Following the victory against Sri Lanka in the first T20I, India skipper Shubman Gill heaped praise on his batting partner Yashasvi Jaiswal, saying that it is great batting with him. Bowlers’ marvellous performance in the second half of the second innings guided India to victory over Sri Lanka by 43 runs in the first T20I of the three-match series at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Saturday. Recapping the first T20I, Sri Lanka skipper Charith Assalanka won the toss and elected to bowl first.
“Not really (panicked). We spoke about having good communication and we knew we just needed one wicket (when SL were 140/1). It is great batting with him (Jaiswal) and we complement each other. Our style is different, our plan is simple – assess the conditions and then take on the bowlers. When you are opening the innings, see how the pitch is behaving and play accordingly (that’s the plan),” Gill said in the post-match presentation.
Batting first, India scored 213/7 in 20 overs with knocks from Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shubman Gill.
Matheesha Pathirana was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka as he snapped four wickets in his spell of four overs where he conceded 40 runs. One wicket each was taken by Dilshan Madhushanka, Asitha Fernando, and Haseanga in their respective spells.
Chasing a mammoth total of 214, the hosts were bundled out for 170 runs in 19.2 overs. With this victory, the Men in Blue lead the three-match series 1-0.
The highest scorer for the side was their opener Pathum Nissanka who played a good innings of 79 runs which came on 48 balls which was laced with seven fours and four sixes.
The wicketkeeper-batter, Kushal Mendis, also scored crucial 45 runs from just 27 balls with the help of seven fours and a six. No other batter than these two were able to make the mark in the match.
For India, spinner Riyan Parag was the highest wicket-taker. He took three wickets in his spell of 1.2 overs where he conceded just five runs. Two wickets each were bagged by Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel and one wicket each was taken by Mohammed Siraj, Ravi Bishnoi in their respective spells.
Suryakumar was awarded the Player of the Match for his brilliant performance.
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