There was all the potential of an statement-making from Shubman Gill, who had been appointed as the new vice-captain of the Indian ODI team, in the very first match of this new series against Sri Lanka. However, he couldn’t do much in the first ODI. The man of the moment, billed to be one of the most important players going into the game, managed to spend just 35 balls for 16 before losing his wicket in the 13th over.
The overfull delivery on off stump was from Dunith Wellalage, as Gill struggled to find his rhythm. He tried to slog-sweep an ambitious shot but only top-edged it. The shot, intended to be a boundary, soared high toward the cover region—there was no room for error for Sri Lankan wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis.
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The Indians lost another key wicket after Shubman Gill’s departure, with Rohit Sharma retiring; he retired immediately after reaching a brisk fifty. Matters only got worse for the Indians as Washington Sundar, promoted up to number four, too fell without doing much.
— hiri_azam (@HiriAzam) August 2, 2024
Sundar He was castled by Dushmantha Chameera for only 5 and India was now in a very precarious position at 87-3 from an overall very good situation at 75-0.
Sri Lanka had set a target of 230 runs, thanks largely to a commendable unbeaten 67 from Dunith Wellalage. His innings once again proved the value he held as an all-rounder against a strong team like India. This innings of the Sri Lankan young gun brought to the fore once again his ability and skill to make a telling contribution and the potential he is made of in international cricket.
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India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj.
Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis (wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka (c), Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Akila Dananjaya, Asitha Fernando and Mohamed Shiraz.
