India vs Sri Lanka 2017, 3rd ODI: Hits and misses

The Rohit Sharma-led India defeated Sri Lanka by 8 wickets in the series-deciding third and final ODI to clinch the three-match series 2-1 at Visakhapatnam on Sunday.

Chasing 216 to win, India lost skipper Rohit?Sharma early but Shikhar Dhawan’s unbeaten 100 and Shreyas Iyer’s second consecutive half-century guided the hosts home in 32.1 overs with 107 balls to spare.

Earlier, three wickets each from India's spin twins Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav restricted the touring party to 215 in 44.5 overs.

This was India's eighth consecutive bilateral ODI series win since June 2016.

Now, let's have a look at the hits and missed from the third ODI.

Hit: Upul Tharanga

Upul Tharanga, who missed out on his 16th ODI ton by five runs, became the third player after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to score 1000 runs in the fifty-over format in 2017 as Sri Lanka posted 215 against India in the third and final ODI at Visakhapatnam.

Tharanga, who was stumped by MS Dhoni off Kuldeep Yadav for 95 off 82 balls, also became the first Sri Lanka batsman since Tillakaratne Dilshan in 2015 to go past the landmark.

Rohit Sharma won the toss and invited Sri Lanka to bat as Tharanga started off brilliantly before taking his hitting ability to the next level in the ninth over, blasting Hardik Pandya for five consecutive fours.

It was a smooth sailing for the visitors when Tharanga and Sadeera Samarawickrama were batting as the duo added 121 runs for the second wicket. However, after Tharanga's fall, the floodgates opened for a batting collapse as Sri Lanka went from 160/3 in 27.1 overs to 215 all-out in 44.5.

Sri Lanka might have lost 23 out of 29 ODIs in 2017 but Tharanga enjoyed a fantastic run with 119 against South Africa at Cape Town being his highest this year.

Hit: Kuldeep Yadav

Although it was a collective effort from the Indian bowlers to bundle out Sri Lanka for 215 in 44.5 overs, it was Kuldeep Yadav, who triggered the visitors' batting collapse.

Upul Tharanga, who top-scored for Sri Lanka but missed out on his 16th ODI ton by a whisker, gave his team a good chance to secure their first series win in India before Yadav proved to be too good for the tourists' middle and lower order.

With his control of line and length, Yadav lured well-set Tharanga to attempt a cover drive off a ball wide outside off but then it dipped and turned sharply enough to beat the man batting on 95 as MS Dhoni's lightning glovework did the rest.

There was nothing special about the flat deck at Vizag, but the 23-year old playing his first year of international cricket, produced a remarkable 10-over spell that cost only 42 runs and claimed three wickets.

Miss: Thisara Perera

Sri Lanka skipper Thisara Perera, for whom the three-match ODI series started with a bang in Dharamshala, ended with agony in Vizag.

After the visitors won the series opener, all of Sri Lanka's plans backfired in Mohali and Vizag.

Rohit Sharma won the toss and invited Sri Lanka to bat first for the first time in the series. Although Upul Tharanga and Sadeera Samarawickrama gave a brilliant start to the visitors, they could not capitalise on it.

Perera, who is an all-rounder, with a strike rate of 108.26 in the ODIs, faltered as a batsman and could not play a captain's knock as Sri Lanka were all out for 215 in 44.5 overs.

Although Perera dismissed Shreyas Iyer, it was too late as the match had already slipped out of Sri Lanka's fingers by then.

Perera, who used eight bowlers during India's innings that lasted 32.1 overs, seemed quite confused while exploring his options as a captain.

His tactics were quite baffling as he did not use Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep or Akila Dananjaya for their complete quota of overs in a bid to restrict or get Indian wickets, something which is very difficult to comprehend.

Miss: Angelo Mathews

The final of a series is an occasion when the team looks up to their most experienced player to stand and deliver.

Angelo Mathews, who batted out of his skin to put up a fighting performance at Mohali, failed to deliver on the big stage.

He was ineffective with the ball as well and from the outside, it was pretty evident that he had just not turned up for his team, a very unfortunate occurrence for a young team who look towards the senior players for inspiration and leadership.

And yes, he even missed a catch at the first slip, it was a tough chance, but life has become tough for Mathews, he is mirroring Sri Lanka at the moment.

Hit: Shikhar Dhawan

When Shikhar Dhawan walked out to bat at the Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Sunday, he was 62 runs short of his 4000 ODI runs.

Riding on an unbeaten 100 off 85 balls, Dhawan became the second fastest Indian and sixth quickest overall to reach 4000 ODI runs in the 94th fifty-over innings of his career.

After Rohit Sharma's early dismissal, Dhawan along with Shreyas Iyer brought up a 135-run partnership for the second wicket, which proved to be vital in India to a 2-1 series win.

Dhawan, who played a supportive role for Iyer in the beginning, shifted gears after the youngster's dismissal and brought up his 12th ODI ton and fourth against Sri Lanka as India chased down 216 with 107 balls to spare.

Fittingly for 168 runs at an average of 84, Dhawan was adjudged Player of the Series.