Mumbai: As expected India completed a whitewash of the Sri Lankans by winning the third and final game of the T20 series at the by five wickets at the Wankhede Stadium here, Sunday. They thus won the series 3-0, having convincingly won at Cuttack and Indore.
But then it was not an easy win on a pitch that had bounce, movement and carry for the bowlers. After Sri Lanka had been restricted to 135 for seven in their 20 overs, the Indians huffed and puffed before the experience of Dinesh Karthik (18, 12b, 1×6) and MS Dhoni (16 n o, 10b, 2×4) saw them over the line.
It was a series completely dominated by the Indians and it unearthed quite a few players, who will certainly add to India’s bench strength. The return of man of the match as well as of the series, Jaydev Unadkak (2/15 on the day) definitely bodes well for Indian cricket. On a comeback trail, Unadkat impressed all with his skills and his ability to achieve early breakthroughs.
The victory also propelled India to second position in the list of highest number of wins in a season. India won 35 games across all formats in 2017; a figure which is second only to the 37 achieved by Steve Waugh’s all conquering Aussie side in 2003. Ravi Shastri was not far away from the money when he said, “This team have the potential to challenge any team in the world in all conditions.”
Whether Shastri’s comments will come true, the 2018 season will unravel when India play most of their games away from home. But coming back to the game, India were dominant with the ball making early inroads. T20 debutant Washington Sundar (1/22) and Unadkat rocked Sri Lanka to have them reeling at 18 for three in the fourth over. Even though Asela Gunaratne (36, 37b, 3×4) tried to steady the ship, the others were not ready to hang in. The efforts of Dasun Shanaka (29 n o, 24b, 2×6) took Sri Lanka past the 130-run mark.
Shanaka (2/27) was good with the ball also, getting rid of Rohit Sharma (27, 20b, 4×4, 1×6) and Manish Pandey (32, 29b, 4×4). On a pitch where the ball jagged back and at times bounced, those were useful contributions indeed. Shreyas Iyer (30, 32b, 1×4, 1×6) even though a bit slow, helped India’s cause and then Dhoni and Karthik saw India home comfortably with four balls to spare.
Agencies