Pallekele: India will fancy their chances of wrapping up the five-match series when they lock horns with a beleaguered Sri Lanka side in the third ODI here Sunday. The visitors lead 2-0 and can wrap up the contest with another win here before leaving for the last two matches of the tour in Colombo.
The Men in Blue haven’t played much ODI cricket here, and Thursday’s game which they won by three wickets was only their second at this venue, having played previously in 2012. It does reflect on their 100 per cent record here then, and the short two-day gap between the second and third ODIs will help them take the winning momentum forward.
The big question is if skipper Virat Kohli will continue with his bold approach when it comes to team strategy, if not team selection.
Ahead of the second ODI, he had outlined the need to give ample opportunity to the youngsters in the side, particularly the bowlers. As such, it is only to be expected that Axar Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal will continue to be frontline spinners then.
However, the complication in the 231-run chase in the second ODI occurred due to a shuffle in the batting order. After a great start, Kohli sent in KL Rahul and Kedar Jadhav ahead of him. The mini-experiment failed spectacularly, but because of MS Dhoni and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, India managed to scrape through.
Hardik Pandya’s availability for the third ODI remained a question mark as the all-rounder wore a light strap on his left knee, though the team management assured that the player is fully fit and available for Sunday’s game.
While India could yet field an unchanged combination, there are bound to be changes for the Sri Lankan playing XI. With Upul Tharanga suspended there is every possibility that Dinesh Chandimal will be included in the playing XI. Lahiru Thirimanne who has also been drafted into the side will in all probability open the innings with Niroshan Dickwella as Danushka Gunathilaka has been ruled out with injury.
press trust of india
