Hosts Sri Lanka clinched a comfortable victory in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy opener. Playing against India, Sri Lanka beat them the first time at home as the hosts clinched a 5-wicket victory at the R. Premadasa Stadium.
Sri Lanka decided to field first after winning the toss. After a shaky start, India managed to put 174/5 at the end of 20 overs.
Chasing down that target, the hosts lost 5 wickets before reaching the target in 18.3 overs. Sri Lanka won this match by 5 wickets with 9 balls to spare.
Brief Scores: India – 174/7 in 20 overs (Shikhar Dhawan 90, Manish Pandey 37, Dushmantha Chameera 2/33)
South Africa – 175/5 in 18.3 overs (Kusal Mendis 66, Thisara Perera 22*, Washington Sundar 2/28)
Result – Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets
Here are some of the statistical highlights of the match:
- Indian skipper Rohit Sharma was dismissed for a duck.
i) Second Indian T20I captain to score a duck. Virat Kohli was the first Indian T20I captain to score a T20I duck and that was against Australia at Guwahati on 10th October 2017.
- Indian batsmen Shikhar Dhawan and Manish Pandey put a brilliant 95 runs partnership for the third wicket.
i) India’s second highest T20I partnership for any wicket on the Sri Lankan soil. The record is the 119-runs partnership for the third wicket between Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey against Sri Lanka at RPS (Colombo) on 6th September 2017.
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- Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan scored 90 runs.
i) Highest T20I knock by any Indian batsman on the Sri Lankan soil. The previous record holder was Virat Kohli with the 82-runs knock against Sri Lanka at RPS (Colombo) on 6th September 2017.
ii) Second highest T20I knock by any foreign batsman against Sri Lanka on the Sri Lankan soil. The record holder is Australian batsman Glenn Maxwell with 145* runs knock at Pallekele on 6th September 2016.
iii) Second highest T20I knock by any batsman at RPS (Colombo). The record holder is England batsman Luke Wright with 99* runs knock against Afghanistan on 21st September 2012.
- India put a total of 174/5 in 20 overs.
i) India’s joint highest T20I total on the Sri Lankan soil. Here is the list:
India’s top T20I totals on the Sri Lankan soil
| Total (Overs) | Opposition | Venue | Date |
| 174/7 (19.2) | Sri Lanka | Colombo (RPS) | 10th February 2009 |
| 174/3 (19.2) | Sri Lanka | Colombo (RPS) | 6th September 2017 |
| 174/5 (20) | Sri Lanka | Colombo (RPS) | 6th February 2018 |
- Sri Lanka scored 75 runs (75/2) in the powerplay.
i) Sri Lanka’s highest total in a T20I powerplay.
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- Sri Lankan batsman Kusal Perera scored 66 runs.
i) Third highest individual T20I knock by any Sri Lankan batsman against India. Here is the top five list:
Top five T20I knocks by any Sri Lankan batsman against India
| Player | Runs scored | Venue | Date |
| Kumar Sangakkara | 78 | Nagpur | 9th December 2009 |
| Kusal Perera | 77 | Indore | 22nd December 2017 |
| Kusal Perera | 66 | Colombo (RPS) | 6th March 2018 |
| Tillakaratne Dilshan | 61 | Colombo (RPS) | 10th February 2009 |
| Kumar Sangakkara | 59 | Mohali | 12th December 2009 |
- Sri Lanka successfully chased down the target of 175 runs (175/5 in 18.3 overs).
i) Second highest T20I chase for any team in Sri Lanka. The record holder is Pakistan by successfully chasing 176 runs (178/2 in 18.4 overs) against Bangladesh at Pallekele on 25th September 2012.
- Sri Lanka won this match by 5 wickets.
i) First T20I victory for Sri Lanka against India on their home soil. Before this match, they had met thrice in Sri Lanka where India had won in each time.
