India v Sri Lanka, 1st T20I: Player Ratings - SL bowlers give visitors first blood in the series with 5-wicket win
Before the start of the T20I series, India were expected to win the whole series at a canter. However, what ensued after the first T20I in Pune showed that a weakened Sri Lankan side took the fight to India right from the very first ball to give the visitors a five-wicket win.
On what was a bowling paradise, the young Sri Lankan bowlers got the best out of the surface as they ran through the Indian batting lineup. India registered their third lowest T20I score as they ended their innings with only 101 runs on board.
Sri Lanka chased down the target with not much of a hassle as the middle-order ensured that the visitors took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
India:
Rohit Sharma – 1/10
Rohit Sharma, who had a brilliant series in Australia, got off to a terrible start in the home series as he got out to a second-ball duck.
Shikhar Dhawan – 4/10
Although the southpaw got a start, he was not able to build on it as he perished trying to take on the bowlers at a time when a partnership was much required. Dhawan latched onto two catches to help put some pressure on the Sri Lankan batting lineup.
Ajinkya Rahane – 2/10
With Virat Kohli missing out on the series against Sri Lanka, Rahane would have hoped to make the best of his chance in Pune. However, after hitting a sweetly timed boundary, Rahane got a leading edge and was caught brilliantly.
Suresh Raina – 5/10
Of all the batsmen in the top 5, Raina seemed like the best of the lot as he was able to time the ball well. But, the left-handed batsman missed a seaming delivery from debutant Dasun Shanaka and was cleaned up after scoring 20. He also picked up a wicket and caught a blinder.
Yuvraj Singh – 3/10
Yuvraj showed some promise at the start of his innings as he hit a six off the second ball he faced. The all-rounder misjudged the bounce of the ball and lost his wicket while trying to pull.
MS Dhoni – 1/10
Dhoni is known for his ability to build up a crumbling batting performance. However, the Indian captain was not able to come up with the goods as he fell prey to a short ball and was out for two runs.
Hardik Pandya – 3/10
Pandya, who considers himself as a batting all-rounder, could not prove it as he lost his wicket cheaply. With the ball, the 22-year-old was also not able to make much of an impact.
Ravindra Jadeja – 4/10
Jadeja tried to play the anchor role with the bat as he knocked the ball around and rotated the strike before he was wrapped in front of the wickets. The all-rounder was not able to create a lot of impression with the ball as gave away 6 runs an over.
Ravichandran Ashwin – 8.5/10
Ashwin at No. 9 usually tells how good a batting lineup is. The 29-year-old was the best batsman for India as he top-scored with a 24-ball 31 and took India to a score of above 100. Ashwin came into bowl in only the 12th over and picked up two wickets and gave India the slightest of hope to edge a win.
Jasprit Bumrah – 6/10
India's best bowler in a disappointing match as he picked up one wicket and gave away only 19 runs in his first over. His first over was a maiden as he completely bamboozled Sri Lankan opener Gunathilaka.
Ashish Nehra – 5.5/10
Nehra picked up two wickets, however, he did give away most number of runs for India in a match when India had to be very tight with the ball.