Nidahas Trophy 2018 tri-series fixtures announced

What's the story?

The Nidahas Trophy tri-series fixtures have been finalised with the tournament to be played in the T20 format between hosts Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh. It will run from March 6 until March 18. There will be two round-robin matches each between the three teams before the final is contested amongst the best two.

The official broadcasters for the series are DSport.

In case you didn't know..

The trophy is being played in 2018 to mark seventy years of independence for Sri Lanka. All matches will be played at Colombo's R Premadasa Stadium. The last time that it was played was way back in 1998 when Sri Lanka had hosted India and New Zealand for a tri-series which was played in the 50-over format and in which there were three round-robin matches. The eventual winners were India, who beat Sri Lanka by 6 runs in the final.

What's next?

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are currently engaged in a tri-series between themselves in the latter's home ground with Zimbabwe being the third team. The final of that series is set to be played on January 27. On the other hand, India are touring South Africa for a lengthy series featuring 3 Tests, 6 ODIs and 3 T20s, all of which will end by February 24.

Author's Take

While the celebration of Sri Lanka's independence should be respected, it is undoubtedly evident how often they have ended up playing India over the last few years, with both teams competing in a full bilateral series on each other's soil in 2017 itself.

Nidahas Trophy 2018 Fixtures:

(All matches to be played at R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo)

March 6, 2018: Sri Lanka vs India

March 8, 2018: India vs Bangladesh

March 10, 2018: Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh

March 12, 2018: Sri Lanka vs India

March 14, 2018: India vs Bangladesh

March 16, 2018: Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh

March 18, 2018: Final