India vs Sri Lanka, 1st ODI at Dharamsala: Bhuvneshwar to Mathews. Left alone. Gives the charge. Wild swing. Misses. The third ball is wide. One run less to get. Mathews then prods forward and off-drives. Off-drives well, past the fielder. Game over. Sri Lanka decimate India by 7 wickets. Sri Lanka proving in this tour that they are no more the meek set of individuals who got hammered in their own backyard by the same opposition a few months back. The series becomes interesting now. India will have to win the next two matches to prevent a home series loss after a long, long time. But rest assured, India will came back strongly. They were on the back foot, losing the first match in their last series, against New Zealand, but then turned it around. Can’t rule such a comeback out here as well. But let’s agree on one thing – Perera read the pitch well when we opted to bowl, though the initial opinion among the experts was win the toss and bat first. Preview: India will aim to extend their dominance sans regular skipper Virat Kohli when they face Sri Lanka in the opener of the three-match One-day International rubber at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on Sunday. Kohli had asked for a break ahead of the challenging tour to South Africa later this month and, in his absence, vice-captain Rohit Sharma will take over the reins of the Men in Blue. [caption id=“attachment_4250981” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Indian captain Rohit Sharma (L) and his Sri Lankan counterpart Thisara Perera. AFP[/caption] With predictions of widespread rain and snow threatening the opener, the toss could play a crucial role in the outcome of the tie. Having won five straight bilateral series apart from reaching the Champions Trophy final, a 3-0 win will put India atop the ICC ODI rankings, overtaking South Africa. The last time India faced Sri Lanka in one-dayers, it swept aside the island nation 5-0. Going into the contest, the Sri Lankans will need to deal with a formidable batting line-up comprising Rohit, Ajinkya Rahane, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Hardik Pandya. Kedar Jadhav will, however, be missing the match due to a hamstring injury and has been replaced by Tamil Nadu all-rounder Washington Sunder in the side. While the opening slot seems locked with Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan at the top, Rahane is likely to get a chance at No 3 with Kohli given a much-needed rest. However, if Dhawan, who was down with viral fever on Friday, pulls out, then Rahane could be seen opening the innings. It will be a sweet headache for the team management to choose between Manish Pandey and Shreyas Iyer, with Jadhav missing out. All-rounder Pandya will continue to be a vital cog in India’s wheel as he completes what has been an exceptional year in international cricket for him. The bowling department will be led by the pace duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah while Pandya will provide the services of the third seamer. It will be interesting to see if newcomer Siddharth Kaul is included in the playing XI at the HPCA Stadium, which is expected to aid swing bowling. With the conditions favouring the seamers, it looks very likely that India could go in with one specialist wrist spinner between Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav despite having an extra finger-spin option in Axar Patel. On the other hand, fresh from a great fightback which saw them drawing the third Test in Delhi, the Sri Lankans will expect their senior players, Angelo Mathews and Upul Tharanga to lead the way. For the islanders, the return of Kusal Perera and Asela Gunaratne after recovering from injuries will bolster their middle order. The tourists will also bank on young batsman Dhananjaya de Silva, who scored a fighting century in the third Test that helped his side force a draw in Delhi. Teams: India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul. Sri Lanka: Thisara Perera (c), Upul Tharanga, Danushka Gunathilaka, Lahiru Thirimanne, Angelo Mathews, Asela Gunaratne, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Chaturanga de Silva, Akila Dananjaya, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dushmantha Chameera, Sachith Pathirana, Kusal Perera. With inputs from IANS.
Highlights, India vs Sri Lanka, 1st ODI at Dharamsala: Visitors win by 7 wickets
Bhuvneshwar to Mathews. Left alone. Gives the charge. Wild swing. Misses. The third ball is wide. One run less to get. Mathews then prods forward and off-drives. Off-drives well, past the fielder. Game over. Sri Lanka decimate India by 7 wickets. Sri Lanka proving in this tour that they are no more the meek set of individuals who got hammered in their own backyard by the same opposition a few months back. The series becomes interesting now. India will have to win the next two matches to prevent a home series loss after a long, long time. But rest assured, India will came back strongly. They were on the back foot, losing the first match in their last series, against New Zealand, but then turned it around. Can’t rule such a comeback out here as well. But let’s agree on one thing – Perera read the pitch well when we opted to bowl, though the initial opinion among the experts was win the toss and bat first.
 "Highlights, India vs Sri Lanka, 1st ODI at Dharamsala: Visitors win by 7 wickets")
So that’s all that we have for the moment. Not a happy day for India. They will have to, as Shakira famously sang, pick themselves up, dust themselves up and be back on the saddle. But that won’t be one bit easy.
This defeat means that India would not be able to overtake South Africa at the top of the ODI rankings, even if they win the series.
Next stop will be Mohali in three days’ time and it will be an 11.30 start there too. Catch you then. Till then, good bye.
The end came quicker than expected, as Sri Lanka romp their way to a seven-wicket win and the 1-0 series lead.
It was a promising start for the Indians as they got the early wicket. But they leaked too many extras and boundaries to allow the game to slip out of their hands.
If anything, this Sri Lankan win has made the series a lot more exciting. Looking forward to India’s reply at Mohali.
After 20.4 overs,Sri Lanka 114/3 ( Angelo Mathews 25 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 26)
Bhuvneshwar to Mathews. Left alone. Gives the charge. Wild swing. Misses. The third ball is wide. One run less to get. Mathews then prods forward and off-drives past the fielder. Game over. Sri Lanka decimate India by 7 wickets. Sri Lanka proving in this tour that they are no more the meek set of individuals who got hammered in their own backyard by the same opposition a few months back.
The series becomes interesting now. India will have to win the next two matches to prevent a home series loss after a long, long time. But rest assured, India will came back strongly. They were on the back foot, losing the first match in their last series, against New Zealand, but then turned it around. Can’t rule such a comeback out here as well.
But let’s agree on one thing — Perera read the pitch well when we opted to bowl, though the initial opinion among the experts was win the toss and bat first.
After 20 overs,Sri Lanka 109/3 ( Angelo Mathews 21 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 26)
Pandya to Dickwella. Four. Four. He wants this match finished in a hurry. Five to win. Pandya comes back to beat Dickwella outside off. Then bowls a wide. Indiscipline! Nine runs from that over. Sri Lanka a boundary hit away from a massive victory.
After 19 overs,Sri Lanka 100/3 ( Angelo Mathews 21 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 18)
Bhuvneshwar to Dickwella. The left-hander gets a boundary off the third ball. India really going through the motions now. Five runs from that over. 100 up for the Lankans. Only 13 to win. In how many balls? You don’t ask!
After 18 overs,Sri Lanka 95/3 ( Angelo Mathews 21 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 13)
Bumrah to Mathews. The flood lights are on now. Did you expect the match to get over before the lights came on? You must have! Meanwhile the camera captures India head coach Ravi Shastri and fielding coach R Sridhar – who has a uncanny resemblance to Dhoni – deep in conversation. How they gee up their wards after such a performance would be crucial. And almost immediately a terrible fielding effort in the deep. Lazy attempt from Bhuvi. Doesn’t bend down on time. Four for Mathews. Four runs from that over.
After 17 overs,Sri Lanka 91/3 ( Angelo Mathews 17 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 13)
Pandya to Dickwella. Almost a return catch to the bowler off the first ball. Just out of reach of Pandya’s outstretched hands. A spanking drive off the fourth ball, but straight to the fielder. Bit cramped for room on the next balls. Sri Lanka in cruise control. Another French cut boundary would have the Indians hopping mad. How many such streaky fours have the Lankans got in this innings? Innumerable. That was a whisker away from the off pole. But as the saying goes, the Lankans would take the runs whichever way they come.
After 16 overs,Sri Lanka 85/3 ( Angelo Mathews 16 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 8)
Bumrah replaces Bhuvi. Another cutter. Beats the outside edge of Dickwella’s bat. Squared up on the next ball. Single. Then two fours for Mathews. The first one pulled to square leg and the next driven with authority through cover. Nine runs from that over.
After 15 overs,Sri Lanka 76/3 ( Angelo Mathews 8 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 7)
Pandya continues. Mathews being watchful. No runs off the first four balls. Digs the next ball which is full out to mid off. Still no run. Some runs off the last ball, though. Four off them. Played with a straight bat to the long on fence. SL batsmen looking extremely assured. Drinks taken at the end of that over.
After 14 overs,Sri Lanka 72/3 ( Angelo Mathews 4 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 7)
Bhuvneshwar to Dickwella. Has the batsman hopping and beats him with a ball that rises sharply and moves away. Good carry to MSD. Dickwella gets a boundary, going over the in-field towards wide long-on. Two runs off the last ball. Six runs from that over.
Meanwhile, we are getting reports that Bumrah’s grandfather has passed away. Sad news!
After 13 overs,Sri Lanka 66/3 ( Angelo Mathews 4 , Niroshan Dickwella (W) 1)
Pandya continues. Starts with a wide and then a pull to the fence from Tharanga. He is now one short of his fifty. Pandya seems to have left his bowling form at home. But Tharanga won’t have the fifty this time. Edges a good length ball from Pandya to the ‘keeper. Was drawn into the shot. But Dhawan almost dropped that catch at first slip. Hard hands from him. This has been an error-strewn day for India. That’s not something you see too often these days. A wicket nevertheless and Niroshan Dickwella comes in. Six runs and a wicket in that over.
OUT! Tharanga edges and Dhawan juggles at first slip, but holds on.
Tharanga c Dhawan b Hardik Pandya 49(46)
After 12 overs,Sri Lanka 61/2 ( Upul Tharanga 45 , Angelo Mathews 4)
Bhuvneshwar to Mathews. A single to start with. Tharanga plays and misses, and Mathews plays and misses too. But what is good for the Lankans is that they are weathering the storm, and when they get chances to pick up runs, they are pouncing on them. Tharanga gets an edge off the last ball, but it’s short of the slip cordon. The rub of the green is going Lanka’s way too.
After 11 overs,Sri Lanka 56/2 ( Upul Tharanga 43 , Angelo Mathews 2)
Hardik Pandya into the attack now. Three slips lie in wait. A single to third man off the third ball. Then a hat-trick of boundaries. Two sublime extra-cover drives and then a wild delivery on the legs, which beats the ‘keeper to the fence. Five wides. India slowly being batted out of the game. 14 runs from that over, no less.
After 10 overs,Sri Lanka 42/2 ( Upul Tharanga 35 , Angelo Mathews 1)
Bumrah to Tharanga. The gangling Bumrah disturbs the furniture, but not at the end he would have wanted to. Disturbs the stumps at the non-striker’s end. No ball called. Free hit. Bowls an yorker and Tharanga inside edges it to the boundary. No chance for MSD. A single off the third ball. Three slips for Mathews. Mathews gets off the mark off his 11th ball, and then Mathews collects a boundary off the last ball. Fine extra-cover drive. the fieldsman gives up the chase.
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