Familiar sight and a familiar result: Virat Kohli anchors chase, India win

Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 56 to take India over the winning line in 5-wicket victory over Sri Lanka. (Source: PTI)

Did the Indian team management gamble with Shikhar Dhawan’s fitness for this game? The question crops up as the opening batsman, who had been walking with a heavily strapped left ankle until Monday, looked to be struggling with his feet movement during his three-ball stay. It ended when he nicked a Nuwan Kulasekara outswinger behind the stumps when his footwork was non-existent. His partner Rohit Sharma, who was nursing a sore toe after taking a blow from Mohammad Amir, too made the playing XI for this Asia Cup fixture against Sri Lanka. He also fell to the same bowler, as India, chasing 139, were reduced to 16/2 in the fourth over.

KOHLI: It’s nice to challenge yourself

In the end, India won the match with five wickets and four balls to spare. Virat Kohli, once again, was a picture of assurance, remaining unbeaten on 56 off 47 balls. But more hearteningly, Yuvraj Singh found his mojo when India were a bit under the pump. At 70/3 after 11.1 overs, it was still anybody’s game. Suresh Raina’s unconvincing 26-ball 25 ended when he lofted a length ball from Dasun Shanaka to Kulasekara at wide mid-off. But Yuvraj grabbed the game by the scruff and provided impetus to India’s chase that was asking for a few lusty blows. It was exhilarating to see him strike the ball so well again, having seen him hop-and-jump awkwardly in the previous few matches, where it looked like at times that he was on the pitch without a bat in hand.

When Yuvraj came to the crease, Shanaka presented him with a half-tracker outside the off stump. Yuvraj accepted the favour with a four past backward point. Rangana Herath tried to tease him with flight. Yuvraj charged down the track and dispatched it over long-on for a six. The veteran spinner bowled a faster and fuller one on to the pads. Yuvraj whipped it over deep mid-wicket for another six. Welcome back to the party! “His approach has always been good. More he spends time in the middle, more he gets better,” Dhoni said after the match.

Dushmantha Chameera’s pace made him judicious but Thisara Perera posed no such threat and Yuvraj dealt him with contempt. The inside-out shot over cover for a six was the best he played tonight. And when Chameera bowled short and into the body, the 34-year-old glided him to the fine leg fence.

WATCH: Yuvraj Singh reassures, Kohli delivers (App users click here)

Attack continued and Perera was once again clobbered to the long-off boundary. But the Sri Lankan medium pacer responded with a bouncer and induced the top edge to have Yuvraj caught at fine leg. By then, however, victory became a formality. A 51-run fourth wicket partnership in 5.4 overs had all but sealed the deal. Yuvraj’s contribution to that association was an 18-ball 35. He returned to the dug-out with the tricolour flying high in the stands. India needed 18 more and Kohli was still there. The beauty of Kohli’s batting is that very few in world cricket read the situation better than him. When Yuvraj was blazing away, he didn’t mind playing second fiddle. Against Pakistan, he had fallen with the finish line in sight, here Kohli stayed to see the job done and took a deserved man-of-the-match award.

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A below-par total

To be fair, Sri Lanka didn’t have the bowling to make a contest out of a 139-run victory target on a slow pitch like this. And they were restricted to a below par total because Indian bowlers performed collectively. Dhoni’s decision to field first proved to be spot-on with the new-ball operators giving breakthroughs up front and Hardik Pandya chipping in as first change.

Ashish Nehra outthought Dinesh Chandimal, making the ball to go away off a length and getting the outside edge. Chandimal had come down the crease to attempt a slog. Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Shehan Jayasuriya with a beauty of an outswinger before Pandya came and accounted for Tillakaratne Dilshan with his first ball — a well-directed bouncer.

Dhoni once again brought Yuvraj ahead of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja into the attack but this time, the part-time spinner didn’t strike in his first over and the captain promptly replaced him with Jadeja. Mathews, however, welcomed him with a lofted drive to the straight boundary before hitting Pandya for another two fours. The latter exacted his revenge in the final ball of the over, tempting Mathews to drive with a widish delivery and getting an inside edge that disturbed the timber. It was a huge wicket.

Milinda Siriwardana tried to hit his way out of trouble, but Ashwin beat him in the air as Raina took a simple catch at long-on. Bumrah returned to remove a well-set Kapugedera with Pandya holding on to a very good catch at deep mid-off. But Perera lived up to his reputation of a big-hitter and scored 17 off just six balls before being foxed by a wide delivery from Ashwin. Kulasekara, too, hit a couple of fours to take Sri Lanka to their highest total in three matches so far. However, India had too much depth to play with, especially against a bowling attack bereft of Lasith Malinga, who missed out because of a sore knee.