Sri Lanka fell to 102/1 after Kuldeep (3/51) took three wickets in his first five overs, just as debutantes Nuwanidu Fernando (50 from 63 balls) and Kusal Mendis (34 from 34 balls) appeared to be beginning to frustrate Indian bowlers with a quick counterattack following the Powerplay.
Dodda Ganesh, a former India pacer, was very sarcastic after Kuldeep’s performance about the bowler being dropped frequently despite good performances.
Enough, Kuldeep. Pick only a few wickets. After Kuldeep’s performance, Ganesh tweeted, The odds of u being dropped for the next match are really high #DoddaMathu #CricketTwitter #INDvSL.
However, after choosing to bat on a flat deck, the visitors lost five wickets in 43 balls as Kuldeep ran through the Sri Lankan middle order, which included Dasun Shanaka (2), the prized scalp of the opposing skipper.
But Dunith Wellalage’s (32 runs) and Wanindu Hasaranga’s (21 runs) late fireworks got the team past the 200-run mark before Siraj (5.4-0-30-3) finished off the tail.
From his seven overs, the young Umran Malik also returned with figures of 2/48.
Nuwanindu Fernando, a young man, made a solid start by replacing Pathum Nissanka, who was in good form but had a stiff back. He and Kusal Mendis (34 runs) put together a 73-run partnership for his debut.
Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj, both Indian new ball bowlers, swung both ways, causing some early movement.
After Siraj’s breakthrough in the powerplay, the 23-year-old, along with Mendis, led Sri Lanka past the 100-point mark and appeared to be in complete command of the game.
Before bowling Siraj with an incoming delivery that required an inside edge to unsettle the middle stump, Avishka Fernando took Siraj to the cleaners, smashing him with three boundaries in a row. However, the pacer had the final word when he bowled him.
Sri Lanka successfully recovered from 29/1 in just six overs, despite Rohit’s attempts to field Hardik Pandya and Umran Malik.
