Sri Lanka mulls ways to handle Kohli

HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said Monday his team must find a way to deal with India batsman Virat Kohli, who scored a fourth century in five matches to help his team win the first One-Day International.

Kohli’s 106 runs Saturday helped India to a strong total of 314-6 in the match. Sri Lanka managed only 293-3, losing by 21 runs.

Jayawardene said that even though the India vice captain was not a major threat at the start of his career he has now become a formidable foe. Three of Kohli’s four centuries in the last five games came against Sri Lanka and included his career-best 183 against Pakistan.

“I think initially when he started his career we picked his wicket quickly,” Jayawardene said. “But like any good player he has come up with a game plan and he is executing that pretty well. Just the last few occasions he has got more confident against our bowling attack. It’s up to us now to come up with a game plan.”

The teams play the second one-day match Tuesday. — AP