Analytical review of the 3rd ODI between India and Sri Lanka held in Colombo on 24 August, 2008.

India thrashed Sri Lanka in the third ODI held at Premdasa by 33 runs. The credit goes to the Indian opening bowling attack which clubbed with some superb batting partnerships for giving India a 2-1 lead in the 5-match series. India entered the match confidently after the last win in Dambulla. However, the wickets fell regularly and India was reduced to 91-4 after 23 overs. It was then Dhoni entered and picked the match from there. His 50+ runs stands with Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma gave India the much-needed impetus.

Dhoni and Raina faced the double danger of Murali and Mendis confidently and at one point of time India looked likely to shoot 250. The target for Sri Lanka was set at 238 after Mendis and Thushara rounded up the tail. Murali and Mendis had a showdown today. Mendis did claim 3 wickets out of which 2 were tail-enders. Murali had a forgettable dry spell.

In response, the Sri Lankan top order crumbled like a pack of cards. Zaheer and Kumar limited the hosts to 40-4 in the first ten overs, Jayasuriya letting down his team once again. It was skipper Mahela Jayawardene who was the saving grace for the team. He came in when his side was tottering at 37-3 and went on to score runs in absence of any stable partner. Thilan Thushara gave him the much-needed support to fasten the scoring and a miracle began to look possible. Zaheer claimed Thushara, Munaf dismissed Jayawardene and the chase was over.

This is the second match in row where the foundation for the victory was laid by a great opening bowling attack. Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar initiated the crackdown of the Sri Lankan batting order which was then cracked by Munaf Patel. It was Zaheer who struck again today with his sharp deliveries.

It is a welcome performance by the pacer who was out of action for quite sometime owing to injuries. Some brilliant performances by the seamers, especially Indian, is a notable fact in a tour that has been largely dominated by spinners. Pace winning matches is a positive development for the Indian team that is known to rely heavily on its batting lineup which often fails to meet the expectations.

The Team India is on a high now after the second consecutive victory. However, this win brings more tension than relief as the crowd has its eyes fixed on the series now.

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3.25 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."

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