Top 5 batting performances by Team India in Sri Lanka
Team India recently arrived in Sri Lanka for a limited-overs series, which will feature three ODIs and as many T20Is. The team led by Shikhar Dhawan has a number of new faces, with the main Team India squad in England for a long tour.
The series in Sri Lanka will provide some useful practice for the limited-overs specialists of Team India ahead of the T20 World Cup, which will now be held in the UAE in October-November this year.
Speaking ahead of Team India’s departure for Sri Lanka, Dhawan said there is positivity and confidence in the squad and that everybody is confident of doing well.
Team India and Sri Lanka have taken on each other in 159 matches, of which India have won 91 and Sri Lanka 56. One match ended in a tie, while 11 produced no results. In Sri Lanka, the contest has been much closer, with Team India winning 28 and Sri Lanka 27.
Famous Team India knocks in Sri Lanka
As India gear up to face the island nation in a limited-overs series, we look at some impressive batting efforts by Team India players against the Lankans in Sri Lanka.
#5 Rohit Sharma (124 not out off 145 balls) - August 2017 in Pallekele
Team India opener Rohit Sharma smashed an unbeaten 124 off 145 balls as India chased down 218 in an ODI in Pallekele in August 2017. The visitors lost Shikhar Dhawan (5), Virat Kohli (3), KL Rahul (17) and Kedar Jadhav (0) cheaply in the chase and were in some trouble at 61 for 4. However, Rohit and MS Dhoni (67 not out) guided Team India home in the chase.
Rohit hit 16 fours and two sixes in his fluent knock. He was cautious to begin with, rotating the strike around and finding the odd boundary in between, as Team India kept losing wickets. Having got his eye in, he opened up and went past his half-century in the 19th over, with three consecutive fours off Dushmantha Chameera, two of them being pulled to the boundary.
As he approached three figures, the Team India opener lofted Akila Dananjaya for a six over wide long-on. He brought up his first century in Sri Lanka by dabbing Chameera for a single to third man. Rohit and Dhoni eased Team India to victory in the 46th over. Earlier, Jasprit Bumrah’s 5 for 27 restricted Sri Lanka to 217 for 9.