Valiant India go down fighting against Sri Lanka

Not very long England were forced to field a team of county cricketers after COVID-19 outbreak put their main squad into isolation. While England had the liberty of playing at home, India found themselves in a far worse situation with just 11 members, including only five batsmen, available for the game.

While Sri Lanka would have liked to face a full-strength Indian side, this also provided them an opportunity to level the series. Opting to bowl first, they made India struggle on a pitch not easy for shot-making.

But despite their backs against the wall, Indian batters managed to put up a respective total on the board, courtesy some sensible approach from skipper Shikhar Dhawan, who knew the importance of not losing wickets upfront.

With four debutants in the rank, India were expected to start the game on the back foot but they adapted quickly. They would have liked to post at least 20 more on the board but on a day when Navdeep Saini and Bhuvneshwar Kumar had to be in the middle after the loss of just five wickets, 132/5 was a valiant effort.

Sri Lanka in reply were cautious in the beginning, after losing Avishka Fernando in the third over. They lost wickets at the other end but Minod Bhanuka held one end to keep them in the game. And Dhananjaya de Silva proved his mettle once again with a 34-ball 40, avoiding the urge to go hammer and tonks. Playing according to the target, de Silva held his nerve to help Sri Lanka reach the target with a couple of balls to spare. With no break between this game and the decider, the hosts will hope that they have the advantage against a side with no choices on the bench.