Twitter Reactions: Bhuvneshwar-Dhoni stand beats Dhananjaya's 6-for
Bhuvneshwar's highest score in ODIs and former skipper MS Dhoni's unbeaten 45 took India home after a batting collapse.
It seemed like those fairy tale scripts where an inspired underdog side would pull off a win from the jaws of defeats. But then the game is played on the 22-yards and this one turned out to be one of the best. Bhuvneshwar Kumar played the knock of his life and at a time when India were breathing under ventilation, all thanks to the game changing 6/39 by Akila Dananjaya.
He almost brought back the memories of 2009 Karachi, when a new face Ajantha Mendis turned India upside down. The fighter then from India’s camp was skipper MS Dhoni, the difference here turned out to be the same man. Dhoni remained unbeaten on 45 from 68 balls, courtesy just one lone boundary. On the other hand, Kumar turned out to be the jack of this trade.
Collapse hits India bad
A much needed 80-ball unbeaten 54 from the tailender’s bat was enough to break the spirited Lankan’s dream of making a match out of it. Opener Shikhar Dhawan could have earned his seventh half-century on the trot but he top edged one and got out for 49 after Angelo Mathews took a magnificent catch. India were 113/2, what turned next, almost changed the course of the game, a batting collapse which saw Kedar Jhadav lose his stick, Skipper Virat Kohli followed the suit for 4. KL Rahul, who was promoted up the order, looked out in the bay and had no clue to deal with Dananjaya.
Hardik Pandya, who scored his maiden hundred on this very ground, turned his sheet to a ‘nought’, the game is a great leveller after all. An exact hundred-run stand between Dhoni and Kumar saw India home and one step closer to a series win.
For Sri Lanka, they will again have to pull up their socks and come out raring. Rohit Sharma will be relieved to have finally broken the jinx getting to his second fifty of his career against the Lankans in the island nation. But the name of the 23-year-old Panadura boy Akila Dananjaya won’t be forgotten too soon.
Here are the best tweets that emerged during the game
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