Sri Lanka National Cricket Team vs India National Cricket Team Timeline

The game at Pallekele had all the trappings of a thrilling Super Over. But it ended as a tie, and the players were left confused.

Suryakumar Yadav, playing in his first T20I as India’s skipper, baffled Sri Lanka’s batsmen in the death overs. He picked up two wickets to put the brakes on a brisk run chase from the hosts.

In this article, we will discuss the main points or high lights of Sri Lanka National Cricket Team vs India National Cricket Team Timeline.

Sri Lanka Playing XI

India Playing XI

India vs Sri Lanka 1st ODI

After a long time, Sri Lanka and India have treated fans to a thriller in an ODI match. The game ended in a tie after 98 overs of cricket. The game was full of ebbs and flows, both sides having a chance to take the lead at different times. The first ODI between the two teams was played at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.

After winning the toss, Sri Lanka decided to bat first. The hosts put on a fighting total of 231 runs in their 50 overs. Dunith Wellalage’s unbeaten 67 helped them to achieve the target. He was supported by Wanindu Hasaranga (3/58) and Charith Asalanka (3/30).

India started their run-chase in good spirits with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill in the middle. But the Indian openers fell in quick succession to Hasaranga and Asalanka. This left the team in a precarious situation at 16/0.

But the duo managed to pull things back and got India within sight of the victory. But they lost momentum once the spinners were introduced. Charith Asalanka bowled some tidy overs to keep the scoreboard under control.

Towards the end, India were one hit away from the victory but were denied by a brilliant review call. The umpire ruled that the ball had clipped the leg stump before hitting the batsman on the back foot.

Rohit Sharma was disappointed to have missed out on a win but called the result a fair result. He said that they fought hard and were unlucky in a few instances to miss out on the victory. He added that the pitch was good for both batting and bowling and the team knew that they would get into the hunt once the spinners were brought on. He further said that he was not going to look too much into the result as it was a close game. However, he also felt that they should have got that one run to seal the victory. He praised the support of the fans for making the game such a special occasion. He wished them a great season ahead.

India vs Sri Lanka 2nd ODI

India are in a difficult position after losing the first match of the three-match ODI series to Sri Lanka. The Men in Blue will need to win the last game to avoid a whitewash. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, are looking to take full advantage of this opportunity and clinch the series in their home soil. The second ODI between the two sides will be played at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat in the first ODI. The hosts were able to put up a total of 240 runs in the first innings. The batting performance by Sri Lanka was not impressive, but the bowlers were outstanding. The leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay picked up six wickets in the match, and he was ably supported by Charith Asalanka and Dunith Wellalage.

The Indian team will have to be more clinical if they are to win the remaining matches. Their batting has struggled against spinners so far and it is clear that they need to improve their technique. They must also be a lot more aggressive when the situation demands it. It will be interesting to see how the batsmen will adjust to the conditions in Sri Lanka.

Rohit Sharma and his team have the chance to make amends in the 2nd ODI. However, they must not take the Sri Lankan team lightly. The first game was close, so Sri Lanka will not want to give any room for mistakes. They are a dangerous side and will not be afraid to push the Indians.

The weather is clear and sunny right now. There is a chance of some passing showers later in the day. The teams are warming up. The toss will be at 2:00 pm IST. The match will be telecast on the Sony Sports Network and can also be streamed live on the Sony Liv app. Wanindu Hasaranga has been ruled out of the rest of the series with a hamstring injury, so Jeffrey Vandersay will replace him in the Sri Lankan team.

India vs Sri Lanka 3rd ODI

The Rohit Sharma-led side has a golden opportunity to level the series at Sri Lanka’s R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. But that will require a lot of changes in the playing XI. The batting department will especially have to go through a major overhaul.

The batting department has failed to impress in the two ODIs thus far, while the bowling attack has been superb. Sri Lanka is known for their spinners and that will be a major challenge for the Indian batters to overcome.

Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando once again got the hosts off to a flying start in their opening partnership. The pair added 41 runs in the first 10 overs and set Sri Lanka up for a score above 200. But it was a familiar story for the Lankans once again as their middle order crumbled at crucial moments.

In the end, Sri Lanka ended up on 248/7. But that was not enough to win the game. They were unable to build an unassailable lead and ended up losing the match by 32 runs. Charith Asalanka’s men are now just one defeat away from winning their first bilateral ODI series against India in 27 years.

Riyan Parag replaces Axar Patel in the middle for India. The debutant begins well as he slams the first delivery for a boundary. But Sri Lanka are quick to get back in the game. Kamindu Mendis drills a six over mid-wicket and adds a couple of more with another shot. Theekshana then hits a six over long-on.

Mohammed Siraj is a bit off the mark and that allows Nissanka to flick a couple through leg-side for four runs. He takes a single off the next ball and that puts him on 92/6 in 14 overs.

In the 16th over, Washington Sundar comes on to bowl for India. He has a good rhythm and is bowling at a nice pace. He is not giving any room to the batsmen. Theekshana reaches the century off just 62 balls and becomes the second highest run scorer for India in the series behind Smriti Mandhana.

India vs Sri Lanka 4th ODI

India wrapped up the four-match ODI series against Sri Lanka with an emphatic 168-run victory in Colombo. A brilliant century from Virat Kohli and a sparkling half-century from Rohit Sharma helped India post a colossal total of 375 runs. The innings was anchored by the pair’s 219-run second-wicket partnership which broke a number of records. It was the highest second-wicket stand between two Indian batsmen in ODI cricket and it also improved on the previous best of 318 at Taunton and 236 at Nagpur, set by Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.

India bowlers were on the money with Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav picking up wickets. Moreover, the fielding side was solid and inflicted two run-outs.

The Sri Lanka batsmen lacked any application with only Angelo Mathews showing some fight on the crease. A couple of poor dropped catches didn’t help their cause either. With this defeat, they are now staring at a whitewash against India and it will be a huge blow to their hopes of directly qualifying for the 2019 World Cup.

Debutant Shardul Thakur gave the visitors the first breakthrough when he had Niroshan Dickwella caught at slip by MS Dhoni. The umpire initially gave the batsman not-out but India went for a review. Eventually, replays showed that the ball had indeed touched the gloves of Dickwella.

Bumrah continues his impressive form with the ball and dismisses Malinda Pushpakumara in similar fashion. The right-arm pacer produces a short delivery around off, which is edged by Pushpakumara. He couldn’t hold onto the catch and the ball falls towards fine leg for a wicket.

The new batsmen at the crease for Sri Lanka are Manish Pandey and KL Rahul and they will need to up their game if they want to save this match. Meanwhile, veteran fast bowler Lasith Malinga picks up his 300th ODI wicket. He will cherish this moment for a long time to come. He says that he is enjoying his cricket and is still motivated to play for the country. He adds that he is looking forward to the next series and wants to get back in his groove soon.