Welcome back for the run-chase. It should be an easy chase for the Indians, unless the Sri Lankans can pull off something extraordinary. Senanayake has the new ball in his hand
Jadeja is all cheek as he says he "doesn't want to bat" when Harsha Bhogle told him, that he won't be hopefully required to bat
The task should be easy for the Indian batsmen, their bowlers have made sure that they have half the match in their kitty. Though the pitch is turning a lot, the kind of batting might India possess, this shouldn't be a tough one. It was the dew factor, perhaps, which propelled Dhoni to bowl first. Who would have thought that such a splendid bowling performance would leave little part for the dew to play? Join us in a few minutes for the chase, which is expected to be a cakewalk.
It is not for nothing that MS Dhoni asserts that R Ashwin is a smart bowler. Today, the smartness of Ashwin was well on display as he ran through the Sri Lankan top order, registering the best bowling figures by an Indian in a T20I game. He was well supported in his quest by some reckless batting from the Sri Lankans. The pitch assisted the spinners and the new ball seamed around a bit. In the fast-paced T20I games, such conditions demand some patience. But the visitors were in no mood to wait and see off the jittery period. Everything on the field panned out well for the Indians as they threw themselves around, saving some runs and even effecting a direct hit. In the end, the Lankans were decimated to their lowest ever T20I score.
17.6 -
Bumrah to Dilhara Fernando, out Bowled!! Bowled. Too good from Bumrah. He is so good at this type of delivery, isn't he? The sorry tale of the Lankan innings comes to an end. Full, fast and straight, goes under Dilhara Fernando's bat and crashes into the timber. Sri Lanka have been cleaned up for 82 - their lowest T20 score. Should be an easy chase. Dilhara Fernando b Bumrah 1(6)
Bumrah to Dilhara Fernando, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!
17.5 -
Bumrah to Chameera, 1 run, slower delivery outside off, sliced square of the wicket, for a single. Chameera didn't connect that well
17.4 -
Bumrah to Dilhara Fernando, 1 run, so nearly. Superbly bowled slower delivery, Fernando was way too early into the shot, but the ball hits the bat, rather than the other way around, the ball runs away through mid-wicket
17.3 -
Bumrah to Dilhara Fernando, no run, what is Bumrah appealing for? He is cheeky. Has a smile after going up. Probably he is bored. Wants to get into the act. Low full toss, hit hard into the ground and Bumrah leapt to take that. Clear bump ball and he indulges in some banter
17.2 -
Bumrah to Dilhara Fernando, no run, pity that Bumrah didn't get it on the stumps, full outside off, Dilhara Fernando drives and misses
I'm going for the yorker and Dilhara Fernando to be clean bowled
17.1 -
Bumrah to Chameera, 1 run, short of length on the stumps, Chameera gets a thick inside edge on the back foot defence to deep backward square leg
Jasprit Bumrah [2.0-0-7-0] is back into the attack
16.6 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dilhara Fernando, no run, fired in flat on off and middle, Dilhara Fernando gets forward to block
16.5 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Chameera, 1 run, rocks back and somehow finds a single wide of cover
16.4 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Chameera, FOUR, a desperate blow but that will be four. Kneels down and connects the sweep, hit hard and finds the gap at square leg
16.3 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Chameera, no run, fired in on the stumps, Chameera does well to get a thin inside edge onto the pad. Or else he was right in front. Oohs and aahs from the Indians, but a clear edge
16.2 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Chameera, no run, beaten on the whip, it was slower and Chameera went back to clip, played it too early and the ball turned past the bat
16.1 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Chameera, no run, full on off, Chameera gets forward and defends to cover
Ravindra Jadeja [3.0-1-6-1] is back into the attack
15.6 -
Raina to Dilhara Fernando, no run, sharply spinning delivery, down leg and a stifled appeal for lbw dies down pretty quickly. End of an over from Raina where he took two wickets
15.5 -
Raina to Chameera, 1 run, Chameera closes the face of the bat and nudges a single to fine leg
Dilhara Fernando, right handed bat, comes to the crease
15.4 -
Raina to T Perera, out Caught by Ravindra Jadeja!! Good catch by Jadeja at sweeper cover. After misjudging that initially. Perera used his feet and tried to go inside out, it went off the toe-end and cover was running back, that must have put Jadeja off for a moment, but he kept his eyes on it and took it two-handed before tumbling to ground. Raina is all smiles. Another mindless piece of batting as Perera had to be there till the end, he was the senior guy and not sure what he was trying to do there, slogging without getting to the pitch of the ball. T Perera c Ravindra Jadeja b Raina 12(20) [4s-1]
Raina to T Perera, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
15.3 -
Raina to Chameera, 1 run, tossed up outside off, Chameera gets forward and clips to deep backward square leg, for a single
Dushmantha Chameera, right handed bat, comes to the crease
15.2 -
Raina to Senanayake, out Caught by Dhoni!! That is a strange decision. Strange dismissal. Everything strange about that including Senanayake's reaction. Mahendra Singh Dhoni went up for it straightaway, then Raina joined in. Nothing on UltraEdge, so Anil Chaudhary got that wrong. It was full outside off, Senanayake went for a big drive and missed. Good take by MS who heard something, the bat hit the ground, that's the sound. When Raina joined in, Anil nonchalantly raised the finger to leave Senanayake shocked. Nothing he can do about that, he has to walk back. Second poor decision in the match. Senanayake c Dhoni b Raina 8(16)
Raina to Senanayake, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
15.1 -
Raina to T Perera, 1 run, Perera comes down the track and drills it to the left of Rahane at long-on, Rahane is quick and rifles the throw back in, keeps it to a single
Suresh Raina [1.0-0-3-0] is back into the attack
14.6 -
Bumrah to Senanayake, no run, pitched up outside off, drilled straight to the fielder at cover, sharp stop
14.5 -
Bumrah to T Perera, 1 run, a hat-trick of slower balls and Perera waits for it, before nudging to the right of Bumrah, tight single but they make it
14.4 -
Bumrah to T Perera, no run, another slower delivery, this time beats Perera on the late-cut. Perera didn't pick that and by the time he was trying to manufacture a single to third man, he failed to connect
14.3 -
Bumrah to T Perera, no run, slower delivery and Perera punches straight to the fielder at extra cover
14.2 -
Bumrah to T Perera, no run, that is a slog and Perera gets lucky. Clears his front leg and aims for his trademark mow to leg, the inside edge finds short fine
14.1 -
Bumrah to Senanayake, 1 run, full outside off, Senanayake gets forward and drives to sweeper cover
Jasprit Bumrah [1.0-0-5-0] is back into the attack
13.6 -
Ashwin to T Perera, no run, so nearly a fifth, quicker and on the stumps, Perera is hurried on the defence, is almost opened up and the thick edge goes well wide of the two slips. The fielder at backward point tidies up. No five-for for Ashwin, but he has bowled an extra-ordinary spell, aided by rank bad batting. But take nothing away from Ashwin, who is at the peak of his powers and currently the leading offie in the world by a distance
13.5 -
Ashwin to T Perera, no run, pitches outside leg and beats Perera's tuck to leg, the ball rolls off the pad
13.4 -
Ashwin to Senanayake, 1 run, slower and outside off, the ball hangs in the air for an eternity, Senanayake slogs and gets a toe-end to the square leg region. Was through with the shot and the ball never arrived. Was in the sky for a long while
Now over the wicket to the right-hander
13.3 -
Ashwin to T Perera, 1 run, the carrom ball, quicker on middle, punched to long-on
13.2 -
Ashwin to T Perera, no run, tossed up outside off, Perera gets forward and defends to the cover region, wants a quick single, sent back
Can see a wicket or two coming this over. Not too difficult to predict that. Even a kid can get that right with the way Ashwin is bowling. Two slips in place against Perera
13.1 -
Ashwin to Senanayake, 1 run, tossed up loopily outside off, Senanayake drags the slog to deep mid-wicket
Ravichandran Ashwin [3.0-1-5-4] is back into the attack
12.6 -
Raina to T Perera, no run, Raina darts one in around off, stays low and cramps Perera for room, chopped without any timing to cover
12.5 -
Raina to Senanayake, 1 run, stays low, Senanayake nudges a single wide of mid-wicket
12.4 -
Raina to Senanayake, no run, tossed up and driven hard and straight back to Raina
12.3 -
Raina to Senanayake, 2 runs, driven to the right of sweeper cover, two it is
12.2 -
Raina to Senanayake, no run, Raina appeals for lbw, but that was too high and turned too much as well. Rapped Senanayake high on the pads
12.1 -
Raina to Senanayake, no run, stays low and beats Senanayake's attempted late-cut. It was outside off and no real danger of hitting off
Suresh Raina, right-arm off break, comes into the attack
11.6 -
Pandya to Senanayake, 1 run, chopped down to third man, Dhawan covers good ground to keep it to a single
11.5 -
Pandya to Senanayake, no run, back of a length on the stumps, Senanayake defends solidly
11.5 -
Pandya to Senanayake, wide, the slower delivery goes wrong, way outside off
11.4 -
Pandya to T Perera, 1 run, cuts it square of the wicket, this time straight to the fielder and finds Ashwin
11.3 -
Pandya to T Perera, FOUR, strong man is Perera. Very strong forearms. This was just a length delivery outside off and he powered it through cover. No chance for sweeper cover and the man there is Ashwin, even if he had tried to cut it off, wouldn't have been possible, sensibly he escorts the ball to the fence
11.2 -
Pandya to Senanayake, 1 run, good length outside off, run down to third man
11.1 -
Pandya to T Perera, 1 run, good length outside off, slashed hard to sweeper cover
10.6 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Senanayake, no run, sees the outside off delivery and lets it go, that one turned slightly but Senanayake covered his off stump that time. A wicket-maiden
10.5 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Senanayake, no run, very full on off, Senanayake gets forward to defend to Nehra at backward point
Slip and a gully in place
10.4 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Senanayake, no run, Senanayake is miles away from that. The ball pitches outside off and rips a long way. No way the edge can be found with so much turn
Sachithra Senanayake, right handed bat, comes to the crease
10.3 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, out Bowled!! Inside edge and gone. Made room to run it down to third man, this one went straight on and the ball bounces into the ground before flicking the off bail. Ravindra Jadeja does the double fist pump. Shanaka was looking good but in trying to get rid of the pressure that was building up, has succumbed. Dasun Shanaka b Ravindra Jadeja 19(24) [4s-1 6s-2]
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!
10.2 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, opens the face of the bat and finds backward point, still no way out there
10.1 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, flat on off, Dasun Shanaka gets forward and defends
9.6 -
Pandya to T Perera, no run, the crowd roar. Why? Because Yuvraj has just made a diving stop at short mid-wicket. It was punched to his right and he stopped the single. Certainly is very popular still
9.5 -
Pandya to T Perera, no run, this good length delivery straightens on the stumps, Perera is nearly opened up, but doesn't close the bat face, defends it back to Pandya
9.4 -
Pandya to Dasun Shanaka, 1 run, good length and angled in on the stumps, Shanaka turns it softly to the unmanned square leg region
9.3 -
Pandya to T Perera, 1 run, cramps Perera for room with a length ball outside off, Perera chops it to sweeper cover
9.2 -
Pandya to Dasun Shanaka, 1 run, good length on the stumps, Shanaka defends to square leg and takes the easy single
9.1 -
Pandya to T Perera, 1 run, full on the stumps, Perera gets forward and shows the full face of the bat to drive to long-on
Hardik Pandya, right-arm medium, comes into the attack
8.6 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, uses his feet and pushes it back to Ravindra Jadeja
8.5 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, quick and flat outside off, Dasun Shanaka thought about playing that and then hid his bat inside his pad, late decision but since the line was outside off, no trouble for the batsman
8.4 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, goes wide of the crease and beats Dasun Shanaka again. Mahendra Singh Dhoni has the bails off in a flash, but Dasun Shanaka's back foot went nowhere, he had it stationed inside the crease. So quick is MS but the third umpire just has a customary glance and makes the easy call
8.3 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, slight turn, pitches around off and then turns away past the nervous forward prod of Dasun Shanaka, Ravindra Jadeja using the crease to great effect
8.2 -
Ravindra Jadeja to T Perera, 1 run, flat and turning in, Perera rocks back and punches to the left of backward point, easy single
8.2 -
Ravindra Jadeja to T Perera, wide, fired down leg
8.1 -
Ravindra Jadeja to T Perera, no run, huge shout for lbw, but Perera got outside the line of off. It turned in sharply and Perera was late on the punch, it just about struck him outside off
7.6 -
Yuvraj to Dasun Shanaka, no run, outside off, left alone. Was the quicker delivery too
Thisara Perera, left handed bat, comes to the crease
7.5 -
Yuvraj to S Prasanna, out S Prasanna Run Out!! That is poor from Sri Lanka again. Why run off a misfield. That too when the ball has gone to one of India's best fielders. It was driven back to Yuvraj, who half-stopped it, not far away from cover where Jadeja swooped on the ball and flicked a throw onto the stumps, catching a diving Prasanna short. Never a run there and despite Prasanna's best effort, he was a couple of inches short. Bulls-Eye from Jadeja and that too with an audacious back-flick. S Prasanna run out (Ravindra Jadeja) 9(7) [4s-2]
Yuvraj to S Prasanna, THAT'S OUT!! Run Out!!
Has Jadeja run the batsman out? He is celebrating. Yes he has done it. Gone and the sixth one is out.
7.4 -
Yuvraj to Dasun Shanaka, 1 run, tossed up outside off, Dasun Shanaka gets forward and drives to sweeper cover
7.3 -
Yuvraj to Dasun Shanaka, SIX, and now he smashes the flat delivery outside off straight back over Yuvraj's head. Stood still and waited for the ball, before clobbering it flat. Clean strike and that's 13 runs off one ball
7.3 -
Yuvraj to Dasun Shanaka, no ball, SIX, what was that Yuvraj? That is a very high full toss, Dasun Shanaka advanced and tonked it over wide long-on. Gave it all and cleared the fence by a long way. Right off the meat of the blade. Perhaps that slipped out of Yuvraj's hand. Free-hit time
A slip in place
7.2 -
Yuvraj to Dasun Shanaka, no run, driven back to Yuvraj
7.1 -
Yuvraj to S Prasanna, 1 run, the ball holds up outside off, Prasanna is into the punch early, lucky that the ball goes in the gap at cover as it was in the air
Yuvraj Singh, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack
6.6 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, quicker and around off, Dasun Shanaka defends to the off-side
6.5 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, on the stumps, again slight turn, Dasun Shanaka defends to backward point
6.4 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, that is big turn, floated up outside off, draws Dasun Shanaka forward, and then rips past the edge
6.3 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, uses his feet and finds mid-on
6.2 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, FOUR, Nandan nods at Ravindra Jadeja and signals four. He got that right. That is a thin edge and does both Mahendra Singh Dhoni and slip. Turning away from Dasun Shanaka, who got an edge on the forward defence, got lucky. Very difficult chance for both the keeper and the slip. Races away to the fence
6.1 -
Ravindra Jadeja to Dasun Shanaka, no run, slight turn for Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka gets forward and defends it to backward point
Ravindra Jadeja, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack
5.6 -
Nehra to S Prasanna, FOUR, lucky. Prasanna gets lucky. Went hard at a length ball outside off, the inside edge eludes a diving Mahendra Singh Dhoni to his left and races away
Sorry look on Chandimal's face. Can't blame anyone else, he followed suit by playing a really bad shot
5.5 -
Nehra to S Prasanna, no run, back of a length outside off, Prasanna rocks back and punches to Rahane at cover
5.4 -
Nehra to S Prasanna, FOUR, that is a good shot. On a length and despite him being cramped, Prasanna rocks back and pulls over square leg. Hit well and that is a pressure-releasing boundary
5.3 -
Nehra to S Prasanna, no run, back of a length on the stumps, Prasanna hangs back and blocks
5.2 -
Nehra to S Prasanna, no run, short of length outside off, punched to cover where Rahane makes a diving stop. Keeps the pressure on
Seekkuge Prasanna, right handed bat, comes to the crease
5.1 -
Nehra to Siriwardana, out Bowled!! Sri Lanka are outdoing themselves with the bat. Looks like there is competition amongst their batters as to who can get out in the ugliest way possible. This is a rank bad shot. On a back of a length and on off, kept a bit low, another pre-meditated shot, Siriwardana pulls and sees his off stump cartwheeling out of the ground. Typical Nehra reaction on getting a wicket - tongue out and jogging forward. So nonchalant. India well on their way to ending this early. Siriwardana b Nehra 4(2) [4s-1]
Nehra to Siriwardana, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!
5.1 -
Nehra to Siriwardana, wide, down leg
Ashish Nehra [1.0-0-8-0] is back into the attack
4.6 -
Ashwin to Dasun Shanaka, no run, edged and dropped by Dhoni! Must say very difficult chance though. This went straight on, Dasun Shanaka was playing back and got a thick edge, hits Dhoni's gloves and down it goes. A wicket-maiden for Ashwin, in T20Is - he is in some form at this point of time. And he may well have had a couple more in that over
4.5 -
Ashwin to Dasun Shanaka, no run, an inside edge onto the pad and no silly point. This turned in and Dasun Shanaka on the forward defence, got a big nick, loops safely to the unguarded silly point region
4.4 -
Ashwin to Dasun Shanaka, no run, the carrom ball on the stumps, goes straight on, Dasun Shanaka defends
Now over the wicket
4.3 -
Ashwin to Dasun Shanaka, no run, almost a fifth. This was looped up on a tantalising line, on the stumps, the ball dipped on Dasun Shanaka, who got forward to drive and got a big inside edge onto the pad, so nearly went through Dasun Shanaka's defences, Ashwin has his hands on his head. This is exceptional spin bowling
Dasun Shanaka, right handed bat, comes to the crease
4.2 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, out Caught by Raina!! Nandan has the finger up in a flash. What is happening here? Asela Gunaratne looks perplexed with the decision. He should be. It went straight off the thigh pad. Was close to the glove, but it turned in and missed the glove, took the thigh pad and an easy catch at leg-slip. Not a huge appeal too from the Indians, but Nandan's finger went up in a jiffy. Ashwin is running through the Sri Lanka line-up and has four now. Asela Gunaratne c Raina b Ashwin 4(12)
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
4.1 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, no run, tossed up around off from round the wicket, Asela Gunaratne gets forward to defend
3.6 -
Bumrah to Siriwardana, FOUR, slightly short and just outside off, Siriwardana quickly picks the length and swings it away over mid-on, makes a decent connection and the ball bounces just once before going over the rope
A widish slip in place for Siriwardana
3.5 -
Bumrah to Asela Gunaratne, 1 run, just short of a good length and in the channel just outside off, Gunaratne waits for the ball to arrive and runs it down to third man to get off strike
3.4 -
Bumrah to Asela Gunaratne, no run, this back of a length delivery skids onto the batsman, who fails to work it away and wears it on the thigh pad. No real appeal for an lbw as it was a little too high
3.3 -
Bumrah to Asela Gunaratne, no run, Gunaratne comes across this time and was looking to wrist this length delivery into the on-side, closes the bat face a little too early and the soft leading edge dribbles away into the off-side
3.2 -
Bumrah to Asela Gunaratne, no run, almost! Length delivery that shapes away outside off, Gunaratne hangs his bat at it and is lucky that he didn't edge it to the keeper, Dhoni tumbles across to his right and gathers it
3.1 -
Bumrah to Asela Gunaratne, no run, this one comes back in from a length just outside off, not enough to trouble Gunaratne though as he shoulders arms
Jasprit Bumrah, right-arm medium, comes into the attack
2.6 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, 1 run, this goes straight on, Asela Gunaratne taps it with an open face to point, looks at Siriwardana and both set off, easily done in the end
Back over the wicket
2.5 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, 2 runs, down leg, swept hard to deep backward square leg, a sliding stop and that prevents the boundary. Two taken
2.4 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, no run, sliding across Asela Gunaratne on a fuller length, pushed to cover off the front foot, tentatively played
2.3 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, no run, spinning down leg, Asela Gunaratne misses the flick, off the pad and dropped at leg-slip. No bat on that for sure
2.2 -
Ashwin to Asela Gunaratne, no run, the carrom ball on the stumps, Asela Gunaratne gets forward and defends
Milinda Siriwardana Left-hand bat, comes to the crease
2.1 -
Ashwin to Chandimal, out Caught by Pandya!! Awful stuff from the Lankan skipper. Atrocious. This is just the third over and against a red-hot Ashwin, he has decided to charge the bowler and despite not getting to the pitch of it, goes for an ill-timed loft, one hand came off the bat handle, the balance was all awry and the ball loops off a leading edge and straight up in the air, Pandya settles under the skier, somewhere near mid-off and the catch is taken. Ashwin is all smiles and now on a hat-trick. Sri Lanka are falling apart spectacularly. Chandimal c Pandya b Ashwin 8(9) [4s-2]
Ashwin to Chandimal, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
1.6 -
Nehra to Chandimal, leg byes, 1 run, sliding down leg, Chandimal once again falls over on the flick, the ball takes the pad and they take a leg-bye
1.5 -
Nehra to Chandimal, FOUR, streaky but four. Chandimal charges Nehra and gets it high on the bat, the ball angled in and was following the batsman, Chandimal though lofted it over mid-on. Hit on the high part of the bat but cleared the fielder, beats Rohit's chase and slide from mid-on
1.4 -
Nehra to Chandimal, no run, Nehra cramps Chandimal for room on the cut, Chandimal finds point
1.3 -
Nehra to Chandimal, FOUR, nails the front foot slash this time. The width was there and Chandimal on one knee got it over cover-point. In the air but well over the fielder. When there is width, Chandimal will go hard and will look to maximise the run-scoring opportunities
1.2 -
Nehra to Chandimal, no run, shortish outside off, Chandimal completely mistimes the cut, finds cover
1.1 -
Nehra to Chandimal, no run, big shout for lbw, but sliding down leg, Chandimal falls over on the flick and is hit on the pad
Asela Gunaratne, right handed bat, comes to the crease
Ashish Nehra, left-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
0.6 -
Ashwin to Dilshan, out Lbw!! This is plumb. Terrible start for Sri Lanka. Similar delivery to the fourth ball of the over, when there was a huge shout for lbw. Tossed up around off, turned in and beat Dilshan's flick. Struck in-line and would've hit off and middle. Not sure why Dilshan was shaking his head on the way back. He didn't get outside the line of off for sure and nor was it spinning down. Brilliant over from Ashwin. Two in the over and already the match has turned India's way. Dilshan lbw b Ashwin 1(2)
Ashwin to Dilshan, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!
0.5 -
Ashwin to Chandimal, leg byes, 1 run, fired down leg, Chandimal misses the sweep, the leg-stump was visible, lucky that it got deflected off the pad of the batsman and they take a leg-bye as the ball dribbles away behind square on the leg-side
0.4 -
Ashwin to Chandimal, no run, loud shout for lbw! This one turned in and beat Chandimal's flick, did he get outside the line of off? That is the only reason that could've saved Chandimal, or was it spinning down leg? The umpire shakes his head and negates the appeal. Need a replay to confirm. Wonder whether we will get one though
Dinesh Chandimal, right handed bat, comes to the crease
0.3 -
Ashwin to Dickwella, out Stumped!! So easy. As easy as snatching candy from a kid. What was Dickwella doing? He hadn't got his eye in and he decides to charge Ashwin, pre-meditated and pays the price. It was bowled slower and turned away past the bat, miles out. Dhoni indulges in some play-acting as he takes his time to flick the bails off. Against a champion bowler like Ashwin, on a turning wicket, you need to get your eye in before going for a big hit. Inexperience showing! Dickwella st Dhoni b Ashwin 1(2)
Ashwin to Dickwella, THAT'S OUT!! Stumped!!
0.2 -
Ashwin to Dilshan, 1 run, slower and turned in a tad, Dilshan was on the back foot trying to punch, is lucky that the inside edge misses the stumps and runs wide, gets a single to the unmanned backward square leg region, off the mark in an iffy way
Stays round the wicket to Dilshan as well
0.1 -
Ashwin to Dickwella, 1 run, hint of drift in for Ashwin, Dickwella uses his feet and flicks through mid-wicket, off the mark
Dickwella and Dilshan are at the crease. Dickwella is on strike. Ashwin will open the attack
On behalf of Siva, Abhishek, Bharath, Sriram and my co-commentator Srivathsa, this is Sidhant Maheshwari, signing off. Take care folks!
That's it then! India maintain their top ranking in T20Is, while Sri Lanka are currently third. The next assignment for both these sides is the Asia Cup. Before heading over to Bangladesh, the players must be looking forward to this short break to rejuvenate themselves. Cricket doesn't stop though and you can switch tabs to follow the PSL game between Quetta Gladiators and Peshawar Zalmi.
The journey then moved from Dhoni's new T20 League home to his hometown, Ranchi, for the second match. The pitch was bald and the ground no different. The Indians made merry with Shikhar Dhawan registering his first ever T20I fifty. And on a flat deck that started turning later, the Indian bowlers crushed the hosts by 69 runs to level the series. If the second match was a display of Indian supremacy, the last game only attested it. The bowlers, led by R Ashwin, bundled out Sri Lanka for their lowest T20I total. The batsmen in reply did not break a sweat to help India retain the No. 1 ranking in the T20I format. This is the kind of preparation India wanted ahead of the World T20. In 9 days from now, they will start their Asia Cup campaign and Dhoni would hope that his team continues the winning run.
Series summary: Having clean swept Australia in the T20Is a few weeks ago, India were in high spirits going into the series against a rookie Sri Lankan setup. However, they were in for a surprise on a green pitch in Pune, as the Lankan pacers bowled them out for a modest total. Debutant Kasun Rajitha was the star of the match, and he ended up with figures of 3 for 29. Though the chase did not start on a great note, skipper Chandimal scored run-a-ball 35 to make sure that the visitors won by 5 wickets, taking a 1-0 lead.
Dhoni: I feel it was a very good game. It was important to restrict them to a decent total after we opted to bowl. I felt the bowlers bowled really well, especially the spinners and Ashwin was the pick of the bowlers today. In between, you will lose one or two games and that's fair. You want to go hard at times and sometimes it doesn't come off when you end up losing too many wickets. We want to keep playing the way we are. The consistency in our performances will give us the kind of confidence we want to have when we play this format. We have got experienced players, 8 seasons of T20 League we all have played. In international cricket, we have played one or two games here and then. It's the T20 League that has given us the chance to groom ourselves in this format, the experience we need to play in this format. That extra batter at eight helps us a lot. With a few part-timers, there are many players who can do both the jobs and that's helping us a lot. The conditions have been good and it's been great to exploit those conditions here. In these conditions, the part-timers come into play. That gives us the liberty of trying out a few things. If one of the bowlers have an off day, someone else can chip in. What's important for us is to be expressive. We need to take one game at a time, the build-up has been good. The Asia Cup and the few warm-up games should help us before the World T20. Every side has got a few players that can take the game away from the opposition and that's where the experience will count. It should be a good T20 World Cup. Every side is good enough to win the World T20. We will have to try and play our best cricket if we want to win that tournament.
Ashwin: I hope this lasts forever. The ball is coming out well and in all the three games, I have had a good time with the ball. Thankfully, I had a bat in Pune as well. I have been working really hard with the trainer, the fielding coach as well. I want to contribute, I want to be an attribute to the team and I don't want to be deficient in any department. I was looking for a five-for today. The wicket had a lot of dampness and the ball was gripping the surface. I wanted to pick up a five-for in a T20I. I have a couple of variations, I have a good arm ball and a good carrom ball. I try to keep the batsmen guessing and if I pick one or two wickets in the powerplay, I am a different bowler altogether. I am bowling well and I have been challenging the batters well. It is important to know how much of a window you have to flight the ball. I always have the courage to go for runs and I always have the courage to flight the ball.
Ravichandran Ashwin is the Man of the Match for his figures of 4-1-8-4. He is also the Man of the Series.
Chandimal: It was really difficult. As batsmen, we didn't perform throughout the series. We kept losing wickets, we needed to get 140+ to have a chance. Unfortunately, we couldn't do it. It happens with an inexperienced side, they were trying to hit a lot of boundaries. We will try to learn from this. I am very impressed with the bowlers, Chameera and Shanaka. We need to regroup as a team and we are looking forward to the next tournament.
There are a lot of positives for India after this clinical performance. Dhawan continues to get runs and the way spinners have bowled, they are going to be the biggest threat to the teams touring India next month for the World T20. With such a small target in sight, Dhoni could have opted to send Yuvraj ahead of Rahane but when a team is winning, the captain does not tend to experiment much with the set order. Stay tuned for the final presentation of the series....
While cricket is a game of glorious uncertainties, there are times when the result is all but decided halfway through the match. It was only befitting that the Indian batsmen continued the good run and got to the target with ease. What was surprising to see was the fact that the pitch, which was turning miles when the Sri Lankans were batting, did not look like having demons when the hosts batted. Though the ball started turning later in the innings, the target was too small to create any trouble for the Indians.
13.5 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, FOUR, India win! So easily done. They keep their No. 1 ranking in T20Is by virtue of this win. Great timing on this lofted cover drive to end things. It was overpitched outside off and Dhawan creamed that, raced away. No big celebrations from the Indian camp. Perhaps they were surprised at how easy this win was in the end. When Ravi Shaz lazily gets up and shakes hands without puffing his chest out and flashing that million dollar cheeky grin, then you know that it is a cakewalk. Don't look for any other word when it comes to describing this win. Dhawan ends it in style and we have an early finish!
13.4 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, SIX, when he hit it, I thought he had holed out. But look at the timing on that one. Was deceived by the full one outside off, but went through with the loft and cleared long-off. Kept the fielder interested all the while and eluded his desperate lunge and leap. What a shot that is, despite getting beaten off the pitch
13.3 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, 2 runs, Dhawan gets outside off and paddles it over the keeper, pre-meditated but got it in the gap and hares back for the second. Quick and aggressive running
13.2 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, 1 run, now punches a single to long-on
13.1 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, 2 runs, driven to long-on, a sliding stop keeps it a couple, Rahane showed the full face that time and drove it off the middle of the bat
Now the pitch is starting to play tricks. It is becoming increasingly difficult to time the ball. The odd one is turning and keeping low. Sri Lanka lost the plot, a score of 140 could've been match-winning on this one. Should've taken their time and gauged how the wicket was playing, instead of trying to attack from ball one against the best spinner in the world at the moment. That's where the match and the series was lost - R Ashwin's first spell
12.6 -
Dilshan to Rahane, 1 run, kept low but Rahane adjusted and pulled it to deep backward square leg, retains the strike with that run
12.5 -
Dilshan to Dhawan, 1 run, skids on and Dhawan pulls without any great timing to deep mid-wicket
12.4 -
Dilshan to Dhawan, no run, stays back and a hint of turn finds the leading edge, again it doesn't carry to cover-point
12.3 -
Dilshan to Dhawan, no run, flat and stops on the advancing Dhawan, who chops and finds cover-point
12.2 -
Dilshan to Rahane, 1 run, Rahane uses his feet and drives to long-on
12.1 -
Dilshan to Dhawan, 1 run, dropped in front of point, easily done
Tillakaratne Dilshan, right-arm off break, comes into the attack
11.6 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, 1 run, on the pads, tucked to deep square leg
11.5 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, no run, well bowled. Angled in and then it straightens to go past the outside edge. Dhawan was playing inside the line and is lucky that it didn't take a feather. This guy posing a few problems with his cutters
11.4 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, 1 run, now gets lucky again and has a wry smile on his face after seeing the ball land well in front of long-off. Rahane made room to go big and once again the ball stopped on the pitch, defeating his big hit
11.3 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, no run, hands on head moment for Asela Gunaratne. Rahane bottom-edges a pre-meditated slog, luckily the ball hits the pad and rolls away
11.2 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, 1 run, offie outside off, Dhawan gets forward and drives to long-off
11.1 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, no run, gently driven back to Asela Gunaratne, cautiously played by Dhawan
10.6 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, 1 run, tapped in front of cover, this time the quick single is taken easily
10.5 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, beaten in the flight as he used his feet, the slight turn away takes the leading edge, but drops well in front of anyone on the off-side, no chance of a quick single either
10.4 -
Senanayake to Rahane, 1 run, flat and quick on off, Rahane rocks back and nurdles a single to deep backward square leg
10.3 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, 1 run, uses his feet and then drives to long-off
10.2 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, very full from round the wicket, around off, Dhawan gets forward and dead-bats
10.1 -
Senanayake to Rahane, 1 run, offie turns in, stays a bit low, Rahane rocks back and pulls to deep backward square leg
Sachithra Senanayake [3.0-0-18-0] is back into the attack
9.6 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, 1 run, this stays a bit low, but it is outside off, punched past the diving bowler and down to long-off for a single
9.5 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, no run, this offie stops on Rahane, he rocks back and takes one hand off the bat handle, awkwardly nudged to mid-wicket, the ball is in the air but falls well in front of the fielder
9.4 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, 1 run, quick length delivery on leg stump, Dhawan nudges it through mid-wicket for a single
9.3 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, 1 run, very full on the stumps, Rahane gets forward and wrists it to long-on
9.2 -
Asela Gunaratne to Rahane, no run, turns in and Rahane misses the forward defence, is hit above the kneeroll, but no real appeal for lbw as it was going down
9.1 -
Asela Gunaratne to Dhawan, 1 run, turns away from Dhawan, he taps it wide of cover, for a single
Asela Gunaratne, right-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
8.6 -
Siriwardana to Dhawan, 1 run, every now and then Dhawan is losing all shape on the big hits. On the stumps, Dhawan mistimes the sweep to deep backward square leg, went too hard on the shot
8.5 -
Siriwardana to Rahane, 1 run, well tossed up on the stumps, Rahane makes room and drives to long-off
8.4 -
Siriwardana to Dhawan, 1 run, tossed up on the legs, flicked to deep backward square leg
8.3 -
Siriwardana to Dhawan, FOUR, beautifully done. Knew short third was inside the ring and got his hands in position to reverse sweep that past the diving fielder. All about cricketing and common sense. So easily done
8.2 -
Siriwardana to Rahane, 1 run, flat and down leg, Rahane is on his knee and pulls to deep backward square leg
8.1 -
Siriwardana to Dhawan, 1 run, Dhawan does a 360 degree turn as his balance is all shot on the pull, manages a single to deep mid-wicket
Milinda Siriwardana, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack
7.6 -
Chameera to Dhawan, 1 run, Dhawan shuffles across outside off and the ball is angled across him, dabbed down to third man, Rahane wanted two, but since it was Dilhara who has a strong arm, Dhawan sent his partner back
7.5 -
Chameera to Rahane, 1 run, another slower delivery, on middle, Rahane flicks through the vacant mid-wicket
7.4 -
Chameera to Dhawan, 1 run, dug in short on the stumps, Dhawan pulls to deep backward square leg
7.3 -
Chameera to Rahane, 1 run, rolls the slower delivery from the side of his hand, Rahane waits for it and nudges it to fine leg
7.2 -
Chameera to Rahane, 2 runs, fraction short and Rahane pulls to deep backward square leg, placed in the gap and two it is
This fellow, Chameera is a fine prospect. Can bowl upwards of 90mph and has a clean smooth action. Wiry too and he is all arms and limbs. One to look out for in the future, if he can keep himself fit. Is hitting the bat hard. Can seam the ball at pace, which is a great asset
7.1 -
Chameera to Rahane, no run, pacy good length delivery on off, Rahane gets forward to defend it back to Chameera
6.6 -
S Prasanna to Dhawan, no run, flicked to the left of mid-wicket where there is another diving stop made
6.5 -
S Prasanna to Rahane, 1 run, keeps a bit low, tucked behind square
6.4 -
S Prasanna to Dhawan, leg byes, 1 run, "aaahhhhhh" go Prasanna and the keeper. Not sure what language that appeal belongs to. Certainly not English or Sinhalese. Comical stuff. Especially when it has pitched well outside leg. Full and Dhawan misses the sweep, they take a quick leg-bye
6.3 -
S Prasanna to Rahane, 1 run, full leggie on the stumps, flicked to long-on
6.2 -
S Prasanna to Dhawan, 1 run, very full outside off, Dhawan gets forward and drives to long-off
6.1 -
S Prasanna to Dhawan, no run, flicked to the left of mid-wicket where there is a tumbling stop
Seekkuge Prasanna, right-arm leg break, comes into the attack
5.6 -
Chameera to Rahane, no run, this time misses out. This was the slower delivery and Rahane failed to tap that on its head, outside off and well inside the tramline as well
5.5 -
Chameera to Rahane, FOUR, brilliant shot. Chameera is running in and bowling at pace, but Rahane is up to it. Flashes a short and wide delivery over point. Generated tremendous bat speed and put the offering away, crashed into the fence. Similar to how Sachin Tendulkar used to carve quick bowlers when they used to drag it down. Using the pace to great effect. Following in the great Mumbaikar's footsteps
5.4 -
Chameera to Rahane, leg byes, 2 runs, poor from the Lankans in the field. This nipped back sharply, rapped Rahane high on the thigh pad, the batsmen run for a leg-bye, needless throw from Dilshan with no backing up and they sneak in another. Not required when the batsmen are well in
5.3 -
Chameera to Rahane, no run, full outside off, Rahane gets forward and shoulders arms
Ajinkya Rahane, right handed bat, comes to the crease
5.2 -
Chameera to Rohit, out Lbw!! Plumb. Chameera punches the air. No footwork from Rohit and he is gone, playing across the line to a full delivery on middle. No questions about height either and an easy call for Anil Chaudhary. Rohit was beaten for pace as well. Rohit lbw b Chameera 13(13) [4s-1 6s-1]
Chameera to Rohit, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!
5.1 -
Chameera to Rohit, FOUR, freebie first up from Chameera, sliding down leg with fine leg up in the circle, swatted away to the right of the fielder. The fielder just watched the ball run past him
Dushmantha Chameera, right-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
4.6 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, ooh! Early into the pull, and the toe end dribbles to leg. This was bowled slower and got stuck on the pitch, Dhawan went back thinking it was short, but since the pitch is slow, that defeated him
4.5 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, Dhawan shimmies down, Sena keeps it flat on off, Dhawan punches it back to the bowler
4.4 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, darted in flat on the stumps, Dhawan uses his feet and nudges to mid-wicket
4.3 -
Senanayake to Rohit, 1 run, again down the track, but adjusts and then punches it to long-on, it was bowled slower and Senanayake pulled the length back that time
4.2 -
Senanayake to Rohit, SIX, "woohhhhh" goes Haydos on air after seeing that shot. That shot deserved such a reaction. Down the track and just a flick of the wrists and sends the white Kookaburra soaring over wide long-on. How well has he timed that? Superbly and into the crowd
4.1 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, 1 run, Dhawan is looking to be aggressive, kneels down and is early into the sweep, drags it to deep backward square leg
3.6 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, 1 run, Dhawan uses his feet and gets an inside edge on the drive, the ball rolls wide of the stumps and they take a single
3.5 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, no run, a little shimmy outside leg, before coming into line, Dhawan then drives to cover-point
3.4 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, FOUR, good batting. Dilhara Fernando dragged it down, seeing Dhawan advance, but Dhawan adjusts and swivels to pull wide of short fine inside the ring. Rode the bounce and even though it was on the hips, got a boundary
Raina and Ashwin are all smiles
3.3 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, no run, tight length delivery on off, Dhawan defends to cover and sends Rohit back
3.2 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, no run, slower delivery outside off, Dhawan went hard on the drive, the bat face closed early and dribbles to mid-off
3.1 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, no run, length delivery outside off, Dhawan punches it to point
2.6 -
Senanayake to Rohit, no run, pushed to the right of Senanayake
2.5 -
Senanayake to Rohit, no run, ooh! Rohit went back to play that ball which he should've been forward to, goes straight on and keeps a bit low, takes the bottom edge, but doesn't carry to slip. That was well bowled by Senanayake
2.4 -
Senanayake to Rohit, no run, that was good fielding. Rohit got forward and laced the square drive, but cover-point moved to his left and made a sharp stop. Saved four
2.3 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, 1 run, turns the strike over with a single to backward square leg
2.2 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, FOUR, terrific shot. This was slower and on the stumps, Dhawan rocked back and pummelled a pull through mid-wicket, picked the length early and even though it was a bit short, he nailed it
2.1 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, down leg, Dhawan is early into the sweep, off the toe end and finds mid-wicket
1.6 -
Dilhara Fernando to Rohit, no run, short of length and cramping Rohit for room, he dabs it to backward point
1.5 -
Dilhara Fernando to Dhawan, 1 run, on the pads, tucked to deep backward square leg
1.4 -
Dilhara Fernando to Rohit, 1 run, Rohit went for a big cover drive, to a full delivery outside off, but got a thick inside edge through square leg, the bat turned on impact too
1.3 -
Dilhara Fernando to Rohit, no run, full outside off, Rohit gets forward and drives hard, but straight to the fielder at mid-off
1.2 -
Dilhara Fernando to Rohit, no run, back of a length outside off, bit of extra bounce, Rohit mistimes the cut, finds point
1.1 -
Dilhara Fernando to Rohit, no run, swing for Dilhara Fernando, first up, full and Rohit pushes it back to him
Dilhara Fernando, right-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
0.6 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, tossed up just outside off, Dhawan comes forward to push at it, the ball drifts in and beats the inside edge of Dhawan. It was very close to the off stump, but missed it by a whisker. The keeper can't collect it cleanly either
0.5 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, FOUR, nailed it! This time Dhawan kneels across and goes for the sweep, even though his bottom hand came off the handle, he still manages to clear the fielder at backward square leg, runs away to the fence in a jiffy
0.4 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, drifting in from outside off, Dhawan puts his front foot forward and pads it away. No shot offered and the bowler goes up for an lbw appeal, not coming back enough though to hit the stumps. The umpire tells the same to the bowler
0.3 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, slightly quicker and pushes Dhawan back into the crease, he bunts it back down the pitch
0.2 -
Senanayake to Dhawan, no run, slower through the air and just outside off, Dhawan lunges forward in defence
A slip in place
0.1 -
Senanayake to Rohit, 1 run, turning in on the pads, Rohit works it backward of square leg and gets off the mark with a single
Rohit and Dhawan are at the crease. Rohit is on strike. Senanayake will open the attack