You’d think the best 50-over team in the world wouldn’t lose to a side that finished 9th in the last ODI World Cup. Well, it’s happened not once but twice in India vs Sri Lanka. With stalwarts like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the side and a plethora of experienced and talented batters, India failed to chase down 241 and 249 targets in consecutive matches. For Sri Lanka, nothing better could have come. They’ve broken their 27-year curse and finally beaten India in a bilateral ODI series.
Top order comes good for Sri Lanka
Batting first, Sri Lankan openers started incredibly. Given how 240 was defended in the last match, the hosts knew that going all guns blazing and losing wickets in the powerplay wasn’t the right way to go. An 89-run stand between Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando gave them the platform. A sudden collapse saw them get reduced from 171/1 to 199/6, and if it weren’t for Kusal Mendis, who scored 59 himself, Sri Lanka might not have gotten to 248. But similar to the last match, it was once again going to be a fighting total.
India’s spin woes continue
In the last match, it was Jeffrey Vandersay who bamboozled India, and today it was Dunith Wellalage’s turn to trouble the Men in Blue. The southpaw couldn’t continue his form with the bat but compensated for that by taking a 5-wicket haul in just 5.1 overs. Similar to the last two matches, India raced off the blocks once again. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill scored 35 runs in the first four overs.
Gill’s wicket in the fifth over started a domino effect, and every few overs, India kept losing players. The thing that would irk the batters and Gautam Gambhir would be the manner in which they departed. Apart from Axar Patel, the other batters didn’t get unplayable balls, but the wrong application and over-aggressiveness led to their downfall.
To lose all ten wickets in just 26.1 overs despite having the reputation of a team that plays spin well isn’t the best look. The Indian captain was even asked about the batter’s facing issues tackling the Sri Lanka spinner, but Rohit brushed it off, saying, “I don’t think it is a concern. But it is something we have to look at individually and as a game plan.”
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