India vs Sri Lanka, 2nd T20I in Mumbai: India win the toss for the first time in this series, and skipper Rohit Sharma opts to bowl first. Debutant Washington Sundar and Mohammed Siraj replace Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal in this match. Sri Lanka make two changes as well — Danushka Gunathilaka and Dasun Shanaka replacing Chaturanga de Silva and Angelo Mathews.
Preview: After overpowering Sri Lanka to clinch the series 2-0, India will look to continue their winning streak and clean sweep the series in the third Twenty20 International (T20I) at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
Rohit Sharma and Thisara Perera. AFP
On a triumphant run, India have been flamboyant in their approach to outclass Sri Lanka by 93 and 88 runs in the first and second encounters respectively. The hosts will hope to repeat the same form and outplay the visitors in the dead rubber.
Ranked fourth in the T20I rankings, India will bank on their fearless batting led by skipper Rohit Sharma and fellow opener Lokesh Rahul who have looked on top of their game.
Supporting them will be batsmen Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Manish Pandey and Dinesh Karthik who have the calibre to demolish the Sri Lanka which has failed to look up to the mark.
In the bowling department, pacer Jasprit Bumrah — who currently tops the T20I bowlers' list — will spearhead the unit alongside fellow new ball seamer Jaydev Unadkat.
However, wrist-spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, who have caused plenty of trouble to Sri Lanka throughout the series, will once again remain the key to pick crucial wickets.
For Sri Lanka, experienced all-rounder Angelo Mathews has added to the worries for the side after being ruled out of the final rubber following a hamstring injury in the previous match.
The visitors will, however, hope top order batsmen Niroshan Dickwella, Upul Tharanga and Kusal Perera to play match-winning knocks to salvage their side some pride and consolidate a victory before returning home.
The bowling, which has looked rather ineffective for Sri Lanka will need to reform strategies with the likes of skipper Thisara Perera, Nuwan Pradeep and Akila Dananjaya to try and trouble the formidable India batting line-up.
With inputs from IANS
HIGHLIGHTS
Toss: Rohit spins the coin. "Tails," calls Thisara Perera. Heads it is. India captain Rohit Sharma wins and elects to field. The pitch won't change a lot, he says. Two changes in the Indian side. Sundar and Mohammad Siraj in. Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal rested.
"Our plan was to bat first; hopefully we can set up a good target," says Thisara. Two changes in the Lankan squad too: Danushka Gunathilaka and Dasun Shanaka in for Chaturanga de Silva and Angelo Mathews respectively.
Big day for Washington Sundar. He will make his debut in T20Is.
Toss: Rohit spins the coin. "Tails," calls Thisara Perera. Heads it is. India captain Rohit Sharma wins and elects to field. The pitch won't change a lot, he says. Two changes in the Indian side. Sundar and Mohammad Siraj in. Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal rested.
"Our plan was to bat first; hopefully we can set up a good target," says Thisara. Two changes in the Lankan squad too: Danushka Gunathilaka and Dasun Shanaka in for Chaturanga de Silva and Angelo Mathews respectively.
Pitch report: It is a flat pitch. The ball will come on to the bat nicely. There is a bit of grass covering, which will help the ball to come onto the bat a bit better. There are a few brown patches, and the ball will grip. The spinners giving the ball a tweak will generate turn. 180-190 is the average score batting first. Sri Lanka have lost two matches chasing, and Sunil Gavaskar reckons that they should look to bat this time around.
Big day for Washington Sundar. He will make his debut in T20Is.
Surprise, surprise, they have opened the gates two hours before the start of the match. This means we might not be in for serpentine queues.
Well, cricket is back at the Wankhede. And as always there is that familiar buzz. There are blue jerseys boarding trains and getting down at the Churchgate station. They gave started coming in two hours before the match. The flag sellers and face painters are in full flow. This is the final match of the year for India and they would be looking to sign off in style with a whitewash.
India’s batting excelled in the last game, blasting the Lankan bowlers for a whopping 260 for 5 in the 20 overs. Mumbai too has a small boundary, but a similar performance may not be possible if the evening breeze permits a bit of swing bowling. Late swing early break could slow down the scoring rate somewhat. But India’s batting has more depth and quality than the Lankan one. A strong performance from India’s batsmen and bowlers would help the team take the confidence and positivism into the South African tour starting in a few days time.
Dew might not be as big a factor in Mumbai, though in winter it could be expected to around to some extent late evening. India already have an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the 3-match series. So shouldn't worry them too much.It would be a great opportunity to try some of the newcomer in a big match, particularly Washington Sundar and Basil Thampi or even medium pacer Mohammed Siraj and Baroda batsman Deepak Hooda.
Sri Lanka’s overflowing cup of woes is about to end. The third and final T20I today is their last engagement in India for some time to come. And the end has not come one bit too soon. They were crushed in Tests, ODIs and two T20Is and the parting kick today will set them free from torture. For a while, at least. Sadly, they are already restricted even for the final tie by injury to their former skipper and best all rounder Angelo Mathews. So in many ways while it will not be a cakewalk for India, they will be inadequately challenged by a rival hampered by injury and limited resources.
India vs Sri Lanka: Rohit Sharma threat looms over visitors as hosts look to sign off glorious year in style at Wankhede
India have the momentum on their side and with Sri Lanka battered and confidence sapped, this is the best chance to break their white-ball hoodoo at Wankhede and end a glorious year in style.
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Watch our correspondents Jigar Mehta and Devdutt Kshirsagar preview the match live from outside the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Hello and welcome to Firstpost's live coverage of what will be India's final game of the long and successful home season, as they take on Sri Lanka in the final T20I at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai!