Gambhir finished the winning game for the first time25 Dec, 2009, Calicut, India

Gambhir plays the Sri Lankan bowlers really well and so do the other Indian batsman that is explained from India’s three successive series wins over the islanders in the last 15 months or so. Thursday’s knock, besides being his highest one-day score, was also probably his best too, considering Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh weren’t in the team and Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag got out cheaply.

Chasing a big score of 316, Gambhir scored an unbeaten 150 to ensure India won the fourth ODI and seal the series. The Delhi southpaw’s 137-ball knock consisted of 14 hits to fence and was his seventh ODI hundred, second this year after that wonderful 150 at the Premadasa stadium in February. Out of 3010 ODI runs, nearly a third 913 have come against the islanders and more importantly, more than half 457 of those this year.

Experts felt that coming close on the heels of being awarded the ICC Test Player of the Year this ton marked his coming of age as an ODI batsman, a match-winner. Gambhir has one more opportunity in the fifth ODI to continue his golden run against Sri Lanka.