Thiruvananthapuram: The third and final match of the ODI cricket series between India and Sri Lanka will be played today. The match will be played at the Greenfield Stadium in Karivatta from 1.30 pm.
India is confident after winning the series 2-0. Lanka’s aim is to bounce back with a win. Last ODI was played at Greenfield Stadium in 2019 against West Indies. Batting first, Windies were all out for 104 runs. India reached the target with the loss of one wicket. The weather in Thiruvananthapuram is perfect for the competition. High temperature will be around 30 degree Celsius. As night falls, the atmosphere becomes colder.
Former India captain Virat Kohli is trying to surpass former Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene’s record of 12,650 runs in ODIs. Kohli needs 63 more runs. Jayawardene is the fifth highest scorer in ODIs. Opener Nuwanindu Fernando entered the record books in the last match. Nuwanindu is the sixth Lankan player to score a half-century on debut. Lankan opener Aavishka Fernando is close to achieving 1000 runs in ODI cricket. Aavishka will cross the thousand to score 11 runs today. Aavishka is on course to become the fourth fastest player to score 1000 runs for Lanka (29 innings). Lanka is disappointed to have lost all the 26 international series against India. With the World Cup coming up, every win is crucial, so even in an irrelevant match, Sri Lanka will bring out fighting spirit. India see today’s match as an opportunity to make changes in the final XI. Muhammad Siraj started emerging as a brilliant pacer. Siraj has taken five wickets in the series so far. Siraj’s plus point is that he can identify his strengths and weaknesses. Kushal Mendis is the most experienced batsman in the Lankan line-up. For Mendis to perform well in Twenty20. Mendis performed well in the second ODI as well. Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal may not play today due to a shoulder injury. Kuldeep Yadav was and still is the spin power. Nuwanindu will be out today if Pathum Nisanka recovers from his back pain. There is also a possibility that Charita Asalanka may be dropped and Nuwanindu played in midfield.
Probable Team: India – Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Lokesh Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Akshar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Shami, Umran Malik, Mohammad Siraj.
Probable Team: Sri Lanka- Pathum Nisanka, Aavishka Fernando, Kushal Mendis, Nuwanindu Fernando/Charitha Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Sanaka (captain), Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunit Valalage, Chamika Karunaratne, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Thirimane.
G. Arun