It won’t be wrong if we say Virat Kohli & Co has created history on their tour to Sri Lanka. Firstly, smashed the Lankans by 3-0 in Tests, then 5-0 victory in ODIs and finally, ended up the series by conquering the one-off T20 by 7 wickets. Virat Kohli’s 17th T20I fifty took the Indians to victory and they concluded the series by winning 9 international matches back-to-back away from home.
For the first time, Lankans posted a tough score for the Indias. Virat Kohli & Co. needed to chase 171 runs in 20 overs. The Indians to bat in the same style the Lankans did earlier. After a score of 22, India lost the first wicket after Rohit Sharma was caught by Thisara Perera after scoring just 9 runs. Malinga got the first break through for his team.
Later Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey, who came in to bat at number 4 after KL Rahul’s dismissal, took the game until the end. Virat Kohli smashed his 17th T20I fifty while Pandey smashed his maiden T20I fifty. Though Kohli lost his wicket when just 10 runs were needed to win, Pandey hit the winning runs to take the home while on the other end, MS Dhoni once again remained not out. India won the game by 7 wickets with 4 balls remaining.
Earlier today, Virat Kohli won yet another toss and as he likes, opted to chase. Unlike the Tests and ODIs, the Lankans had a superb start. Niroshan Dickwella and Upul Tharanga opened the innings and smashed 23 runs in 2 overs before the skipper was bowled by Bhyvneshwar Kumar in the 3rd over. Though India got the much-needed breakthrough, the next man in, Dilshan Munaweera elevated the run rate and continued destroying the Indian bowling.
After scoring 17 runs, Niroshan Dickwella was bowled by Jasprit Bumrah in the 5th over, however, it didn’t affect the momentum of the home team. By 6 overs, Sri Lanka had furiously put 60 runs on the board. Then came the ‘Mahi Mojo’ which dented the Lankan batting line-up yet another time. To a delivery by Yuzvendra Chahal, Mathews tried to push it back in but missed the ball. Dhoni was quick enough to pick the ball and dislodge the bails. The on-field umpires took the review and which showed that Mathews was out.
Later, Ashan Priyanjan and Dilshan Munaweera continued the innings ahead. Munaweera kept on playing fearlessly and hit his maiden T20 half century off 26 balls. Both the batsmen added 37 runs for the 4th wicket before Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav dismissed dangerous looking Munaweera on 53.
After 10 overs, the runs rate fell as the Indian bowlers, especially the spinners, were back on track. Yuzvendra Chahal, who was beaten badly by the opponent batsmen in the beginning, suddenly throttled the Lankans and took two wickets in the 14th over. He bowled out Thisara Perera (11) and dismissed Dasun Shanaka for a duck.
After getting reduced to 113/6, Priyanjan and Prasanna took forward the inning and they tried their best to score big. They even hit a few big shots but couldn’t carry the partnership long enough. In the 17th over, Kuldeep Yadav dismissed Seekkuge Prasanna on 8. He was caught by Kohli at the deep mid-wicket area.
Towards the end, Ashan Priyanjan and Isuru Udana, played some big shots and managed to put 170 runs on the board. Sri Lanka set a target of 171 runs to be chased in 20 overs.
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