Here’s how India’s last tour of Sri Lanka unfolded

For the very first time in history, two different Indian cricket teams will be in action at two different parts of the world simultaneously. While the Virat Kohli-led Test team is gearing up for a five-match Test series against England, Shikhar Dhawan will marshal the limited-overs side in three ODIs and as many T20Is in Sri Lanka. The white-ball series in the Island nation will get underway on July 18 and it would be interesting to see how it unfolds.

With most of the first-choice players being in England, the limited-overs squad features many fresh faces. In fact, as many as six players in the side are uncapped. However, calling this troop a second-string squad won’t be too right. All these players have proven their mettle in arguably the world’s most celebrated T20 competition, the Indian Premier League (IPL). Hence, the home side can’t afford to be complacent.

Moreover, the Sri Lankan team hasn’t been doing well lately and not many are backing them to emerge victorious in the upcoming series. They toured England in their last assignment and couldn’t do much. While they suffered a 3-0 whitewash in the ODI series, the T20I leg saw the Three Lions registering a 2-0 win. Nevertheless, they would be determined to put up a much better show against India.

Here’s what happened when India toured Sri Lanka last time

Test Series – India won 3-0

India’s last assignment in the Island nation was in 2017. It was a full-fledged tour where the visitors won all the games. The tour went underway with a three-match Test series and India didn’t do any wrong. While Virat Kohli’s men won the first Test by 304 runs, Sri Lanka suffered innings defeat in the next two clashes. Dashing opener Shikhar Dhawan was India’s stand-out performer in the series as he scored a couple of blistering centuries.

1st Test – India won by 304 runs

2nd Test – India won by an innings and 53 runs

3rd Test – India won by an innings and 171 runs

ODI Series – India won 5-0

The ODI leg of the tour wasn’t any better for the Lankan Lions as they suffered yet another whitewash. While the likes of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, and Virat Kohli piled up runs consistently, Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneswar Kumar were the wreaker-in-chief in the bowling department. Notably, the 2nd ODI was the only contest where Sri Lanka looked in the hunt.

Chasing 231, India was restricted to 131/7 and the home team had the command. However, MS Dhoni and Bhuvneshwar Kumar played valiant knocks and took their side to a three-wicket triumph. Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah received the Player of the Series award for scalping 15 wickets.

1st ODI – India won by 9 wickets

2nd ODI – India won by 3 wickets (DLS method)

3rd ODI – India won by 6 wickets

4th ODI – India won by 168 runs

5th ODI – India won by 6 wickets

Only T20I – India Won by 7 Wickets

With India bagging the Test and ODI series, Sri Lanka’s pride was at stake in the only T20I, the last match of the tour. However, the hosts couldn’t win in that fixture as well. They certainly did well in posting 170/7 while batting first in Colombo. Dilshan Munaweera slammed a quick-fire half-century while Ashan Priyanjan played a handy 40-run knock.

While the total seemed competitive at the first sight, the Men in Blue didn’t have much trouble in crossing the line. Skipper Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey scored half-centuries as India chased down the target with four balls to spare, winning the contest by seven wickets.