Twitter Reactions: Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul slam centuries to make merry of Sri Lanka in Leeds

Angelo Mathews scored a brilliant ton batting first and it was because of him that Sri Lanka posted 264 runs on the board.

By CricTracker Staff verified

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Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul
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Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. (Photo Source: Twitter)

India have defeated Sri Lanka literally without breaking a sweat at Headingley in Leeds. At the halfway mark, it felt as if the Islanders posted a decent enough total to trouble the opposition but the Indian openers KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma made light work of the chase. Both the batsmen scored scintillating tons as India gunned down the total with more than six overs and seven wickets in hand. They are also on top of the table now and would want South Africa to beat Australia now.

When Rohit and Rahul started the innings, there was a little bit of pressure on India as the teams hadn’t enjoyed chasing in this World Cup. But soon the duo made themselves comfortable in the middle and never looked in trouble. There were no plays and missed either and they made batting look extremely easy in the middle. It was a chanceless knock from both the batsmen as they went on to register centuries.

Rohit Sharma got to the milestone earlier, rather it was a world record. He became the first batsman ever to score five tons in a single edition of the World Cup. Unfortunately, he got out on 103 off Kasun Rajitha but KL Rahul continued his strong show and Virat Kohli joined him only to make merry of the Sri Lankan attack. Rahul got to his three-figure score and looked relieved.

Rahul changed gears after the century to end the game quickly but playing his last World Cup match and probably the career as well, Lasith Malinga got the better of him. Rishabh Pant also came and went without scoring much. Eventually, Kohli and Hardik Pandya finished the game in the 44th over of the innings.

Mathews’ ton drives Sri Lanka

Earlier, Sri Lanka opted to bat first after winning the toss only to get themselves into a tangle. They were reduced to 55/4 by the 12th over courtesy some brilliant bowling from India. While Bhuvneshwar Kumar was rusty with the new ball, Jasprit Bumrah hit the right lengths to send back the openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Perera packing. The good work was backed up superbly by Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya who snaffled Kusal Mendis and Avishka Fernando respectively.

From here on, Lahiru Thirimanne and Angelo Mathews joined hands and steadily rebuilt. The duo concentrated on rotating the strike and took the game deep. Both of them rode a bit of luck as well while playing and missing a few deliveries but made the most of it. They added 124 runs for the fifth wicket stand and attacked the spinners, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja at the end of their respective spells.

Thirimanne, however, looked to up the ante and was foxed by the chinaman on 53. But Mathews continued picking his bowlers and scored a magnificent century. His record at the Headingley is exceptional and the veteran glorified it even more with this knock. Dhananjaya de Silva also played his part but Bumrah and Bhuvi were too good in the death overs and they didn’t let Sri Lanka get away.

The Islanders added 64 runs in the last 10 overs to end on 264 for the loss of seven wickets as Mathews got out for 113 with 10 fours and a couple of maximums. The score, however, wasn’t enough to restrict the strong Indian batting line-up.

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ICC Cricket World Cup 2019