India v Sri Lanka, 2016-17
Wisden's review of the third Twenty20 International, India v Sri Lanka, 2016-17
15-Apr-2017
At Visakhapatnam, February 14, 2016 (floodlit). India won by nine wickets. Toss: India. Twenty20 international debut: D. A. S. Gunaratne.
There had been signs of Sri Lankan weakness against spin in Ranchi, and here they were completely exposed. Ashwin, varying his pace beautifully, nipped out their top four in the first five overs, and finished with India's best Twenty20 figures. In ripe conditions, his spin partner Jadeja bowled 20 dots, also a national record, and shared three more wickets with Raina as Sri Lanka were shot out for 82. It was their lowest 20-over score, undercutting 87 against Australia at Bridgetown during the World T20 in 2010. India might have hoped for more batting time for their middle order, particularly Yuvraj Singh, who faced just 15 balls in the series, but the top three completed the job with minimal fuss. Ashwin finished the series with nine wickets at an average of 3.88 and an economy-rate of 3.18.
Man of the Match: R. Ashwin. Man of the Series: R. Ashwin.
There had been signs of Sri Lankan weakness against spin in Ranchi, and here they were completely exposed. Ashwin, varying his pace beautifully, nipped out their top four in the first five overs, and finished with India's best Twenty20 figures. In ripe conditions, his spin partner Jadeja bowled 20 dots, also a national record, and shared three more wickets with Raina as Sri Lanka were shot out for 82. It was their lowest 20-over score, undercutting 87 against Australia at Bridgetown during the World T20 in 2010. India might have hoped for more batting time for their middle order, particularly Yuvraj Singh, who faced just 15 balls in the series, but the top three completed the job with minimal fuss. Ashwin finished the series with nine wickets at an average of 3.88 and an economy-rate of 3.18.
Man of the Match: R. Ashwin. Man of the Series: R. Ashwin.