ODI World Cup 2023: India scored 357 runs against Sri Lanka

India faced off Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai with the grasp of the semifinal spot. India scored 357 runs thanks to great knocks from Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli. Here is a recap of the first innings.

India controls the batting powerplay

Rohit Sharma started in an aggressive just like he has done throughout the tournament. Rohit smashed a four on the first ball but he was dismissed on the very next ball. Dilshan Madushanka dismissed the Indian skipper with an outswinger. Virat Kohli opened his account with a four on the last ball of the first over. Dushmantha Chameera bowled a maiden over from the opposite end. He followed it up with another maiden over. Shubman Gill finally broke his shackles by smashing two consecutive fours in the fifth over. Chameera too was hit for two boundaries by Kohli in the sixth over. 

Kasun Rajitha was introduced in the attack in the seventh over and started poorly as he was hit for two consecutive fours. Angelo Matthews came to the attack in the eighth over and the veteran all-rounder was smashed for a four by Gill. Rajitha continued to be expensive in his second over conceding 10 runs. Matthews bowled a quiet last over of the powerplay. India scored 60 runs in the powerplay at the loss of just one wicket. 

Kohli and Gill provide stability

Maheesh Theekshana replaced Rajitha and bowled the first over after the powerplay. Kohli welcomed the spinner with a four. The Indian number three completed 1000+ runs in ODIs in 2023. He overtook Sachin Tendulkar as he became the first player to score more than 1000 runs in a calendar year for the eighth time. Theekshana continued to be expensive and was smashed for a four in his second over. 

Madushanka came back into the attack in the 14th over. Dushan Hemantha was also introduced in the 15th over bowling his first over in World Cup. Madushanka was hit for two fours in the 16th over as both batters moved closer to their fifties. Gill with a single brought up the 100-run partnership in the 17th over. Gill brought up his half-century in the 19th over with a four.

Theekshana once again came back into the attack and still remained expensive leaking 11 runs in his second over of the new spell. Gill after playing a second fiddle to Kohli for a while upped the ante by scoring 18 runs in just nine balls smashing Chameera and Hemantha for boundaries in the 28th and 29th over. 

Madushanka strikes once again for Sri Lanka

Madushanka was reintroduced into the attack in the 30th over and he was smashed for a four by Gill but the Sri Lankan pacer had the last laugh dismissing the Indian opener. Gill scored 92 runs in 92 balls hitting 11 fours and two sixes. The left-arm pacer dismissed Kohli who fell short of the 49th ODI century by just 12 runs. Kohli scored 88 runs in 94 balls hitting 11 fours.

Rahul and Iyer play attacking cricket

Two quick wickets meant that KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer came to the crease. Rahul smashed Rajitha for a four and Iyer smashed him for a six in the 34th over. Iyer continued to bat with positive intent despite a string of low scores in previous games. Iyer smashed Hemantha for his second six. Rajitha continued to be expensive and Iyer smashed another six playing at his home ground in the 36th over. The duo added 43 runs in the space of just 27 balls. 

India lost a couple of quick wickets

Chameera came back into the attack in the 38th over and was smashed for a four by Iyer who looked in ominous touch. Chameera bounced back by dismissing Rahul in his next over. Suryakumar Yadav started his innings with two fours in the 40th over. Iyer hit his fourth six of the match in the 41st over off Theekshana’s bowling. Madushanka picked up his third wicket of the match dismissing Suryakumar in the 42nd over. 

Iyer completed his half-century in the 43rd over in just 36 balls. Madushanka conceded just nine runs in his ninth over. Theekshana went for 10 runs off his final over ending with figures of 10-0-67-0. India also smashed their highest total in ODIs at Wankhede. Madushanka bowling his last over was welcomed with two consecutive sixes by Iyer. Madushanka completed his fifer by dismissing Iyer on the very next ball. Iyer scored 82 runs in 56 balls hitting three fours and six sixes.