But the locals understand their weather well and by the time the Sri Lanka openers took to the crease, the stands at R Premadasa were already filled to the brim.
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Nevertheless, India controlled the final five overs exceedingly as they conceded just 32 runs and picked four wickets in it to restrict Sri Lanka to 152 for nine in the 20 overs.
India avenged their loss and their disappointing showing against Sri Lanka by winning comfortably by 6 wickets on Monday.
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Sri Lanka offspinner Akila Dananjaya dismissed India openers Rohit Sharma (11) and Shikhar Dhawan (8) inside four overs, but the target of 153 wasn’t going to test the strong India batting unit. He didn’t bag a third wicket in the day but remained the only bowler to have caused the Indian batsmen any sort of trouble.
Pandey and Karthick kept the rotating the strike as India needed 30 runs from last four overs.The two remained undefeated as India crossed the mark in 18th over. But Manish Pandey (42) and Dinesh Karthik (39) played unbeaten knock to take India through the victory line with 9 balls to spare.
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, will be without their skipper Dinesh Chandimal in their upcoming two matches.
Thisara suffered his seventh T20I defeat in seven games as Sri Lanka skipper while India stay at the top of the tri-series table. “Also, the way they (Pandey and Karthik) finished the game, it was crucial”.
Put in to bat, Sri Lanka lost their wickets at regular intervals in a match which was curtailed to 19 overs due to rain. Rohit Sharma has been miserable in leading the team from the front rather has got out cheaply in all three matches and has left the team in trouble. Washington Sundar also scalped two wickets.
Kusal Mendis hit three sixes and as many boundaries in his belligerent 55 to register his second successive half-century in the tournament.
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Thakur then dimissed Dasun Shanaka (19) and Dushmantha Chameera in consecutive balls in the 19th over to stand in with a chance to claim a hat-trick which didn’t come.
