Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 3^rd T20I Match Preview

It will be exactly 24 hours when the India Vs Sri Lanka battle will resume again at the same ground and same venue. The visitors competed well against the in-form hosts in the second T20I match. But their bowling wasn’t good against the batting powerhouse of the Indian team. India chased the target of 184 runs quite comfortably.

Sri Lanka started well with a stand of 67 runs. Nissanka and Gunathalika gave the platform for the middle-order batters of the Lankan team. But a mini-collapse allowed the Indian team to pave their way back into the match. Chandimal and Asalanka didn’t trouble the scorers much after the fall of Dhanuska Gunathalika. But  skipper Shanaka and Pathum Nissanka bailed Sri Lanka out with their gusty partnership.

Sri Lanka can certainly build on their batting as the positive for the last T20I game today. The visitors need runs from their top three to post a challenging score on the board, just like they did on Saturday. But the contributions from the middle order will be invaluable for them. Dinesh Chandimal and Charitha Asalanka need to fire. If they had scored a quickfire 30 or forty runs, then they would have reached near the 200 run mark.

Sri Lanka also needs more compliments from bowlers. They started well by picking up the openers early. But Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, and Ravindra Jadeja’s extraordinary batting stole the show from Sri Lanka. The fielders and bowlers need to be on their toes to get a consolation win in the final game of this shortest format series. They can’t allow the game to slip easily again.

In the shortest format, the Indian team will look for their 12^th back-to-back win. After the disappointing losses against Pakistan and New Zealand in the T20 World Cup 2021 at United Arab Emirates (UAE), Team India has been unbeaten and unbeatable in the T20I format. The openers batted well in the first T20I match. But in the run chase, they failed to repeat their heroics. Because of the middle order, India could chase down a challenging score of 184 runs.

The bowlers, too, were not on the mark. Bumrah, Bhuvi, and Harshal Patel needed to bowl better lines and lengths in the last game. India might rest one of them and bring Avesh Khan or Mohammad Siraj back in the today’s game. Sanju Samson played a handy knock after getting a slow start. It was good to see Samson getting a go. But still, he hasn’t repeated his IPL performances for India.

India can also bring the duo of KULCHA back in action, and Ravi Bhishnoi also didn’t get a game still. Now it would be interesting to see whether the management, captain, and the coach, go for Bhisnoi – Chahal or Chahal and Kuldeep for this final T20I match of this series. The home team has won the series, and they can aim for another clean sweep.

Match Details –

Match – Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 3^rd T20I Match

Venue – Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium (HPCA)

Day/Date – Saturday, 26^th February 2022.

Timings – 7 PM IST and 1.30 PM GMT

Toss Time – 6.30 PM IST and 1 PM GMT.

TV channels – Star Sports India Networks.

Live Streaming – Disney Plus Hotstar, Fan Code, Amazon Mini TV, Vodafone TV, JIO TV, Live Cricket App, Live Ten Sports App.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Pitch Report

The same track will be used for today’s game. The ground staff did a fabulous job and made the play possible despite the rains. The pitch will offer plenty of runs, just like yesterday. There is some grass on the wicket and some swing for the pace bowlers. The team which wins the toss will choose to bowl first, keeping the dew factor in mind.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Weather Report

It rained for the past few days in Dharamshala before the 2^nd T20I match, and the rains might cause the interruptions again. The weather was cold yesterday. But it didn’t disturb the players as they went on nicely with the game.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – India’s probable Playing XI

Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan (WK), Sanju Samson, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja/Yuzvendra Chahal,  Venkatesh Iyer, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bhisnoi/Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj/ Avesh Khan.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Sri Lanka’s Probable Playing XI

Pathum Nissanka, Dhanushka Gunathalika, Charith Asalanka, Dinesh Chandimal (WK), Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Praveen Jayawickrama, Jeffrey Vandersay, and Lahiru Kumara.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Injury Updates

India – Ruturaj Gaikwad is out of the T20I series, and Mayank Agarwal has replaced him.

Sri Lanka – Kusal Mendis and Mahesh Theekshana are out of the T20I series.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Fantasy Batsmen

Shreyas Iyer – The middle-order batsman of the Indian team has been exceptional in the first two T20Is. He scored 57 and 74 runs so far. Iyer is also the new skipper of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The KKR fans will be thrilled to see their new captain amongst the runs in this series. Shreyas should have been included in the playing XI of the team in the World T20 2021. He gives the much-needed balance in the middle order. Iyer would want to notch another match-winning score and guide India to their 12^th successive win in the T20I format.

Pathum Nissanka – The opening batter of the Sri Lankan Team did well in the second match. He was out on the first delivery at Lucknow, where the first match was played on Thursday. Sri Lanka needs a good start which will propel them to a good score in the end. Nissanka’s fighting knock of 75 runs was good, and now he needs to continue his form and help Sri Lanka get a consolation win.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Fantasy Bowlers

Bhuvneshwar Kumar – The Indian pace bowler hasn’t been on the mark with his deliveries as he used to be earlier. He bowled well in the death overs against West Indies in the second T20I match. But Bhuvi looked ordinary before that in the ODI series against South Africa. Bhuvi has lost his place in the Test side, so he needs to perform well in the limited-overs team. He will be the key for India in the World T20 2022.

Lahiru Kumara – The visitors need Lahiri Kumara to fire in the middle and death overs. He will hold the key with the new ball as the pitch offers something for the fast bowlers. He picked up two wickets yesterday. But Sri Lanka will need a lot more from him and Chameera. Sri Lanka bowled poorly after getting a decent start in their innings. They will look to correct that mistake and bag a consolation win today.

Sri Lanka Tour of India 2022: India Vs Sri Lanka 2^nd T20I Match – Fantasy Team

Batters – Pathum Nissanka, Dasun Shanaka, and Shreyas Iyer.

Bowler – Dushmantha Chameera, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Lahiru Kumara

All-rounders – Ravindra Jadeja and Venkatesh Iyer.

Wicketkeeper – Ishan Kishan

Vice-Captain – Chamika Karunaratne

Captain – Rohit Sharma.

Predictions –

India will whitewash Sri Lanka and win the T20I series 3-0.