5 Most Embarrassing Defeats for India in T20Is
In sports, much like life, it is not the fall but how quickly you get back up that makes all the difference. But some falls are far more difficult to get up from than others. Although India won the inaugural edition of the World T20, the country's journey in the shortest format of the game has been far from a bed of roses.
Although India never really endured a prolonged run of defeats (they have never lost more than two successive T20I series), there have been some embarrassing defeats that players will want to erase from not just the record books but their memories as well.
Painful memories that leave an indelible mark never really go away. So let us take a look at some games that the team and its fans would like to forget. Here are the 5 most embarrassing defeats for India in T20Is:
#5 India vs Sri Lanka, 1st T20I, Pune, 9 February 2016
With the 2016 World T20 at home, India had a T20I series against Sri Lanka and an Asia Cup to prepare for it. But India's T20 preparations got off to the worst possible start in Pune. Sri Lanka won the toss and put India into bat and made the most of an unusually green track at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.
Despite having a largely inexperienced bowling line-up, Sri Lanka bowled India out for 101, their second-lowest total in a T20I in India. Debutant Kasun Rajitha had a field day with the new ball as he got rid of India's top three inside the powerplay. And just when it looked as though India had seen off the new ball and looked set for a respectable total, Dasun Shanaka ran through the middle-order and left the hosts reeling at 58/7 in 11 overs.
Courtesy of Ravichandran Ashwin's unbeaten 31, India avoided the humiliation of being dismissed for their lowest total in T20Is and just inched past 100 before they were eventually dismissed. In response, India's seamers didn't have the same impact as Sri Lanka merely took their time and eventually got over the line with five wickets and two overs to spare.
Brief scores: India 101 all out in 18.5 overs (Ravichandran Ashwin 31*, Dasun Shanaka 3/16) lost to Sri Lanka 105/5 in 18 overs (Dinesh Chandimal 35, Ravichandran Ashwin 2/13)