The first of the 3-match T20I series between India and Sri Lanka was abandoned due to wet outfield at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati, after home skipper Virat Kohli won the toss.
Despite heavy showers in the morning, signs were positive at the time of the toss when Kohli opted to avoid the disadvantage of the dew factor by opting to field first. However with a drizzle starting minutes before the scheduled start at 7.00 pm, the game had to be delayed.
A couple of official inspections by the umpires Nitin Menon and C. Shamshuddin were done after the drizzle at 9.00 pm and 9.30 pm respectively, before the game was eventually abandoned before 10.00 pm.
Sri Lanka made an interesting call prior to the rain intervention by leaving Angelo Mathews out of the playing XI, who was recalled solely for his experience. Vice-captain Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Mendis had also lost their spots in the final XI, while Dhananjaya de Silva returned to the middle order.
Sri Lanka – Danushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Perera, Oshada Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu de Silva, Isuru Udana, Lasith Malinga, Lahiru Kumara
Read: Malinga, Arthur buoyed by Mathews’ experience and all-round skills
India was eagerly waiting to see the return of their star bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who was out of action for nearly 4 months due to an injury. He was named alongside two young pacers Shardul Thakur and Navdeep Saini, both of who were not part of India’s last T20I against West Indies. Shikhar Dhawan returned, replacing rested opener Rohit Sharma.
India – Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli – C, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant – WK, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini
The two teams will head to Indore for the next game on the 7th of January.
>>Visit the #INDvSL Cricket Hub<<
