Nidahas Trophy 2018, 4th T20I, Sri Lanka vs India: 5 Players to watch out for

The stage is wide open for the bragging rights in the ongoing Nidahas Trophy 2018. After three games of the series, all the three sides have a win under their name. This completes the first leg of the tri-series. Now, the teams will face off against one another yet again in the second leg before the top two teams meet in the finals. Sri Lanka is all set to  host India in the fourth match of the tournament.

When the two sides had met in the series opener, it was an upset of all sorts on the display. Sri Lanka beat India by five wickets in the game and stunned the pre-tournament favorites. However, a lot has changed since then. In the next match, team India found their form yet again and they beat Bangladesh convincingly with an all-round show in the match.

And in the match that followed, Sri Lanka suffered a crucial defeat against Bangladesh. Certainly, the hosts are on a shaky ground but the Indians cannot take them lightly either. With this backdrop, it will come down to individual brilliance to see their respective sides come on top in the remainder of the games. Here we try to pick five such players who promise to be impact players in the upcoming fixture.

Here are the five players to watch out for in the Sri Lanka vs India game:

1. Kusal Mendis

Sri Lankan batsman Kusal Mendis has been in a tremendous form in the last couple of months. Ever since he made a marathon ton in a Test fixture in Bangladesh a month ago, his willow has been shining bright for the Sri Lankan team. Mendis arrived in the series as one of the key players of the Sri Lankan batting lineup.

While Kusal Perera has been bagging all the limelight thus far, Kusal Mendis can be equally threatening. Mendis, in the previous T20I assignment of Sri Lanka in Bangladesh, has hit two consecutive fifties. Also, in the previous match against Bangladesh, he had scored a brisk 57 off just 30 deliveries.

2. Suresh Raina

Veteran Indian batsman Suresh Raina was expected to play a major role in the Indian batting lineup in the series. With the senior players like Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni rested, a lot was thought about the role of Raina in the Indian batting lineup. However, the senior player has largely disappointed thus far. He has failed to get going in the previous two games.

While the fans and the team management would feel let down by this failure of Raina, even the man in picture would be disheartened by his own efforts. One could, thus, sense that a big knock from the willow of Suresh Raina is certainly due to come. And it might pretty well be in the match against Sri Lanka.

3. Upul Tharanga

The Sri Lankan team is going through a transition period. Hence, they desperately need the handful of senior members in the side to stand up and take responsibility. Upul Tharanga, who has also captained the national side, is one of those senior members. In the recent times, Tharanga has been playing like he has nothing to lose.

This attitude is certainly paying rich dividends to the veteran batsman. He bats in the lower middle order and provides the ideal impetus that the team needs towards the fag end of the innings. In the previous game against Bangladesh, Tharanga showed a glimpse of it by hitting a quick 32 off 15 deliveries.

4. Vijay Shankar

Indian all-rounder Vijay Shankar has arguably been the biggest positive for the Indian team in the series thus far. Team India has certainly found a very able all-rounder in Vijay Shankar. The Tamil Nadu cricketer did not get his quota of four overs in the first game. But his short spell was good enough to give a good impression on his international debut.

In the second game against Bangladesh, Vijay Shankar performed a notch better and was one of the top performers for the team on the day. He picked up the two big wickets of Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah in the match. Well, for the information, the all-rounder is very effective as a batsman too. If given an opportunity, he can be impressive in that department as well.

5. Yuzvendra Chahal

When the series commenced, Indian leggie Yuzvendra Chahal walked in to the series as the most highly rated Indian bowler in the squad. Chahal had an excellent time in South Africa where he picked up as many as 16 wickets in the ODI series. However, his outing in the T20Is were not very fruitful.

Arriving in Sri Lanka, many felt that the fortunes could turn for him in the shortest format of the game on the Asian tracks. But the bowler from Haryana is yet to hit his mark in the series. Well, needless to concede, Chahal would also be itching to perform and be back amongst the wickets.

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