Published: Feb 15, 2016, 02:54 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 26, 2016, 10:32 PM (IST)
India romped home to another victory in the three-match Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka at home after registering another thumping win in the ultimate clash at Visakhapatnam on Sunday. The score read 2-1 in the favour of India as they bounced back after losing the first game at Pune, where Sri Lanka got off to a magnificent start. However, the tourists lost the momentum and remaining games in the series. Their batting failed to click — a factor which affected them massively. On the basis of their performances in the tour, Suraj Choudhari evaluates Sri Lankan players and rates them on a scale of 10. Full Cricket Scorecard: India vs Sri Lanka 2015-16, 1st T20I at Visakhapatnam Dushmantha Chameera, 8/10: The lanky right-arm pacer was the centre of attraction in batsmen-dominated format. He steamed in and bowled at a menacing pace, hit the deck hard and generated extra bounce. He was among the wickets and bowled beautifully in the second game, which was heavily dominated by Indian batsmen, but the likes on Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni spoilt his alluring figures. Chameera had five Indian scalps to his name but the bare runs column of Sri Lankan batsman didn’t give their bowlers a fighting chance. Sachithra Senanayake, 5.5/10: The remodelled action seems to have affected his impact with the ball. On most of the occasions he was seen bowling seam-up deliveries. He bowled beautifully in patches, went for cleaners in the second game but was economical in the other two games. He chipped couple of wickets in three outings but a lot was expected from the canny spinner on spin-friendly Indian tracks. His counterpart Ravichandran Ashwin was the key behind India’s success and something similar was expected from Senanayake. READ: India vs Sri Lanka 2015-16: India’s marks out of 10 Thisara Perera, 6/10: Perera was impressive with the ball in the first two games but didn’t get an opportunity to put in the hard yards in the final game, as the target was hardly challenging. Perera’s fitness was a delight to watch as he more athletic than before. He picked a hat-trick in the second game as got rid of Hardik Pandya, Raina and Yuvraj Singh in three consecutive deliveries. But his effectiveness with the bat was questionable as he didn’t play a single knock which inspired confidence. Dinesh Chandimal, 6/10: Chandimal did a good job in marshalling his team and led from front in the first two games but did a horrible job in the decider at Visakhapatnam. His contribution with the bat in the first two games were noteworthy but gifted his wicket in the game that mattered the most. He played an important knock of 35 runs at Pune on a pitch which was doing all the tricks for the bowlers. This tournament provided a solid experience for Chandimal as he still needs to sharpen his skills as a captain for the upcoming World Twenty20 (T20). Niroshan Dickwella, 1/10: The reason behind India’s comeback in the game was their top-order firing with all the guns which certainly went for a toss in the Sri Lankan dug out. Dickwella got out while playing futile strokes and failed to get his team to a desirable start. With just five runs from two outings, Dickwella has certainly raised questions over his selection into the side. Tillakaratne Dilshan, 1/10: A lot was expected from veteran who has plethora of experience in his kitty. But, Dilshan struggled miserably against Ashwin as the latter got the better of him whenever he came out to bat. Dilshan missed the first game but was drafted into the side for the last two games. He just managed a solitary run from two appearances; Dilshan’s lack of form affected Sri Lanka enormously. Milind Siriwardena, 6.5/10: Siriwardena remained unbeaten in the first two games and his maverick approach attracted a lot of eyeballs against the Indian bowling attack. He had 49 runs from first two games and was yet to be dismissed. Siriwardena looked in good touch in the final game too as he smashed first-ball boundary, but a bit of low bounce on the next shattered his stumps. He certainly has some serious talent which needs to be polished. Dasun Shanaka, 5.5/10: He left everyone bewildered with his figures of 3 for 16 in three overs at Pune, but went for 12 runs in his first over at Ranchi and the third game didn’t have enough runs on the board for him to roll his arms. Shanaka played a good hand in second game but floundered in the third after getting to a good start. He’s a potent all-rounder with batting being his primary weapon. Seekkuge Prasanna, 2/10: Prasanna failed to justify his selection as he just collected 13 runs from three outings. He although remained unbeaten in the first game but the job was already done by the time he came out to bat. He was batting well in the final game but threw his wicket away while running a cheeky single as a back flip from Ravindra Jadeja set him walking back to the pavilion. READ: 10 interesting statistical facts from 3rd T20I between India and Sri Lanka at Visakhapatnam Kasun Rajitha, 5/10: Rajitha won the Man of the Match award on debut for his productive outing in the first game where got rid of Indian top-order with his guile. He had three wickets to his name in his four overs and looked the one for the future. But turned out to be expensive at Ranchi as Indian batsmen took him for cleaners. He was dropped from the side in the third game as Dilhara Fernando made his way after a long gap.
Chamara Kapugedara, 7/10: He played the first two games with immense confidence but found himself on the other side of the luck as he was dropped for the final game. In the first game he played a dogged knock of 25 runs to sail the Sri Lankan ship from choppy waters. In fact, he was the highest run-scorer for Sri Lanka in the second game for his knock of 32 runs but still find sufficient to retain his spot in the third game.
Dilhara Fernando, 6/10: Fernando made his comeback into the national side after years and rekindled some old memories of his heydays in the final game. He bowled magnificently with the new ball and was getting the ball to swing. As the target wasn’t sufficient enough to restrict India, Fernando got to bowl just two overs in which he gave away just seven runs.
Danushka Gunathilaka, 1/10: Sri Lanka never managed to get off a good start as their opener floundered on all the three occasions. Gunathilaka scores in the first two games read 4 and 2 respectively. Ashish Nehra got the better of him on both the occasions as a result of which he lost his place in the final game of the series.
Asela Gunaratne: It would be unfair to judge Gunaratne as he debuted in the third game of the series but failed to make an impact in the series. He was unlucky in his debut game as a delivery from Ashwin flicked his thigh pad was ruled out after Raina cupped it at leg slip. The replay showed no contact with the bat but Gunaratne had to walk back.
(Suraj Choudhari is a reporter with Criclife and CricketCountry. He is an avid follower of the game, and plays the sport at club level. He has a radical understanding about the subtle nuances and intricacies of cricket, and tries to express it through paper and pen.)
