India did nothing wrong in the third ODI against Sri Lanka on Sunday as the Men in Blue posted a mammoth total batting first and then outsmarted Sri Lanka in the chase as well. While Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill were among the runs for India, Mohammed Siraj continued his purple patch in ODI cricket and gave India a massive lead with the ball. The right-arm pacer picked four wickets with the new ball to completely throw Sri Lanka off the deck.
Not only did Siraj outbowl the Sri Lankan batter but he also outsmarted them. The biggest victim of Sirja’s Street smartness was all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne. As India reduced Sri Lanka to 37/5 within 9.3 overs, Karunaratne had to walk out to bat in the middle. Meanwhile, Siraj was spitting venom with the ball and when he had Karunratne facing him, the pacer tried to get under the batter’s skin.
On the 3rd ball of the 12th over, Karunaratne almost lost his wicket as he tried to sneak in a single. After this Siraj muttered a few words. On the next ball, the pacer bowled a full-length delivery which Karunaratne defended with some intensity. The ball went straight to Siraj who then showed great presence of mind to throw the ball at the stumps and find the batter short of his crease.
With it being a close call, the on-field umpires sought help from the third umpire who took his time before finding out that “no part of Karunaratne’s shoe was behind the line” and adjudging the batter out. Meanwhile, the Indian dugout was pretty impressed with Siraj’s smartness. Virat Kohli, in particular, look amused as he burst into laughter after the decision was made.
Notably, before this dismissal, Siraj picked up four wickets. He dismissed Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Nuwanidu Fernando, and Wanindu Hasaranga.
