Sri Lanka triumph; India D(hon)isappointed

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Virat Kohli made way for Ajinkya Rahane.

Sri Lanka made nine Cha(mara)nges to the eleven that (Mahe)last played the Indians – Kusal Perera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Lahiru Thirimanne, Angelo Mathews, Nuwan Kulasekara, Rangana Herath and Lasith Malinga made way for a couple of Twenty20 International debutants (Niroshan Dickwella and Kasun Rajitha, the player of the match), Danushka Gunathilaka, Dinesh Chandimal (who was leading the team, and inserted the hosts on winning the toss), Kapugedera, Milinda Siriwardana, Dasun Shanaka, Seekkuge Prasanna, and Dushmantha Chameera.

The Powerplay of India’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the sixth innings. They scored 40, and lost three wickets.

India’s openers didn’t get off the (Shar)mark. Rohit, who faced a couple of balls, didn’t open his account. A couple of balls into the match, he was caught by Chameera off the bowling of Rajitha.

Rahane, who faced four balls, scored as many. His runs came by way of a boundary. Four balls later, he was caught by Chandimal. Rajitha broke the four-run stand.

Shikhar Dhawan, whose 13-ball innings included a six, scored nine. Four overs later, he was caught by Gunathilaka. Rajitha broke the 27-run stand.

Gunathilaka dropped a couple of catches, and Suresh Raina was the beneficiary on both occasions. The first time, he hadn’t opened his account, and the second time, he was batting on 18. The southpaw eventually scored a run-a-ball 20, which included a boundary and a six. Twenty-two balls after Dhawan’s dismissal, Shanaka broke the 17-run stand.

India had scored 50 off 8.3 overs (51 balls). The number of extras they had conceded gave Sri Lanka no reason to be in seventh heaven.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India’s skipper, faced a couple of balls, scoring as many. A couple of balls after Raina’s dismissal, he was caught by Dickwella. Shanaka broke the two-run stand.

Yuvraj Singh, whose 14-ball innings included a six, scored 10. Half-a-dozen balls later, he was caught by Chameera, who broke the two-run stand.

Hardik Pandya, who faced half-a-dozen balls, scored a couple. Eight balls later, he was trapped leg before wicket by Shanaka, who broke the five-run stand.

Ravindra Jadeja, who faced nine balls, scored half-a-dozen. Thirteen balls later, he was trapped leg before wicket by Sachithra Senanayake, who broke the 14-run stand.

Ravichandran Ashwin, whose 24-ball innings included five boundaries, scored 31. He was unbeaten.

India had scored 100 off 18.3 overs (111 balls). Sri Lanka had conceded 11 extras at that point. That was, incidentally, the number of extras they conceded extras.

Ashish Nehra, who faced 19 balls, scored just half-a-dozen. Thirty-three balls after Jadeja’s dismissal, he was caught by Siriwardana. Chameera broke the 28-run stand.

The last-wicket pair put on a run. Jasprit Bumrah didn’t face a ball. The next ball, Rajitha and Chandimal ran him out.

India were bundled out for 101 off 18.5 overs. Prasanna bowled two overs, conceding 11. He was wicketless, as was Thisara Perera, who bowled three overs, including a maiden. He conceded 10.

Senanayake bowled three overs, conceding 18. He picked up a wicket. Chameera bowled 3.5 overs, conceding 14. He picked up two wickets. Shanaka bowled three overs, conceding 16. He picked up three scalps, as did Rajitha, who bowled four overs, conceding 29.

The Powerplay of Sri Lanka’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the sixth innings. They scored 28, and lost a couple of wickets.

Dickwella, who faced three balls, scored four. His runs came by way of a boundary. Three balls into the chase, he was caught by Dhawan. Nehra broke the four-run stand.

Gunathilaka, whose 18-ball innings included a six, scored nine. Twenty-four balls later, he was caught by Dhawan. Nehra broke the 19-run stand.

Sri Lanka had scored 50 off 10.2 overs (62 balls). India had conceded a couple of extras at that point.

Kapugedera, whose 26-ball innings included four boundaries, scored 25. Forty-two balls after Gunthilaka’s dismissal, he was trapped leg before wicket by Ashwin, who broke the 39-run stand.

Chandimal, whose run-a-ball innings included a boundary and a couple of sixes, scored 35. Twenty balls later, he was trapped leg before wicket by Raina, who broke the 22-run stand.

Siriwardana, whose 14-ball innings included a couple of boundaries and a six, scored 21. He was unbeaten.

Shanaka, who faced eight balls, scored just three. Eleven balls later, he was caught by Raina. Needless to say, Ashwin was in seventh heaven.

Sri Lanka had scored 100 off 17.5 overs (107 balls). India had conceded five extras at that point. That was, incidentally, the number of extras they eventually conceded.

Prasanna, who faced four balls, scored three. He was unbeaten.

Sri Lanka, who scored 105 for the loss of five wickets off 18 overs, won by five wickets with a couple of overs to spare.

Jadeja and Pandya bowled three wicketless overs each, conceding 18 apiece. Bumrah bowled four wicketless overs, including a maiden. He conceded 19.

Raina, who bowled two overs, conceded 13. He picked up a wicket. Nehra and Ashwin bowled three overs each, picking up two apiece. While the former conceded 21, the latter conceded 13.

Sri Lanka led the three-match series 1-0.