SL v IND, 3rd ODI Preview: India aim to wrap up the series in Pallekele

Just when the Sri Lankan fans started to believe in their team, an invaluable partnership between Bhuvneshwar Kumar and MS Dhoni helped the visitors win the second ODI by 3 wickets. India will now enter the third ODI aiming to wrap up the series in Pallekele before travelling to Colombo for the last two ODIs.

Shuffling the batting order didn’t work wonders for Virat Kohli and company as Akila Dananjaya made the Indian middle-order dance according to his tunes. Nonetheless, they managed to survive a major scare and for the second time this year, Sri Lanka lost a game in a similar fashion.

In a must win group-stage encounter against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy, the Lankan lions managed to rip the top order apart but a sensational stand between Mohammad Amir and Sarfaraz Ahmed denied them a place in the Semifinals. It seemed like an action replay of that game, where the game slipped away in an inexplicable manner from the hands of the Islanders.

ICC slapped a 2-match ban on the Lankan skipper Upul Tharanga, a perfect pinch on the pimple if ever there was any. This paves way for Chamara Kapugedera to take up the responsibility for the next two games and help his side survive this predicament. The only thing running in the minds of Indians is to whitewash their opponents and that’s a humiliation which would be very hard to digest for the hosts.

Toss: Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat first

Playing XI

India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), Lokesh Rahul, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

Sri Lanka: Niroshan Dickwella(w), Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Chamara Kapugedera(c), Milinda Siriwardana, Akila Dananjaya, Dushmantha Chameera, Vishwa Fernando, Lasith Malinga

Akila Dananjaya (Sri Lanka)

After spinning a web around the Indian middle order, Dananjaya will be eager to prove that he ain’t a one match wonder. The off-break bowler who bowls a terrific googly bamboozled the Indian line up with his variations and picked up 6 wickets in the game. Though Sri Lanka lost the game, their skipper has now spotted an X-factor in his side on whom he can bank upon in difficult circumstances.

Rohit Sharma (India)

When the hitman gets going, the lazy elegance that comes into play is quite a sight for the eyes. Rohit Sharma blasted a quickfire half-century in the second ODI and unleashed some extraordinary shots in the process. The ease with which he scooped a fast bowler for a six over fine-leg was an indication of his confidence and given India get to bat first in the third ODI, a gigantic score will definitely be on the cards.

Playing Combinations

Sri Lanka

Niroshan Dickwella will open the batting alongside Danushka Gunathilaka with Kusal Mendis coming in at number 3. Dinesh Chandimal was roped into the side after ICC imposed the ban on Tharanga and he will be taking the number 4 spot. Angelo Mathews, Milinda Siriwardana and Kapugedara need to fire all cylinders to help their side register a decent total.

The experience of Lasith Malinga will be crucial in the first few overs. Other fast bowling options include Dushmantha Chameera, Vishwa Fernando and Angelo Mathews. It will be interesting to see if Lakshan Sandakan gets a game or not as he and Dananjaya in tandem can work wonders for the side.

India

The on song Shikhar Dhawan will be accompanied by his partner in crime Rohit Sharma. Virat Kohli will certainly come out to bat at number 3 after what happened in the second ODI. With KL Rahul, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya in the middle-order, to prevent this lineup from registering a big total will be a difficult task.

It will be interesting to see if Mohammad Shami will get an opportunity in this game. But going by how Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah have performed, Kohli will continue with the same bowling line up. Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal have been exceptional working together and the all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Kedar Jadhav provide a perfect balance to the unit.

StatAttack

7 – Rohit Sharma needs 7 runs to complete 5,500 runs in ODI cricket

2 – Lasith Malinga is two wickets short of 3 ODI scalps

48.56 – Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma’s partnership average is 48.56, the best amongst opening pairs with over 3,000 runs together.