By Srian Obeyesekere
The third and final ODI carries an abounding pre-match hype for its decisive trimmings with underdogs Sri Lanka having reversed fortunes to a 1-0 comeback from the lowest depths of a running pounding holocaust to creating history by beating India in an ODI series since 1997 where the high riding Indians have been pushed back by defeat in the second game to saving the series in tomorrow’s day-night where the game would predictably revolve on spin on a slow surface at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.
That a badly bruised Sri Lanka has bounced back from that bottom of the precipice gloom in largely remaking rehashed player shuffling phase of the country’s cricket under a new captain in Charith Asalanka to bleeding a high riding Indian outfit under the explosive charge of Rohit Sharma and the likes of batting superstar Virat Kohli has been high stuff that has therein hyped the game to decisive showdown humdinger proportions before an expectant home fan base as much as die hard Indian fan base that follows their team wherever they play.
By and large, it is a high noon/night thunder cricketing scenario in the game’s most absorbing stretching one-day format as the two sides regroup to going the distance to that ultimate thumbs up euphoria. While to Charith Asalanka’s more or less new look Lankans it is their moment to reaching a giant series winning aura by breaking mighty India’s long running invincibility, to Rohit Sharma’s top cast it is as contrastingly a testing moment to redeeming their high status by outplaying a resurgent Sri Lanka.
From a Lankan aspect, the decisive playmakers its success hinges on the form book are young all-rounder Dunith Wellalage, whose contributions with bat and ball have largely brought the side thus far, down the line batsman Kamindu Mendis who muscled the ODI triumph in a batting cast that has more or less revolved around individual potential where the second game did see a certain measure of team gelling by substantial scores to the joint top scores of 40 each by upfront Avishka Fernando followed by Kamindu Mendis to go with Wellalage’s 39. Kusal Mendis did hang along in a support role to Avishka Fernando to an extent against a wily Indian attack on a difficult batting surface as much as skipper Asalanka to that final score of 240. They would be looking to stretch that further in this must win game while the bowling has certainly seen a new hero emerge in leggy Jaffrey Vandersay with Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana sidelined by injury.
India for their part, would be looking to nip in the bud the sudden stuttering from high flowing starts given by the characteristically belligerent skipper Rohit Sharma whose remarkability has been to go on the offensive from the very first ball with Subman Gill lending fine support. The side would of course, be looking for their center piece Virat Kohli to deliver in the crunch as much as the specialised rest mainly centering around middle order lynchpin K.L. Rahul as much as Axar Patel who contributed substantially in the two previous games.
Sri Lanka (Probable XI): Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis (wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka (c), Kamindu Mendis, Janith Liyanage, Dunith Wellalage, Akila Dananjaya, Asitha Fernando, Jeffrey Vandersay.
India (Probable XI): Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj.
