Skipper Dasun Shanaka smashed an unbeaten 56 off 22 balls to fire Sri Lanka to 206-6 against India in the second Twenty20 international on Thursday.
Shanaka's onslaught included two fours and six sixes as Sri Lanka hammered 77 runs in the final five overs after being invited to bat first in Pune.
Kusal Mendis, who hit 52 off 31 balls, put on an 80-run opening stand with Pathum Nissanka, who made 33, to lay the foundations for the challenging total.
But Shanaka raised his fifty in 20 deliveries with a six off previous match hero Shivam Mavi in a 20-run final over as he put on an unbeaten 68-run stand with Chamika Karunaratne.
Tearaway quick Umran Malik took three wickets but gave away 48 runs from his four overs.
Fellow quick Arshdeep Singh was guilty of bowling five of the seven no balls in the innings.
Mendis reached his fifty off 27 deliveries with a cracking six off Umran, who bowled the fastest ball of 155 kmph (96.3 mph) by an Indian bowler in the previous match.
Yuzvendra Chahal broke through to get Mendis trapped lbw and Sri Lanka lost three more wickets including two to Axar.
Charith Asalanka, a left-hand batsman, hit back with two successive sixes off Chahal and then carted Umran for another hit over the fence.
But the quick bowler soon had his revenge as he got Asalanka caught at deep mid-wicket for 37 and bowled Wanindu Hasaranga on the next ball for a duck.
Shanaka then made the innings his own as Sri Lanka look to keep the three-series alive after they lost the opener on Tuesday.