Sri lanka defeats the defending champions India at Oval on 8th June by 7 wickets. Sri Lanka won the toss and decided to bowl first which led to India scoring a high total of 321.
However, the Sri Lankan team chased down the target efficiently in just 48.4 overs. It was the second highest total chased by SL in ODI cricket. It was rather an eye- opening match for the League’s favourite, India.
Here are the top 5 moments from the match:
– by Shraddha Kejriwal
1. Dhawan-Rohit partnership.-
Once again Dhawan-Rohit partnership proved to be the key for Indian batting line-up. Shikhar Dhawan registered his ton by a well played 125. Shikhar Dhawan became the 4th highest run getter for India in Champions Trophy. The first half of India’s batting was dominated by Shikhar Dhawan. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma scored a crucial 78 runs which helped India to reach this huge total of 321. The duet played an Important and central role in 2013 Champions Trophy and the team will want them to continue their form in the matches ahead as well.
2. Kohli’s Failure-
It was one of those rare occasions when Virat Kohli was kept away from contributing runs for his team. Virat Kohli getting out on a duck was a shock for the Indian Cricket Team Fans. Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 81 runs in the previous match against Pakistan.
3. Captain’s over-
With all the runs slipping through the Indian bowlers, the Captain decided to take the charge. Virat Kohli was hit for a 4 in his 1st ball. However, things changed later on. MS Dhoni with his faster than light stumping dismissed Gunathilaka who scored a destructive 76 runs for his team. You can’t be wrong with Dhoni’s stumping afterall. The brilliant efforts by MS Dhoni and Umesh Yadav helped India to get a great breakthrough.
4. Sri Lankan Batting Lineup –
Despite the absence of the big names like Sanath Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan and Kumar Sangakkara, Sri Lanka’s batting efforts were quite commendable. The 159 run partnership between Danushka Gunathilaka and Kusal Mendis proved the be very crucial for Sri Lanka. However the two were dismissed by 2 quick wickets which helped India to gain the momentum. Kusal Mendis 89 and Angelo Mathews 52 not out helped to put some pressure on the Indian Team. Asela Gunaratne scored 34 runs of just 21 balls with 2 fours and 2 six. He was brutal on India’s death over specialists, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah. It was an overall batting performance by Sri Lanka.
5. Perera retired hurt-
Perera decided to go back to pavilion and was retired hurt after scoring 47 runs off 44 balls. He seemed to be in discomfort since last few overs that he played. However, this didn’t stop Sri Lankan batsmen from smashing boundaries and scoring runs for their team. Sri Lanka’s overall batting performance helped them to win the match against India by 7 wickets.
Next match- India will be playing against South Africa on 11th June.
It will be an important match for both the teams to move ahead in the tournament.
– by Shraddha Kejriwal