The Indian team suffered a heartbreaking defeat in the second T20I against Sri Lanka in Pune. The Men in Blue had to chase down 207 runs in the second innings but fell short by 16 runs. One of the biggest reasons for the Indian defeat was the five no-balls bowled by Arshdeep Singh. Addressing this mishap, former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir had some harsh words for the pacer.
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The young pacer was called out for bowling a hat-trick of no balls in the second over of the match. He went on to ball a nine-ball over, conceding 19 runs. He then bowled two more no-balls in the 19th over and gave away 18 runs. Gambhir feels Arshdeep shouldn't be directly playing international cricket as he was lacking rhythm after coming back from an injury lay-off.
While speaking on Star Sports during the post-match show, Gambhir said, "Imagine seven balls, it's like bowling more than 21 overs. Everyone bowls bad balls or plays bad shots but it's about the rhythm. If you are coming after an injury, you should not be playing an international game. You should be going to domestic cricket and getting your rhythm back because no-balls are not acceptable.”
“Whoever is injured and there is a long layoff, he has to go back to domestic cricket, bowl 15-20 overs, come back and then play an international game, and that was squarely seen when Arshdeep Singh was struggling with his rhythm," Gambhir added.
Talking about the game, the Lankan team put forth an incredible batting effort where they posted the highest score at the MCA stadium. The star performer with the bat was Shanaka, who smashed an explosive 56 in 22 balls with two fours and six sixes.
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Kusal Mendis also scored an important 50 to start off the game and give the visitors a head start. Talking about Lankan bowling, Dasun Shanaka once again stepped up and bowled an incredible final over as he picked up two wickets while giving away just four runs. Dilshan Madushanka and Kasun Rajitha also picked up two wickets each.
