India v Sri Lanka T20I Series – India Player Ratings

India proved again in this series as to why they are considered a really strong team at home. After the comprehensive series win against Australia in Australia and the 2-1 series win over Sri Lanka, India has announced that they are a the contenders for the upcoming World T20 that will be played at home. India except for the first T20I loss, won the two matches with complete dominance. They needed to win the series to stay at the top of the ICC T20I Rankings and in the end they did win it and retained their spot. Rohit Sharma – 7/10: Rohit Sharma. (Photo Source: BCCI) Rohit Sharma couldn’t reproduce his awesomeness from Australia in the home series. Except for one knock of 46, he didn’t capitalize on the starts with the bat even though in his defense he was dismissed to really good balls. But it shouldn’t be a cause of concern since the ‘Hitman’ needs just one innings to get back into kicking form. Shikhar Dhawan – 9/10: Shikhar Dhawan. (Photo Source: BCCI) Dhawan with a tally of 106 runs was the highest scorer of the series considering players from both the sides. He regained his form in Australia and continued to do well in this series as well. His aggressive batting has troubled the bowlers and he played according to the situation which was another aspect that impressed. With two 40+ scores, Dhawan was the best Indian batsman in the 3-match series. Suresh Raina – 7/10: Suresh Raina. (© Getty Images) Raina has been essentially useful to his skipper in the lower middle order, his part time spin and also his amazing fielding capability. He picked up 2 wickets in the final T20I and played a knock of 30 in the second game and not to forget his 20 in the first low scoring encounter. Raina just needs to be a little more confident against the short ball; he can certainly be a dangerous force for India in the shortest format of the game. MS Dhoni – 7/10: (Photo Source: BCCI) The talisman of India couldn’t produce wonders for his team with the bat, this time around. But Dhoni as the skipper probably looks to have regained his ‘Midas Touch’. His bowling changes and batting lineup shuffles were spot on and the tricks he played proved to be strategic masterstrokes. Dhoni was also unbelievable behind the wickets effecting some breathtaking stumpings and of course remains a safe pair of catching hands. Hopefully for the Indian fans he will come good with the bat as well and finish the matches for India. Hardik Pandya – 7/10: Hardik Pandya. (Photo Source: BCCI) Hardik Pandya is known for his big hitting in the final overs of the innings and he showed this in the second T20I where he scored a quick fire knock of 27 in just 12 balls. He also displayed his fielding and catching skills right through the series. But his bowling didn’t come of great as although he was economical, he went wicketless in the series. Ajinkya Rahane – 6/10: Ajinkya Rahane. (Photo Source: BCCI) Rahane is considered one of India’s consistent players across all formats. He ensured India reached the target comfortably in the third encounter with an unbeaten 22 and another 25 in Ranchi helped India in winning the series. The problem he has faced is hitting the big shots and converting his starts into big scores in the shortest format. This was probably his chance to impress the management if there arises an opportunity, otherwise he will make way for Kohli who will comeback in the squad after the break. Yuvraj Singh – 4/10: Yuvraj Singh. (Photo by Mark Nolan – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Yuvraj Singh did not get many chances with the bat to perform but he lost out on both the chances he got. In the first T20I when wickets were tumbling and India was losing the momentum, Yuvraj didn’t have to go after every ball and he could’ve played patiently and build a partnership and lost his wicket. In the second T20I he was dismissed for a golden duck, a first in his T20I career. Also with the ball, he did not manage to produce any magic and went wicketless in the series. Do you know the batsmen who played most innings before being dismissed for a duck? – Top 10 Batsmen with most innings before first duck in T20Is Ravindra Jadeja – 6.5/10: Ravindra Jadeja. (Photo by Morne DeKlerk – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) ‘If he is not in action with his bowling or batting, he does it with his incredible fielding’ said one of the commentators and it was right. Jadeja just chipped in with 3 wickets and scored just 6 runs but his commitment on the field with his brilliant run outs and catches became turning points of the match. Ravichandran Ashwin – 9.5/10: Ravichandran Ashwin. (Photo Source: BCCI) Ashwin showed why he is the go-to all-rounder for India even in T20Is. With an amazing haul of 9 wickets in this series including a four-wicket haul, his spin troubled the Sri Lankan batsmen and helped India in getting wickets at the right intervals. His unbeaten knock of 31 in the first match where every other batsman failed helped India in posting a decent target on the board. He truly deserved getting the man of the series award. Ashish Nehra – 7/10: Ashish Nehra. (Photo Source: BCCI) Ashish Nehra was making a comeback to the Indian team after a long time and this was the last bilateral series before the important World T20. He did pick up 5 wickets in the series with the best figures of 2/21 but his problem lied in giving away a lot of runs with loose deliveries. Nehra is the third highest wicket-getter for India in the powerplay overs and if he remains tight and consistent with his bowling, he is going to be a dangerous threat for the opposition. He also played an important supporting knock of 6 in 18 balls with Ashwin when India was in deep trouble. Jasprit Bumrah – 8.5/10: (Photo Source: BCCI) The Yorker specialist and the death bowler India were badly looking for was probably found in Jasprit Bumrah. Bumrah has been remarkable in his bowling with his unorthodox action. Brought in the team on the back of a good domestic season he has lived upto the expectation and has shown superb ability to bowl consistent Yorkers. Though he returned with just 3 wickets in the series his bowling has certainly given the team lot more teeth.