India go top with Sri Lanka victory

A victory over Sri Lanka sent India top of the Nidahas Trophy table, as Shardul Thakur and Manish Pandey shone.

Published : Mar 13, 2018 01:42 IST

India climbed to the top of the Nidahas Trophy table with a six-wicket victory inspired by Shardul Thakur and Manish Pandey in Colombo on Monday.

After losing their opening clash with the tournament hosts, Saturday's win against Bangladesh and this latest triumph send India two points clear at the summit.

In a match that was restricted to 19 overs by a rain delay, Sri Lanka reached 152-9, with Thakur posting figures of 4-27 for India and Yuzvendra Chahal taking the important wicket of Kusal Mendis (55).

India's response got off to a nervy start, as openers Rohit Sharma (11) and Shikhar Dhawan (8) both went down cheaply to Akila Dananjaya (2-19).

KL Rahul (18) could not manage much better, but his dismissal at the hands of Jeevan Mendis brought Pandey to the crease, the right-hander confidently racking up an unbeaten innings of 42.

Suresh Raina made a creditable contribution of 27 but it was left to another standout performer, Dinesh Karthik (39 not out), to hit the winning run with nine balls to spare.

"Batting at number five, I think I should be there until the end to finish games," said Pandey. 

"The bowlers came back very well after the first game. Well done to them for restricting this to 152.

"We didn't have too much batting after 6 to 7, so it was nice to have that stand with DK."

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment