[Watch] Axar Patel draws first blood as Pathum Nissanka departs in India vs Sri Lanka third ODI
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel provided a much-needed breakthrough for India in the ongoing third ODI of the series as Sri Lankan opener Pathum Nissanka had to make his way back to the pavilion. Nissanka was dismissed for 45 off 65 balls.
The wicket fell in the 20th over of the innings. Nissanka tried to hit a delivery from around the wicket from Axar towards deep mid-wicket. However, this time the ball gripped the surface and hit the toe end of Nissanka's bat to lob straight up in the air.
Rishabh Pant called for the catch and completed it safely. Here's a video of the dismissal:
As soon as Nissanka attempted that shot, he knew he was in trouble and was visibly unhappy. The 89-run stand between the two openers was broken with the dismissal.
Notably, he had previously hit two sixes and a boundary against the all-rounder.
Sri Lanka consolidate after Axar Patel's breakthrough
Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat first on what looked like yet another dry pitch for the third ODI. Avishka Fernando and Pathum Nissanka decided to take on Mohammed Siraj and got Sri Lanka off to a brisk start. Nissanka kept on taking his chances against Axar Patel before perishing.
Kusal Mendis walked out to bat at No. 3 and has given good assistance to Fernando, who has taken the role of the aggressor. Siraj has been expensive in his second spell as well and Fernando smashed him for a four and a couple of sixes in his fifth over.
At the time of writing, Sri Lanka have already crossed the 150-run mark and have lost just a solitary wicket. With 19 more overs to go, it looks like the hosts are set to post a total over the 250-run mark. From the way the past two ODIs have panned out, the Indian batting order could come under serious pressure if the hosts set that sort of a target.
Sri Lanka are currently leading the series 1-0.