2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 3rd T20I vs Sri Lanka ft. Suryakumar Yadav and Rinku Singh at the death

India's T20I era under Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir continued its great start in Pallekele on Tuesday, July 30. The Men in Blue clinched a thrilling contest in the Super Over to seal a 3-0 whitewash over the home side.

India were behind the eight ball for large portions of the game, but they managed to pull a rabbit out of their hat in front of a stunned crowd. Their boldness and willingness to experiment produced contrasting results in the two departments.

And while Suryakumar and Co. got most things right, there's still room for improvement. On that note, here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by India in the third T20I against Sri Lanka.

#3 Mistake - India's shot selection was subpar

Ireland v India - 1st Men's T20 International - Source: Getty

The pitches for the first two T20Is between India and Sri Lanka were batting-friendly, but the one for the third T20I wasn't. The visitors, however, did not assess the conditions well and played a plethora of rash shots to be dismissed early in the first innings.

Rinku Singh attempted a lofted extra cover drive off his second ball. Sanju Samson also tried to loft one over the infield, only to find the sweeper cover to perfection. Others, like Suryakumar, couldn't stay at the crease for long enough either.

India’s batters should have given themselves more time to get accustomed to the conditions before playing their shots.

#2 Masterstroke - Rinku Singh, Suryakumar Yadav and Washington Sundar......with the ball, at the death

Suryakumar Yadav [right] rotated his bowlers well [Image Courtesy: BCCI on X]

With two overs to go and nine runs to defend, Suryakumar tossed the ball to his spinners. And not to his frontline spinners, but a part-time one in Rinku. The 26-year-old delivered, picking up two important wickets to take the game into a final over.

Suryakumar himself took up that responsibility and managed to drag the contest into a Super Over. While the Indian skipper was pushed into a corner, and it, therefore, cannot be called a tactical masterstroke in the conventional sense of the term, it was a bold decision from a leader who is not shy of trying new things.

Even in the Super Over, Washington Sundar was handed the responsibility ahead of Ravi Bishnoi, who is the team's frontline spinner. Suryakumar's courage and reading of the conditions played a big role in the triumph.

#1 Mistake - India got their batting order wrong

At the same time, however, it wasn't an entirely perfect tactical display from India. As was the case in the first two games of the series, the Men in Blue deployed Riyan Parag lower down the order.

Another error came in the form of Rinku Singh's promotion to No. 4. While the left-hander needed more time in the middle, he was always going to struggle against Sri Lanka's spinners in the powerplay. Shivam Dube, too, wasn’t used in his ideal role.

India need to find the right balance between giving their players match practice and using them in their most suitable positions going forward.