India vs Sri Lanka 2017, 3rd ODI: What went right for the hosts

#4 Exerting pressure in the middle overs

It was a must-win encounter for both the teams as India and Sri Lanka came into the final ODI winning one match each. Rohit Sharma, who won his first toss as India captain at Vizag on Sunday, invited Sri Lanka to bat first.

Although Jasprit Bumrah removed visitors' opener Danushka Gunathilaka in the 4th over, by the end of the first Powerplay it seemed that Rohit's decision had backfired already.

Sadeera Samarawickrama and Upul Tharanga stitched up a 121-run partnership as Sri Lanka looked well-set for a score of 300-plus.

Yuzvendra Chahal broke the partnership and got rid of Samarawickrama, while Kuldeep Yadav triggered a batting collapse by removing Tharanga.

Sri Lanka could never recover from 160/3 in 27.1 overs as the Indian bowlers kept pounding pressure on a fragile batting order by striking at regular intervals.

Hardik Pandya, Chahal, and Kuldeep, who accounted for seven Sri Lankan wickets, were so effective and accurate in their dealings that 9 out of 11 visitors' batsmen scored less than 20 runs.

Eventually, Sri Lanka succumbed under pressure and were bowled out for 215 in 44.5 overs.