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India Will Look To Clinch Another White-Ball Series In 2nd T20I Against Lanka Today

- Tridib Baparnash

Four months after the World Cup debacle in the UAE, India wear a transformed look thanks to the infusion of young blood in the team. Having ticked all the boxes in the series opener against Sri Lanka in Lucknow, the men in blue will look to maintain their unbeaten streak. They will also be eager to complete a hat-trick of whitewashes in white-ball cricket when they take on Sri Lanka in the final two T20Is at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamshala.

After Thursday’s clinical 62-run victory, the Rohit Sharma-led outfit extended their winning streak to 10 T20I games, their longest in the shortest format. Yet to cement their spots in the playing XI, the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan came up with rollicking performances to remind the selectors that they will be strong contenders when the team for the World Cup in Australia is picked.

Kishan, the 23-year-old from Jharkhand, blasted a career-best 89 while opening the innings with his skipper before Iyer lit up the Ekana Stadium towards the latter half of the innings with an unbeaten 57 off 28 balls. It was a different Kishan on show from the previous series against the West Indies, in which he struggled to get going.

“He (Ishan) constructed the innings very well after six overs, which is usually a challenge for him because we know he likes to play his shots. It was not about coming and hitting the ball, it was also about finding the gaps,” Rohit said.

For Iyer, it was a case of grabbing limited opportunities after having warmed the bench at the Eden Gardens.

Fielding remains a concern