushara straight down the ground for four.
Sri Lanka made an important breakthrough when Younis tried to pull a slower Kulasekara delivery and lobbed up to Muttiah Muralitharan at midwicket, three runs short of a half-century.
Mohammad Yousuf then followed for 19 when Ajantha Mendis trapped him lbw.
Malik suffered no such nerves, however, and brought up his 50 with a single off Mendis, but his departure in the 32nd over left Pakistan stuttering on 4-133.
He was stumped by Sangakkara for 52 off the bowling of Mendis, and replacement Shahid Afridi followed him four balls later for a duck after skying Jayasuriya to long on.
The collapse continued with Mendis claiming his third wicket by trapping Amjad lbw for five, although Misbah was at least holding his own at the other end of the crease, bringing up his half-century in the 42nd over.
Misbah eventually reached 76 before he was bowled by Mendis, who claimed his fourth scalp of the innings, while Sarfraz quickly followed his team-mate back to the dressing room for 19, also bowled by a slower delivery from Kulasekara.
Iftikhar Anjum managed just seven before Muralitharan struck with Kulasekara taking the catch at short fine leg, and he was the last man to fall as Pakistan ran out of overs.
Sri Lanka innings
Jayasuriya lbw b Sohail Tanvir 8 (19)
Sangakkara b Sohail Tanvir 112 (202)
Jayawardene c Misbah-ul-Haq b Sohail Tanvir 29 (45)
Kapugedera c Younis Khan b Mansoor Amjad 43 (65)
Silva c Sarfraz Ahmed b Sohail Tanvir 46 (54)
Mirando c Wahab Riaz b Sohail Tanvir 28 (30)
Dilshan b Wahab Riaz 8 (16)
Vaas not out 4 (8)
Kulasekara not out 1 (2)
Extras (lb 10, w 11, nb 2) 23
Total 302 (7 wickets; 50 overs)
Did not bat: Mendis, Muralitharan
FoW: 1-22 (Jayasuriya, 4.1 ov), 2-62 (Jayawardene, 13.3 ov), 3-150 (Kapugedera, 28.4 ov), 4-243 (Silva, 42.3 ov), 5-271 (Sangakkara, 46.6 ov), 6-288 (Mirando, 48.4 ov), 7-298 (Dilshan, 49.3 ov)
Bowling
Tanvir 10-1-48-5 (2nb, 6w)
Riaz 9-0-52-1 (2w)
Anjum 8-0-60-0
Afridi 10-0-54-0 (1w)
Malik 5-0-34-0
Amjad 8-1-44-1
Pakistan innings
Butt b Vaas 0 (1)
Malik st Sangakkara b Mendis 52 (126)
Khan c Muralitharan b Kulasekara 47 (80)
Yousuf lbw b Mendis 19 (34)
Ul-Haq b Mendis 76 (80)
Afridi c sub (J Mubarak) b Jayasuriya 0 (5)
Amjad lbw b Mendis 5 (11)
Ahmed b Kulasekara 19 (48)
Tanvir not out 9 (16)
Anjum c Kulasekara b Muralitharan 7 (6)
Riaz not out 1 (4)
Extras (lb 1, w 2) 3
Total 238 (9 wickets; 50 overs)
FoW: 1-0 (Salman Butt, 0.1 ov), 2-72 (Younis Khan, 16.5 ov), 3-108 (Mohammad Yousuf, 25.6 ov), 4-133 (Shoaib Malik, 31.6 ov), 5-135 (Shahid Afridi, 32.3 ov), 6-153 (Mansoor Amjad, 35.5 ov), 7-219 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 46.3 ov), 8-223 (Sarfraz Ahmed, 47.2 ov), 9-236 (Iftikhar Anjum, 48.4 ov)
Bowling
Vaas 10-1-44-1
Kulasekara 9-1-35-2
Mirando 7-0-44-0
Muralitharan 10-0-46-1
Mendis 10-0-47-4
Jayasuriya 4-0-21-1 (1w)
