Arish Mujawar, Pune
In a rain-affected match on Sunday at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Team India defeated the hosts Sri Lanka by 7 wickets (DLS Method). With one game left, India defeated Sri Lanka for the second time in two days to win the three-match Twenty20 International series in Sri Lanka.
Rain stopped play after the first innings, forcing match officials to reduce 12 overs from the second innings and giving the Indian team a revised target of 78 in 8 overs. However, Sri Lanka was only able to reach 161/9 in 20 overs.
Earlier, Suryakumar Yadav chose to field first after winning the toss and having the weather postpone it for 45 minutes. SKY’s decision paid off quickly as Arshdeep Singh dismissed Kusal Mendis during the fourth over of the powerplay.
Furthermore, Kusal Perera and Pathum Nissanka combined for 54 runs to steady the Sri Lankan innings. Ravi Bishnoi, though, bowled Nissanka out after she had amassed 32 off 24 deliveries. Hardik Pandya removed Kamindu Mendis for 26 off 23. However, Perera and Mendis put up a further fifty-run partnership, establishing the hosts as the dominant team.
The most dangerous batsman in this Lankan batting lineup, Dasun Shanaka, was trapped after going for a golden duck in two straight innings as Ravi Bishnoi wreaked havoc on the batsmen. Then, Bishnoi struck gold once again, removing Wanindu Hasaranga for a second first-ball duck to complete his three-wicket haul.
Sri Lanka’s middle-order collapse continued as Arshdeep removed captain Charith Asalanka for 14 off 12 and Axar Patel dismissed Maheesh Theekshana and Ramesh Mendis in the penultimate over to restrict the home team to only 161 runs. During the innings break, the Rain Gods of Lanka decided it was showtime and they forced a nearly hour-long postponement of the contest. The DL strategy consequently gave India a revised target of 78 to win in 8 overs.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson, who had come in for Shubman Gill in this specific match, started India’s chase. Maheesh Theekshana, a spinner, however, dismissed Sanju Samson for a golden duck.
Then Surya went back to batting, where he had left off from his previous appearance. Suryakumar Yadav batted at number three and struck boundaries to keep the scoreboard from ticking over. The captain seemed to be busting boundaries as he led his team past the 50-run mark in 4.1 overs. He was removed for 26 out of 12 deliveries by Matheesha Pathirana.
The visitors’ win was further enhanced by Jaiswal’s quick 30-run performance prior to him departing the crease after Hasaranga scalped his wicket. India won easily thanks to Hardik Pandya’s six in the sixth over, which released pressure and gave them all the cushion they needed to finish the match without any issues.