India vs Sri Lanka 2017, 3rd ODI: Hits and misses

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The Rohit Sharma-led India defeated Sri Lanka by 8 wickets in the series-deciding third and final ODI to clinch the three-match series 2-1 at Visakhapatnam on Sunday.

Chasing 216 to win, India lost skipper Rohit?Sharma early but Shikhar Dhawan’s unbeaten 100 and Shreyas Iyer’s second consecutive half-century guided the hosts home in 32.1 overs with 107 balls to spare.

Earlier, three wickets each from India's spin twins Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav restricted the touring party to 215 in 44.5 overs.

This was India's eighth consecutive bilateral ODI series win since June 2016.

Now, let's have a look at the hits and missed from the third ODI.

Hit: Upul Tharanga

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Upul Tharanga, who missed out on his 16th ODI ton by five runs, became the third player after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to score 1000 runs in the fifty-over format in 2017 as Sri Lanka posted 215 against India in the third and final ODI at Visakhapatnam.

Tharanga, who was stumped by MS Dhoni off Kuldeep Yadav for 95 off 82 balls, also became the first Sri Lanka batsman since Tillakaratne Dilshan in 2015 to go past the landmark. 

Rohit Sharma won the toss and invited Sri Lanka to bat as Tharanga started off brilliantly before taking his hitting ability to the next level in the ninth over, blasting Hardik Pandya for five consecutive fours.

It was a smooth sailing for the visitors when Tharanga and Sadeera Samarawickrama were batting as the duo added 121 runs for the second wicket. However, after Tharanga's fall, the floodgates opened for a batting collapse as Sri Lanka went from 160/3 in 27.1 overs to 215 all-out in 44.5.

Sri Lanka might have lost 23 out of 29 ODIs in 2017 but Tharanga enjoyed a fantastic run with 119 against South Africa at Cape Town being his highest this year.

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