Team India players during a practice session (Photo:X)
Hyderabad: The generally dominant Team India is currently battling one of their strong holds -- batting in the ODI series against Sri Lanka. Except for captain Rohit Sharma, who scored to back-to-back fifties no Indian batsman has performed as per their reputation including the modern day great Virat Kohli.
In the three match ODI series at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium, the first match was a tie, while India lost the second match by 32 runs. The Blues will fight for pride and avoid a series defeat in today's match.
India had never lost an ODI series against Sri Lanka since 1997. While coming to head to head records both the teams have played 170 ODI matches with India having a clear upper hand winning 99 of them.
The Indian batters, who are generally good at playing spin, are struggling to face the Lankan spinners on the slow pitch. Despite a good start from the captain in the first two matches, the other batters struggled to carry the momentum and build on the start. The spotlight is on Virat Kohli too as he has a terrific record at Sri Lanka yet faltered scoring only 38 runs in two matches. KL Rahul and Iyer who made their way back to the side have also failed to perform. Axar Patel, however is emerging as a fine dependable all rounder.
On the other hand, Sri Lanka's Young Spinners Wellalage and Jeffrey Vandersay will have a key role to play in the final ODI. Vandersay destroyed the Indian batting line-up picking 6 wickets in the 2nd match. Wallalage, Nissanka and Fernando will also be impactful in batting.
However, the Men-In-Blue have always fought and came back stronger when they are put under pressure. The team might look to bring in young Parag in place of Dube to have a more balanced side. Team India most likely would have an upper hand in the final ODI to level the series purely because of their pressure handling capability and experience.
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
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