June 9, 2017: Sri Lanka defeated India at ease, recording a seven-wicket win in their Champions Trophy match on Thursday at the Oval, London.
Thanks to their breathtaking batting performance, the Sri Lankans were able to make their chase of 322 look like cakewalk. In the end, they defeated Kohli and his men with nine balls to spare.
The top batsman for Sri Lanka was Kusal Mendis, who made a spectacular 89 before getting run out. Mendis’s 159-run partnership for the second wicket with Danushka Gunathilaka (76) paved the path for Sri Lanka’s bewildering win.
Mathews, who was back after suffering an injury, came in handy with his well-made 52. Other batsmen who chipped in with runs for Sri Lanka include Asela Gunaratne (34 not out, 21 balls) and Gunaratne, who played after Kusal Perera got retired hurt at 47.
Upset by a really flat pitch, the Indian bowlers had no clues on how to make inroads into Sri Lanka’s batting line-up.
The Indians were earlier put into bat and had succeeded in posting a whopping 321-6 total on the score board, thanks to a superb century by Shikhar Dhawan (125). Dhawan, along with Sharma (78), were able to give India a solid start with their 138 run opening stand.
However, wickets fell at quick succession following Sharma’s exit. Captain Virat Kohli (0) and man of the previous match Yuvraj Singh (7) shocked Indian fans with their quick departures.
Ex-skipper Dhoni then helped India reach a gigantic total by sharing a dashing 82-run partnership with Dhawan.
Kedar Jadhav, who arrived towards the end of the innings, helped tournament favorites India finish off with a score of 321-6 by scoring a rapid-fire 25 off just 13 balls.