India vs Sri Lanka 1st T20I Preview: India start as overwhelming favourites against depleted Sri Lanka

The dew factor will come into play later at night at Pune but that shouldn't stop India, who are brimming with confidence after their recent whitewash against Australia.

Updated: February 9, 2016 6:17 PM IST

By R Vishal

India vs Sri Lanka 1st T20I Preview: India start as overwhelming favourites against depleted Sri Lanka

Anything less than another whitewash in this three-match Twenty 20 (T20) series will be seen as a failure for India. Virat Kohli may be sitting out but otherwise, the side remains untouched from Down Under, which made history by winning all three games in Australia, becoming the first team in 140 years to do so.

Prior to the Australia series, the Indians suffered a setback against South Africans in this format. That is seen as a mere aberration after their heroics in Australia. Moreover, MS Dhoni is a clever operator with T20s, where he looks so much more in control, especially the way he squeezes the life of opposition batsmen using his spinners. It is a tried and tested formula, and Dhoni’s record across franchise cricket and India is testament to that. Even Sachin Tendulkar thinks the Men in Blue is the best T20 side in the world and it is by no means a statement borne out sheer patriotism alone.

Sri Lanka meanwhile have been through a bit of slump in recent times. The last six T20s they have played has yielded only a solitary win, and this is a worry for a side stocked with while ball specialists. Sadly, none of them will be making an appearance before the upcoming World Cup. Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekera and Rangana Herath, along with skipper Angelo Mathews all nurse injury problems, thrusting newcomers  as a result against a strong, hungry side playing at home.

This will be the first time India will be playing against the Lankans post the 2014 T20 World Cup, where Indians were humbled. That game was written off as Yuvraj Singh’s obituary but for the millionth time in his career, the Punjab dasher has made a comeback. Every step that India takes from here will be kept with an eye on the T20 World Cup, starting next month.

For the Indians, it serves as the perfect opportunity to experiment with Pawan Negi, who is seen as a surprise pick.  Hardik Pandya has earned himself more game time with his fearless performances in Australia. The 2007 World Champions will recognise a familiar face in the opposition ranks. After a long spell away from national colours, pacer Dilhara Fernando has made a comeback that has made heads turn.

The Sri Lankans have been doing this quite regularly in the shortest format of the game. In the last six months, Jehan Mubarak and Chamara Kapugedera, who is also a part of the current squad, have been recalled. The flaw with this plan is that there are no cricketers with a reasonable amount of experience; say a Dinesh Chandimal or a Thisara Perera. There are fledglings who have played very little cricket and a smattering of 30-somethings.

Ajinkya Rahane got very little batting time in Australia. He will be expected to slot into Virat Kohli’s role. It is a big ask to step into the shoes of the world’s premier T20 batsman but if anything, the Mumbai batsman has shown that he is amongst the most flexible in the side. The spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja went for a bit of a beating in the One-Day International (ODI) games against Australia, only to bounce back well in the T20s.

With Yuvraj’s ability to roll his arm over, Negi, the most expensive Indian Premier League (IPL) player this season should get a look-in. Pune has proved to be a batting paradise in the few games that have been played at the Sahara Stadium. The dew factor will come into play later at night but that shouldn’t stop India, who are brimming with confidence.

Squads (from):

Sri Lanka: Dinesh Chandimal (Captain), Seekuge Prasanna, Milinda Siriwardana, Danushka Gunathilaka, Thisara Perera, Dasun Shanaka, Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedera, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilhara Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Binura Fernando, Sachithra Senanayake, Jeffrey Vandersay, Niroshan Dickwella.

India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Ashish Nehra, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Pawan Negi.

Match commences at 7:30 pm (IST).

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