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The young Indian team under Shikhar Dhawan will kick off the T20I series against Sri Lanka with the first T20I on Sunday, July 25. India have already bagged the ODI series with a 2-1 scoreline and will look to get off to a winning start in the T20I series.
R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo will host the first T20I of the series on Sunday. So far, India have played 12 T20Is at the venue. They have managed to win 10 encounters and have lost just two games. India's last game at this venue was a memorable one for the team as they won the Nidahas Trophy in the final against Bangladesh.
Dinesh Karthik's blitzkrieg at the death helped India win the Nidahas Trophy final against Bangladesh
India's last T20I match at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo took place on March 18, 2018. It was the final match of the Nidahas Trophy against a spirited Bangladesh side. Hosts Sri Lanka were the third side in the tournament, but failed to reach the finals.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to chase in the summit clash. Bangladesh openers Tamim Iqbal (15) and Liton Das (11) got starts but perished quickly, looking to attack the spinners. Sabbir Rahman (77) then played a sensible knock after coming in at number 3. He anchored the innings perfectly even though wickets kept tumbling at the other end.
Mahmudullah (21) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (19) briefly supported Sabbir Rehman in the death overs as Bangladesh reached a competitive score of 166/8 in 20 overs. Yuzvendra Chahal (3/18) and Jaydev Unadkat (2/33) were the pick of the bowlers for India.
In reply, Shakib Al Hasan scalped Shikhar Dhawan (10) in the third over to provide a good start for Bangladesh. Coming in at number 3, Suresh Raina failed to get off the mark as he departed by edging a leg-stump line ball to the wicket-keeper.
Skipper Rohit Sharma (56 in 42 balls) then played a responsible knock to keep India's chase on track. He received ample support from KL Rahul (24) and Manish Pandey (28) in the middle-order. But the trio could not extend their stay at the crease until the end to finish the game.
Vijay Shankar (17 in 19 balls) struggled with his timing and ended up consuming several balls in the death overs. The pressure kept mounting on India, and things started looking bleak for them as the required run-rate constantly increased. Dinesh Karthik arrived at the crease in the 18th over after the departure of Manish Pandey. India needed a daunting 34 off the last two overs to clinch the title.
Karthik proceeded to play the best knock of his international career to take India home in a tense chase. He bludgeoned his way to 29 in just eight balls to give India a memorable victory.
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