India beat Sri Lanka by 7 wickets in a rain
Rain affected the game twice First, when the match resumed 45 minutes late without losing any over. Later, it halted the game for 70 minutes. Wrist-spinner Ravi Bishnoi took 3-26 as India beat Sri Lanka by seven wickets with nine balls to spare in the rain-curtailed second T20I to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Bishnoi was supported by left-arm spinner Axar Patel (2-30) on Sunday while pacers Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh took four wickets apiece to restrict Sri Lanka to 161-9 in 20 overs.
Rain affected the game twice First, when the match resumed 45 minutes late without losing any over. Later, the game was halted for 70 minutes after India were 6-0 at half-time in the first over.
When the match resumed, the match was reduced to eight overs with a target of 78 runs under the DLS method. This left India needing 72 runs from 45 balls. Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 30 runs off 15 balls, while captain Suryakumar Yadav scored 26 runs off 12 balls.
Hardik Pandya scored an unbeaten 22 off nine balls, helping India score 81-3 in 6.3 overs. India won the first T20 by 43 runs. The third and final T20 will be played on Tuesday at Pallekele itself. Both teams will also play three ODIs.
Both caught in the deep by Rinku Singh
Pathum Nissanka gave Sri Lanka another good start after India won the toss late and elected to bowl. Opener Shubman Gill was ruled out due to neck cramps. He was replaced by Sanju Samson. Nissanka scored 32 runs off 24 balls with the help of five fours.
After opener Kusal Mendis was dismissed for 10 runs, Nissanka added 54 runs in 36 balls with Kusal Perera for the second wicket. Kusal Perera scored 53 runs in 34 balls with the help of two sixes and six fours. Bishnoi gave the team victory by dismissing Nissanka LBW in the 10th over. Perera added 50 more runs with Kamindu Mendis (26), but Bishnoi made a comeback and demolished the middle order. Earlier, Pandya gave the team victory by dismissing Perera and Mendis.
It helped the spinners in the first innings
Bishnoi then bowled Dasun Shanaka for a golden duck, followed soon after by dismissing Wanindu Hasaranga off the very first ball. The player of the match was on a hat-trick in the 17th over but was dismissed. “Today the pitch was turning. It helped the spinners in the first innings,” Bishnoi said.
I like to bowl to the wrong side and stick to my plans. I like bowling in the death overs. Sri Lanka cricket team were 130-2 after 15 overs but they managed only 31 for seven in the final five overs. After a long rain break, India suffered an early blow in their chase when Maheesh Theekshana bowled Samson for a golden duck in the second over.
Jaiswal hit two sixes and three fours while Yadav hit four fours and a six. The duo added 39 runs off 19 balls for the second wicket. India lost the wickets of both Jaiswal and Yadav in successive overs, but Pandya sealed the series with a win.
India vs Sri Lanka, 2nd T20I, Highlights
Chasing a target of 78 runs in 8 overs as per DLS after rain interrupted the target of 162 runs, India scored 81 runs in 6.3 overs in the seventh over itself to win the match by 7 wickets. With this, India won the three-match T20I series 2-0 against Sri Lanka in the second T20I at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on July 28.
Other Sri Lanka bowlers Vanindu Hasaranga on Saturday
There were many positives for India cricket team in the first T20I, including the performances of captain Surya, Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill. Also, Riyan Parag’s brilliant bowling performance would have given a lot of relief to the team management. However, Team India will hope for a better performance from their lower middle-order batsmen like Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag and Rinku Singh, who failed to make an impact on Saturday.
For Sri Lanka, the hosts will have to build on their impressive performance against the world champions. The other Sri Lankan bowlers will look to replicate the form displayed by Wanindu Hasaranga and Matheesha Pathirana on Saturday. Sri Lankan fielding will also have to improve if they want any chance to stay in this series. Dropped catches and poor fielding can prove costly against a strong team like India.
Conclusion
That’s it Hardik finished the game in a great way for India and won the series 2-0. Looking at the way the second innings performed, it can be said that Suryakumar Yadav’s decision to bowl first was a great one. According to Sri Lanka in the second innings, they could not do much after India had 10 wickets. Overall, the Suryakumar Yadav Gautam Gambhir era started with a win.
