India in their second Super 4 stage match on Tuesday were limited to 213 runs after Sri Lankan bowlers in an impressive display of bowling successfully managed to reign in the strong batting lineup in 49 overs.
Winning the toss, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma opted to bat first. Despite the Indian captain scoring a 50, the Men in Blue didn’t have a stable start after the Sri Lankan “young gun” Dunith Wellalage managed to pick up back-to-back wickets.
The spinner took out half of the Indian batting lineup including key wickets of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya.
Wellalage, 20, was roped in by Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup 2023 squad as Hasaranga’s replacement — who was ruled out due to a shoulder injury — and the youngster did not waste the opportunity to showcase his talent.
For India, skipper Rohit Sharma with his 53 runs inning, came out as the highest scorer in the match. Three of the Indian batsmen didn’t even manage to get to the double figures.
Meanwhile, for Sri Lanka, Wellage bagged a “five–for” while conceding only 40 runs. Charith Asalanka and Maheesh Theekshana took four and one wicket, respectively.
The Indian side was bowled out in 49.1 overs, giving Sri Lanka a target of 214 runs in 50 overs.
Playing XI
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan (wc), KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj.
Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis (wc), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka (c), Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Matheesha Pathirana.
