MATCH STORY
Follow UsAsked to bat first in the third T20I at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, India endured their second-worst powerplay score in the format versus Sri Lanka.
India lost the wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav within 22 balls, making it one of their worst starts against the island nation. All four batters were dismissed trying to accelerate the run rate on a tricky surface.
Jaiswal was the first dismissal of the innings, out in the second over of the match to Maheesh Theekshana. The left-hander plays plenty of sweep shots against spinners to stamp his authority on them. On this occasion, that very shot became the cause of his downfall as he missed the ball and was pinned in front of the stumps. It was against the run of play as the Indian opener had already struck Theekshana for two boundaries in the last three balls he had faced against him.
Sanju Samson followed suit with his second consecutive duck on the tour. He was out for a golden duck in India’s truncated chase in the second T20I. Batting at three tonight (July 30), he conceded his wicket after getting a thick outside edge to Wanindu Hasaranga at deep cover.
Not picked for the ODIs, Samson’s tour is now done with consecutive ducks. India slid to 12/2 in 2.5 overs and promoted Rinku Singh at number four to give some game time to the left-hander.
However, Rinku failed to make full use of the opportunity. After a single on the last ball to retain the strike for the next over, he was out trying to attack Theekshana too soon. It was a shocking shot selection given Rinku’s power-hitting against spin has never been great. In his overall T20 career, Rinku has had a strike rate of 116.3 against spin which is dismal compared to 177.8 against pace.
The Aligarh man danced down the track and backed away, allowing Theekshana to bowl outside the off stump. The ball turned away further, keeping it out of the batter's hitting arc. Though the 26-year-old still chased the delivery, all he managed to do was sky it to the fielder. 14/3 in 3.1 overs. Rinku's was arguably the worst shot in India’s reeling start, underlining the difference between being positive and being over-aggressive.
Suryakumar Yadav, eight off nine balls, seemed like weathering the storm. However, he too succumbed to his urgency to attack. With the field set to trap him, Surya backed himself to clear the fine-leg region with his sweep against pacer Asitha Fernando.
“You cannot keep Suryakumar Yadav away from this shot… but on this occasion, he is caught,” said the commentator as the India skipper was caught on the ropes and India slumped to 30/4 in 5.4 overs.
While Sri Lanka bowled and fielded well, India simply capitulated, failing to assess the conditions after a delayed start due to inclement weather.
Theekshana picked two wickets in this period but one cannot forget the role of the debutant Chamindu Wickramasinghe. He set the tone conceding only three runs in the first over of the match and accounted for Samson’s wicket in his second. Bowling four overs on a trot, he finished with figures of 1/17, the third-most economical figures by a Sri Lankan bowler and the most economical by a Sri Lankan seamer on T20I debut.
30/4 is India’s second-lowest powerplay T20 score against the Lankans, after 29/4 in Colombo in 2021. India lost that game by seven wickets and the series 1-2. Meanwhile, this is only a dead rubber, given the Men in Blue clinched the series with victories in the first two matches.
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