NEWS
Follow UsFollowing a 3-0 clean sweep in the T20I series, not many expected Sri Lanka to challenge India in the ODI series. However, two games later, the hosts are leading 1-0 in the three-match series. Sri Lanka tied the first ODI and then won the second one by 32 runs in Colombo on August 4 (Sunday).
As expected, the conditions at the R. Premadasa Stadium have been super friendly for the spinners, and Sri Lanka has made the most of them. Opting to bat first, the home team put up a total of 240 in their 50 overs. Jeffrey Vandersay (6/33) and Charith Asalanka (3/20) then shared nine wickets and bundled India out for 208 in 42.2 overs.
"Was it a shock? I would say yes, there is a surprise. But you anticipate and understand that in these conditions, the game can turn on its head because there is so much spin on offer,” said India’s assistant coach Abhishek Nayar.
"Even if you look at the last game, it was relatively easy to score against the new ball. As the ball got older, the conditions when batting second got slightly tougher. Sometimes, in tough conditions, especially in the 50-over format, this happens.
"We want to go back and understand, and rectify, why it happened twice in a row. The day before yesterday, we were able to stitch partnerships. But today, we lost quite a few wickets in a bundle."
Rohit Sharma (44-ball 64) and Shubman Gill (44-ball 35) got India off to a fantastic start, adding 97 runs for the opening wicket in just 13.3 overs. However, once Vandersay got rid of Rohit, all hell broke loose. The leg-spinner took all the first six wickets and reduced India to 147/6. Asalanka then took three of the last four wickets and handed India an embarrassing defeat.
"They bowled well — I think Vandersay bowled the ideal length in these conditions. In such conditions, when the ball is turning — and the way Vandersay bowled today, used his finger, and bowled stump to stump — you get these phases when there is assistance from the pitch. I feel today we should give more credit to Sri Lanka,” said Nayar.
Nayar told the media after the second ODI that it’s not easy to bat second in these conditions. In the first innings, Sri Lanka were 136/6 at one stage before Dunith Wellalage (35-ball 39) and Kamindu Mendis (44-ball 40) put on 72 runs for the seventh wicket. Akila Dananjaya too chipped in with useful 15 runs, taking Sri Lanka to an above-par total.
"When you are batting first, there is less pressure. When you are chasing, the pressure is more because you have to keep an eye on the run rate and wickets. Whenever you bat first, you often have partnerships. Wellalage batted really well, both in the last game and this game. They scored important runs in the lower order."
The Men in Blue also changed their batting order to keep the left-right combination going. Left-handers Shivam Dube and Axar Patel were promoted to Nos. 4 and 5, while Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul batted at 6 and 7, respectively.
"My belief is that in any sport, position only matters if you're playing in different areas of a game. We lost wickets in the middle phase, and that's where the middle-order batters batted. It's not as if middle-order batters batted towards the end.
"If you look at numbers like four, five, or six, maybe sometimes it can play games in your head. It was more about keeping a left-and-right combination, keeping in mind that there were offspinners, and a legspinner in the Sri Lanka team.
"The thought process was right. When it doesn't work out, these questions are asked often. But I've always believed that if a middle order batter bats as a middle order batter, it is the right decision."
The third and final ODI will be played in Colombo on August 7 (Wednesday).
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