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In Stats: Pandey & Karthik’s Crucial Stand, SL’s Collapse and More

Take a look at the fourth Nidahas Trophy T20 Tri-series match between India and Sri Lanka through numbers.

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India are now at the top of the table in the ongoing tri-nation T20 series. India, who were beaten by Sri Lanka in the opening fixture of the series, paid the hosts back in the same currency when they defeated them by 6 wickets in the first match of the second round fixtures.

After opting to bowl first, the Indian bowlers restricted the hosts to a modest 152-9, after which the middle order knocked off the runs required – quite comfortably in the end. Dinesh Karthik collected a single off Nuwan Pradeep in the eighteenth over to take India past the finish line.

India were in a spot of bother midway through the run-chase with the top four batsmen back in dugout. When KL Rahul trod onto his stumps – becoming the first Indian batsman to be dismissed hit wicket in T20Is, India still needed 68 runs from the remaining 9.1 overs.

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Another wicket or two at that stage, and the Sri Lankans would have believed they were in with a chance. That’s when Manish Pandey and Karthik strung together a partnership and bailed the team out of troubled waters. It wasn’t the frenzied, stroke-filled affair you tend to expect in a T20 contest, but a calculated and measured partnership.

The pair showed good match awareness, applied well and unsettled the home team bowlers by playing smart cricket. The ball was deposited into the boundaries every now and then, but the bulk of the runs in the 68-run partnership came from the brisk running between the wickets.

Take a look at the fourth Nidahas Trophy T20 Tri-series match between India and Sri Lanka through numbers.

Both batsmen must have been under tremendous pressure – for they are fighting for a place in the regular Indian team. However, with Monday’s innings, both batsmen sent out the message that they belonged at this level, had confidence in their abilities and could win matches for India. Pandey, who batted at number five, remained unbeaten on 42 (made from 31 balls), while Karthik made 39 from 25 balls.

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Mid-Innings Collapse Costs Sri Lanka

Earlier in the evening, rain delayed the start of the match, and the contest eventually began a 19-over-a-side affair, more than an hour and fifteen minutes later. Asked to bat first, Sri Lanka were off the blocks in a hurry, before they lost their way in the later stages of the innings.

Sri Lanka were 53-2 at the end of the powerplay, and a little application from their batsmen in the middle overs could have seen them set India a testing target of around 175. Instead, the hosts kept losing wickets at regular intervals, which caused the scoring rate to fall steadily, and eventually they finished with just 152 runs on the board.

Take a look at the fourth Nidahas Trophy T20 Tri-series match between India and Sri Lanka through numbers.
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Unadkat Needs to Learn to Contain Runs

Jaydev Unadkat worked his way back to the Indian team after a phenomenal season with the erstwhile IPL franchise Rising Pune Supergiant. The left-arm pacer was hugely impressive in the IPL 2017, collecting a total of 24 wickets in 12 matches. The 26 year old had a decent home series against Sri Lanka in December last year – collecting 4 wickets in three matches and conceding runs at an economy rate of 4.89 runs per over – but hasn’t quite carried the same form overseas.

Unadkat has been disappointing in the five T20Is he has played this year. He has the ability and certainly knows how to pick up wickets: that reflects in the fact that he is India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is since he has returned to the team, but he needs to improve vastly – particularly on the economy rate front.

Take a look at the fourth Nidahas Trophy T20 Tri-series match between India and Sri Lanka through numbers.
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In these last five T20 matches – two against South Africa and three in the current tri-series, Unadkat has leaked runs at 10.24 runs per over, while the rest of the Indian pace attack has conceded runs at less than eight runs per over. On Monday night too, Unadkat was India’s most expensive bowler – conceding 15, 8 & 10 runs in his three overs.

The 20-over format is such that runs should be at a premium, no matter how many wickets a bowler picks up. Unadkat needs to understand that the Indian team cannot accommodate a bowler who bleeds runs; he needs to draw from his experience and all the skills he has in his repertoire to work out means to keep the runs down.

A left-armer is a special commodity; he brings to the table an awkward angle, and can become a difficult bowler for the batsmen to negotiate, particularly if he can also use the round-the-wicket angle to good effect. The Indian management have made no secret of their desire to have in the squad a performing left-arm quick. Unadkat now has an opportunity to nail down his place in the Indian team. Will he be able to?

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