India vs Sri Lanka Highlights, 3rd ODI: Three moments that created a buzz among fans ft. Riyan Parag
India lost their first ODI series against Sri Lanka in 27 years after they came up short in the third ODI against the Island Nation in the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Wednesday, August 7. The Men in Blue were bundled out for just 138 and lost the third ODI by a massive margin of 110 runs.
Sri Lanka once again won the toss and opted to bat first and got a good start from their openers Pathum Nissanka (45) and Avishka Fernando (96). Despite a middle-order collapse, the hosts still managed to reach 248/7 in their 50 overs.
It was always going to come down to how the Indian batters dealt with the Sri Lankan spinners and unfortunately for the visitors, they once again faltered. Dunith Wellalage was the star of the show for the Lankans with figures of 5/27 and picked up the big wickets of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
On that note, let's take a look at three moments that grabbed the attention of fans on social media:
#3 Riyan Parag's returns with the ball
India needed someone to step up and break the partnership between Avishka Fernando and Kusal Mendis and it was debutant Riyan Parag who delivered the goods as he trapped the opener in front on 96.
From 171/1, the Men in Blue restricted Sri Lanka to 248/7 and one of the main reasons for the same was Riyan Parag's spell. He also picked up the wickets of Charith Asalanka and Dunith Wellalage and finished with figures of 3/54.
#2 Mohammed Siraj's heated exchange with Kusal Mendis
Mohammed Siraj had a pretty off day with the ball upfront as there wasn't much seam or swing on offer. He returned for his second spell and was still carted for runs by Avishka Fernando. However, later on, Siraj got the ball to reverse a bit and was fired up.
Kusal Mendis defended a delivery from Siraj and the duo got into a heated exchange. It ended up working out well for the fast bowler as that spurred him on even more. Siraj then bowled a reverse-swinging yorker to pin Sadeera Samarawickrama in front and sent him back to the pavilion for a golden duck.
#1 Rohit Sharma's wicket
Rohit Sharma once again was off to a rollicking start and he took a special liking to Maheesh Theekshana. Scoring boundaries and sixes almost at will, Rohit was arguably going to be the biggest wicket that stood between Sri Lanka and a series win.
Despite India losing Shubman Gill early, the fact that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were at the crease would have given fans some confidence. However, that soon turned out to be a joy too short as Wellalage dismissed the Indian captain. Rohit tried to play the slog sweep and the ball turned big to take the outside edge of his bat. Kusal Mendis made no mistake.
From thereon, India's wickets fell like ninepins, eventually getting bundled out for 138.