Gautam Gambhir’s era started well in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. However, in the ODI series, the team performed shockingly. After the 1st ODI was tied, the Men in Blue lost the 2nd and 3rd ODI. India lost the ODI series against Sri Lanka after 27 years due to a disappointing performance by the Indian batters. The middle order has crumbled in every game.
Despite getting the starts from captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill the middle order could not deliver as per the expectations. In the 3rd ODI Sri Lanka restricted India to 138 runs and won the match and the series by 110 runs. This has raised questions over Gambhir’s tenure as a head coach in the Indian team. It has been a tough time for star batter Virat Kohli in the series. He failed to impress with his batting.
Lanka kept the pressure on the Indian batters and ended the losing streak. India’s last loss in an ODI series was against Sri Lanka in 1997. Arjun Ranatunga-led Sri Lanka defeated Sachin Tendulkar-led India 3-0 in the three ODI series. After that, there were 11 ODI series between India and Sri Lanka. All those series were won by the Indian team.
Sri Lanka bowlers provide a tough time for the Indian middle order
In the 3rd and final ODI of the series, the hosts won the toss and elected to bat first. The opening pair of Pathum Nissanka (45) and Avishka Fernando (96) gave the team a brilliant start with a partnership of 89 runs. After Nisanka’s dismissal, the pair of Avishka Fernando and Kusal Mendis put on a partnership of 82 runs to build the innings. Avishka was dismissed for 96 off 102 balls missing out on his well-deserved century. Kusal Mendis played a brilliant knock of 59 off 82 balls.
Riyan Parag was the pick of the bowlers for Inid. He picked three wickets. Coming out to chase the skipper led from the front scoring 35 runs. Kohli scored 20 and Parag scored 15 with the bat. The other batters failed to reach double figures. Shubman Gill (6), Rishabh Pant (6), Shreyas Iyer (8), Akshar Patel (2) were dismissed early. Due to the disappointing batting of the batsmen, the Indian team reached the pit of defeat.
