IND vs SL: 1st T20I Preview: India look to continue home dominance against depleted Sri Lanka
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After clean-sweeping the West Indies in ODI and T20I series, India would like to dominate against Sri Lanka. Both teams will play the three-match T20I series, with the first game to be played on February 24. The two-match Test series will follow afterward. Apart from a few batters, the batting line-up struggled against the West Indies. However, the bowlers were in great nick and won two T20Is in the midst of dew on the ground.
Some forced and voluntary changes have been made in the Indian squad from the previous series. Players such as Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant have been rested to give them a break from bio-bubbles. Apart from this, players such as Suryakumar Yadav and Deepak Chahar have been ruled out due to injuries. On the other hand, the visitors lost their previous series against Australia badly.
They lost the series by 1-4. However, the series result doesn’t reflect the true story. The islanders played well in patches in different games. The Dasun Shanaka-led side would like to do better in the familiar sub-continent although they do not have a great record in India across formats. Both teams would like to build their teams for the 20-20 World Cup this year and do better this time around. Last year, both teams didn’t qualify for the semifinals.
Pitch Report
The pitch at Lucknow is expected to be a flat throughout the game as not too many games have been played this season. Due to Winter season, dew can be a deciding factor in whether to bowl or bat first after winning the toss.
Probable playing XI
Sri Lanka is missing their star all-rounder Wanindu Hasarnaga due to COVID19. On the other hand, India will miss the services of Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, and Deepak Chahar.
India- Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Rohit Sharma (c), Sanju Samson, Venkatesh Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Avesh Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal
Sri Lanka- Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Danushka Gunathilaka, Charith Asalanka, Kamil Mishra (wk), Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka (c), Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara
Match details
Date- 24th February 2022
Time- 7 p.m (IST)
Venue- Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihar Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
