After scores at Pallekele International Stadium on Tuesday were tied, Sri Lanka suffered another batting collapse as they gave up an early lead in the third Twenty20 International against India and lost the match in the Super Over.Sri Lanka was well on their way to winning the 138-run chase after reaching 110 for one and requiring a run a ball with nine wickets remaining. And then it began to collapse. They dramatically lost nine wickets for 27 runs, and this match served as more proof that the team’s batting problems have not been addressed.There were lots of gaps in the field, so there were plenty of opportunities to keep rotating the strike or picking up twos. However, on a wicket where the spinners had plenty of help, many seasoned players fell while attempting to clear the boundary.The primary offender was Kusal Perera. He has been the series’ best batter and was coasting when he tried to take on Rinku Singh, who made a return catch to initiate the slide. In 34 balls, he scored 46.
“India wins the Super Over thriller in the T-20 series.”
While Sri Lanka performed better than their opponents in terms of errors, India also made mistakes. In the eighteenth over, Khaleel Ahmed dismissed eight wides, bringing the total down to nine runs in the final two overs.When just three runs were scored in the penultimate over, Rinku Singh was called upon to bowl. He took two wickets to put pressure on the opposition.
Although Mohammed Siraj was prepared to bowl the last over, the captain decided to change course and came on after all options for spin bowling had been exhausted. He performed brilliantly. India had been slow to get overs, so Suryakumar, who had never bowled in a Twenty Twenty International before, had to limit himself to just four fielders outside the thirty-yard circle.
Six needed in three balls after he removed Maheesh Theekshana and Kamindu Mendis in consecutive balls. With a single off the fourth ball, Asitha Fernando set the stage for debutant Chamindu Wickramasinghe to score. However, in the final two balls, he was unable to find a boundary, so the scores were tied.
In Washington Sundar’s Super Over, Sri Lanka could only muster two runs.
India’s Suryakumar began his batting innings with three runs needed for a clean sweep. Maheesh Theekshana’s opening ball was swept by him, and when the short, fine-leg fielder misplayed, the ball reached the boundary, capping a terrible day for Sri Lanka.
