Same old collapse story for Lanka, India wrap series

SYNOPSIS: In a rain-curtailed fixture at Pallekele, Sri Lanka’s batting collapses for a second successive night as India make full use of it to wrap up the series with a match to go.

Walk in the park

Three balls into India’s chase of 162 – which was definitely below par on the flat deck at Pallekele – Sri Lanka had a rain break to thank. The nearly hour-long break after a 40-minute delayed start meant, instead of going at 8 runs an over in their chase, the revised DLS target (78 off 8 overs) meant India needed to go at 10 runs an over. When Sanju Samson was dismissed for a first-ball zero soon after the break ended, it seemed as if the capacity crowd had a game on hand.

But India didn’t even flinch. With Yashasvi Jaiswal and Suryakumar Yadav leading the charge before Hardik Pandya gave the finishing touches, India crossed the line with nine deliveries to spare. They lost three wickets in the chase, but given the risk they had to take, it was acceptable.

As skipper Suryakumar said, this may be a team with a new captain and head coach, but the train is very much the same. In bilateral fixtures, they have had a habit of demolishing opponents, and this was another resounding win. The only chance Sri Lanka had in defending the total was if they picked wickets at regular intervals. But India’s batting line-up was never conceding an inch.

Collapse again

After losing 9 wickets for 30 runs in the first match, batting first on Sunday, Sri Lanka’s innings took a similar route. With Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Perera giving a blistering start after the loss of Kusal Mendis in the fourth over, India were short of answers. Sans Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav Sri Lanka’s batting has shown what better teams can do to this Indian attack.

Pallekele: Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera plays a shot during the first T20 International cricket match of a series between India and Sri Lanka at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, in Pallekele, Saturday, July 27, 2024. (PTI Photo/Kunal Patil)

After a 40-minute delayed start because of rain, on a flat deck India’s attack bowled well in the powerplay, before Perera joined Nissanka. Like his idol Sanath Jayasuriya, who is currently Sri Lanka’s interim head coach, Perera is strong off his legs and puts his wrists to good use and is strong on either side of the square. With the left-right duo in the middle, it didn’t help India a great deal either. The 54-run stand was broken only through a half-hearted appeal from Ravi Bishnoi whose googly managed to strike Nissanka’s pad first as he attempted a cut.

Then in company of Kamindu Mendis, who struggled for fluency, Perera still managed to get 50 runs in the next five overs. On a flat deck, with a wet outfield to account for, at 130/2 with five overs left, a total of 200 remained within Sri Lanka’s reach.

The knockout blows

But out of nowhere, just like he did it in Barbados a month back, Pandya ejected both the settled batsmen in the same over, with Rinku Singh taking their catches at deep square-leg. The twin strikes brought India back into the game, and in no time they would take full control. Leading that charge after Pandya’s impact was Bishnoi – one who was unlucky to miss the T20 World Cup bus – as his skiddy, quick deliveries fetched him the wickets of Dasun Shanaka and Wanindu Hasaragana off successive balls in the next over. In the space of 10 deliveries, Sri Lanka lost four wickets and the slide would continue thereafter with their skipper Charith Asalanka too unable to provide any fireworks.

Brief scores: Sri Lanka 161/9 in 20 overs (Kusal Perera 53, Pathum Nissanka 32, Ravi Bishnoi 3/26, Hardik Pandya 2/23) lost to India 81/3 in 6.3 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 30) by DLS method.

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