India vs Sri Lanka 1st T20I Preview: Stars missing but India still favourites in Cuttack

India will aim to begin the T20 internationals against Sri Lanka with a win in Cuttack.

India have played five T20I series this year and won three of them, suffered a loss in one and draw another. This is a format where India have not been dominant through-and-through. They have lost atleast one match in a series is of more than one. Their most recent T20I series against New Zealand saw them lose the second game before they won the third. But, Sri Lanka may not be that difficult a team.

India will be wary of the fact that it is not a format where form or numbers make you a favourite and they will try to put no foot wrong. The first T20I of the three-match series between the two will be played at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack and India will like to begin the series on a different note than their ODI series in which they were humiliated in the first game.

Cuttack and Dharamsala, the venue for the first ODI, are completely different venues in terms of conditions. India have the batsmen in form and the bowlers are also likely to play a big role. The Islanders, led by Thisara Perera, will look to challenge a comparatively young Indian side in the shortest format of the game. However, to do so they will have to find ways to stop the powerful Indian batting order from exploding again.

Without the services of veteran Lasith Malinga, the Lankans will definitely have an arduous task at hand. The selectors have placed their faith on the young brigade and hence the likes of Vishwa Fernando, Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Pradeep will have to step up to the task. The responsibility of batting will rest primarily on the shoulders of the experienced Angelo Mathews and Upul Tharanga. Angelo Mathews, in particular, has batted well on this tour and this will instill the much-needed confidence among the youngsters in the team.

Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella and Sadeera Samarawickrama add more power to the lineup. Interestingly, Sri Lanka have gone ahead with only one specialist spinner in the form of Akila Dananjaya. But his success will depend on how he is used. Dananjaya has troubled the Indian batsmen in the past and Rohit Sharma, in particular, has found it difficult to get going against the 22-year-old. Hence, whether he is used in the opening spell or in the later half remains to be seen.

Indian players arrive at Bhubaneswar. (Source: PTI)

India could go in with three seamers in the form of Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj. However, if they do opt for experimentation then Basil Thampi and Jaydev Unadkat might get a look in. Thampi and Unadkat earned a call-up with their bright performances in the IPL. Kuldeep Yadav’s spell in third ODI also reaffirms as to why he should lead the spin attack along with Yuzvendra Chahal. But if the Indian think-tank decides to bolster up the batting then young Washington Sundar or Deepak Hooda might stand a chance to earn their debuts in the shortest format. The batting will see Rohit Sharma open the inning with a new partner as Shikhar Dhawan is rested in this series. KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane are the option for India to open. Shreyas Iyer will continue to enjoy a longer run in T20Is after his consecutive half-centuries in ODIs. Manish Pandey and MS Dhoni will complete the remaining batting order.

In what will be the first T20 international match at the Barabati stadium since 2015, it is difficult to predict on how the pitch will behave. In the last T20 at Cuttack, South Africa dismissed India for 92 in the shortest format as crowd interrupted play twice. Hence this time around police has taken extra protection and more than 63 platoons of police personnel will be deployed for the match.