Sri Lanka’s Dunith Wellalage celebrates the wicket of India’s Axar Patel during the third ODI cricket match between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
The Lankan Lions put up a total of 248 runs for the loss of 7 wickets before bundling out Team India for a paltry 138 runs in 26.1 overs. Avishka Fernando top scored with 96 runs, while Dunith Wellalage was the star with the ball as he picked up a five-wicket haul.
Sri Lanka claimed a 110-run win over India at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Wednesday to close out the three-match series 2-0 in their favour.
The Lankan Lions put up a total of 248 runs for the loss of 7 wickets before bundling out Team India for a paltry 138 runs in 26.1 overs. Avishka Fernando top scored with 96 runs, while Dunith Wellalage was the star with the ball as he picked up a five-wicket haul.
Sri Lanka won the coin toss and skipper Charith Asalanka opted to have a bat first as the openers Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando put up a 86-run stand for the opening wicket before the former was dismissed by Axar Patel.
Fernando partnered Kusal Mendis for another 85 runs and before he fell four runs shy of what would have been a well-deserved ton, as debutant Riyan Parag delivered the scalp.
Skipper Asalanka fell cheaply for 10 runs to Parag before Sadeera Samarawickrama went for a golden duck to Mohammad Siraj. Janith Liyanage fell to Washington Sundar for 8 runs.
Parag completed his three-wicket haul with the scalp of Dunith Wellalage before Kusal Mendis carried the hosts past the 200-run mark with a brilliant half-century.
Sri Lanka ended their innings at 248 runs with Kamindu Mendis and Maheesh Theekshana unbeaten at the crease at 23 and 3 runs respectively.
India came out to chase the target with skipper Rohit Sharma and Subman Gill opening the chase. Rohit led from the front as they took on the Sri Lankan bowling attack to get off to a quick start.
However, Sri Lanka got an early breakthrough as Asitha Fernando removed Gill for 6 runs when he struck timber. Rohit was next to go as he fell to Wellalage after having scored 35 runs off his willow off just 20 deliveries.
India found it hard for partnerships to come by thereafter as Rishabh Pant was scalped for 6 by Theekshana, and Wellalage piled more misery on the men in blue with the dismissal of Kohli for 20 runs.
Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer did not last long at the crease as they were sent back for scores of 2 and 8 respectively by Wellalage. Parag’s 15-run contribution took India into triple figures before he fell to Jeffrey Vandersay.
Vandersay doubled down on his tally with the removal of Shiva Dube for 9 runs. Washington Sundar provided some resistance to the Sri Lankan spinners’ performance as he made a fighting 30-run contribution before falling prey to Theeshana.
The home side wrapped up the game and the series with the dismissal of Kuldeep Yadav as Wellalage closed out with a fifer to clinch a historic series win over India after a wait of 27 years.
