Vinay Kumar set to be part of Mumbai Indians Talent Scout team

"This is what I'm meant to do for the team" : Dhananjaya de Silva justifies role for Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s Dhananjaya de Silva played a match-winning innings of 40* off 34 against India on Wednesday to anchor the home side to a win by 4 wickets while chasing 133 in Colombo. Talking about his role in the team after the match, De Silva said that he has the responsibility to bat for a longer time and hold one end. "This is what I'm meant to do for the team," de Silva said after the match. "In the previous match as well, what I'd been told was to bat 20 overs from one side. I wasn't able to do that in the previous game. Today was my day and I did that. If I can bat at a run-a-ball until the final overs, letting others attack around me, I can raise my strike rate towards the finish as well. That was the coach, captain and selectors' plan." The hosts didn’t really have a great start to the chase and were reduced to 66/4 when De Silva and Wanindu Hasaranga joined hands to steady the ship for the side. The two batsmen chipped in with a crucial stand of 28 runs before Hasaranga departed for 15 off 11 but De Silva continued his form and led Sri Lanka to victory. With this win, the Lankan lions also levelled the three-match T20I series. India on the other hand had to make a few changes in the side after seven players had to be isolated as close contacts of Krunal Pandya who had tested positive for Covid-19. The two sides will now meet each other for the third and deciding clash at the same venue on Thursday.

TNPL 2021 | Dindigul vs Spartans: When & where to watch match LIVE, Probable XI, Fantasy XI

Dindigul Dragons will be up against Salem Spartans on Friday in Chennai. The Dragons didn’t really have a great start to the competition after they suffered a defeat in the first match but made a strong comeback to clinch victories in the second and third game respectively. The Dragons' batting unit is looking in some good touch and they would look to continue the form going further ahead. Spartans on the other hand, have tasted success only in one game out of the three that they have played while have lost the other two. Despite picking up early wickets against Chepauk in their last encounter while defending 143, the Spartans stood at the losing end eventually after Uthirasamy Sasidev chipped in with a 30-ball 42 and a late surge from Harish Kumar who notched up an unbeaten 27 off 14 took Chepauk over the line. Spartans failed to capitalise on the start they got with the ball and would look to turn the tables when they meet Dragons in the next clash. Match Details Match: DGD vs SLST, 15th Match, Tamil Nadu Premier League 2021 Date: Friday, July 30, 2021 Time: 7:30 PM Venue: MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai Pitch Report The track in Chennai seems to have something on offer to the spinners in the middle overs while the dew might also come into play. So, if you win the toss, field first and try to restrict the batting side for around 155-160. Probable XI Dindigul Dragons: S Arun, Hari Nishanth (c), Mani Bharathi (wk), RS Mokit Hariharan, R Vivek, Lakshminarayanan Vignesh, Suresh Lokeshwar, Gurjapneet Singh, Rangaraj Suthesh, S Swaminathan, M Silambarasan Salem Spartans: Gopinath, Akshay Srinivasan, S Abhishek, Umashankar Sushil (wk), Daryl Ferrario (c), Vijay Shankar, B Praanesh, Ravi Karthikeyan, M Ganesh Moorthi, Murugan Ashwin, G Periyaswamy Fantasy XI Hari Nishanth, S Arun, Daryl Ferrario, S Abhishek, Mani Bharathi, Rangaraj Suthesh, Vijay Shankar (C), Lakshminarayanan Vignesh, S Swaminathan, Murugan Ashwin (VC), G Periyaswamy

Paras Mhambrey heaps praise on "talented & thinking" Kuldeep Yadav

India bowling coach for the Sri Lanka tour, Paras Mhambrey has lavished praise on spinner Kuldeep Yadav and has said that he is a very talented and a “thinking” bowler. "Kuldeep is extremely talented and he is a very thinking bowler. It all boils down to execution and the credit needs to be given to him. It has been challenging, he has been in and out of the team," he said in the virtual post-match press conference at the end of the second T20I on Wednesday. The left-arm spinner returned with figures of 2/30 in 4 overs against the Lankan team on Wednesday in Colombo. India were forced to make a few changes in the playing XI after seven players had to be isolated as close contacts of Krunal Pandya who had tested positive for Covid-19. Talking about the youngsters, Mhambrey said that they were asked to play freely. “The discussion was always to give them a free hand, there was no pressure on them. We knew that in terms of batting, we only had 5-6 batters with whom we can plan for this game,” he said. Sri Lanka levelled the series after winning the second T20I by 4 wickets while chasing 133 in 20 overs. Dhananjaya de Silva top-scored for the home side after remaining unbeaten for 40. The two sides will now lock horns with each other in the decider scheduled to take place on Thursday (July 29, 2021) at the same venue.

3rd T20 Preview: Depleted India search final fire, Sri Lanka bank on momentum in series decider

For all the talk around their mediocrity on the cricket field in the past few months or years, Sri Lanka have made India run for their money in both the ODI and T20 series. They now sit on the cusp of a series win if the Indian team that has just five specialist batsmen left fail once again while they also fought hard in the ODI series. The fact that the series has gone to a situation where both sides are in with a chance of winning the series highlights India’s inability to capture crucial moments and Sri Lanka’s just holding it enough. The lack of self-belief appeared on their faces when Deepak Chahar started taking them to all parts of the grounds in the second ODI which ultimately turned out to be series-winning innings from him. The second T20I was nothing too dissimilar and Sri Lanka came spirited to pounce on India’s limit with the bat. They must be aware of the lack of depth with Bhuvneshwar Kumar slotted to bat at number six and did not go fancy with the new ball. Instead, they put all their might to prevent India from getting a rapid start and forgetting that they are one or two personnel short with the bat. Shikhar Dhawan admitted they were concerned about no batsmen in the lower order and hence they could not bat more freely. The likes of Sanju Samson, who throughout his career in the IPL has faced the blame for being inconsistent and irresponsible, played 13 balls to score seven runs. To be fair to them, extravagant turn for spinners also did not help their cause one bit and the challenges are likely to be all but similar. For Sri Lanka, Chamika Karunaratne is turning out to be one of the most dynamic packages who comes at the back end of the innings and whips them to a good score. Wanindu Hasaranga is enhancing his reputation with every game he is going out on the field. Once again, he turned the ball admirably to put India in a spot of bother and then turned on his batting avatar to bail his side out of trouble for some time when Indian spinners were attempting to run through the Sri Lankan batting order. Sri Lanka vs India: Match Details Match Number- 03 Date and Time: July 29, 2021, 08:00 pm IST and Local, 02:30 pm GMT Venue: R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Broadcast and Live Stream: Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV Pitch report The pitch at the R Premadasa Stadium was proving to be a blessing for the spinners as balls were gripping and turning from the central part of the surface. All kinds of spinners, be it ones who bowl slow through the air i.e. Kuldeep Yadav, and ones who rip it through i.e. Varun Chakravarthy, all extracted good purchases off the pitch. Batsmen struggled to time the ball with pacers too using slower balls and cutters to allow the balls to get stuck in the surface and life will be no easier in the final game of the series and tour. Team News Sri Lanka Sadeera Samarawickrama could not make good use of the opportunity in the second T20I, but it seems unlikely that the team management will force him out of XI. Isuru Udana is slowly losing the trust of the team and Dasun Shanaka relied on his variations for merely an over in the second T20I. The hosts should field an unchanged playing XI. Probable XI Avishka Fernando, Minod Bhanuka (wk), Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Isuru Udana, Dushmantha Chameera, Praveen Jayawickrama India India have added five net bowlers to the main squad and it would give Rahul Dravid some sort of cushioning in terms of having more than 11 players to choose from. However, that will not change their combination one bit and Bhuvi will bat at the number six position once again. Navdeep Saini has had a tough tour and it is likely to end on an unfortunate note with him injuring his hand while fielding. He was not trusted to bowl even one over in the second T20 and the move could well have been dictated by just conditions but not now he will be sitting on the fence thinking what could have been on this tour of Sri Lanka. Probable XI Shikhar Dhawan (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson (wk), Nitish Rana, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Chetan Sakariya, Varun Chakravarthy, R Sai Kishore Fantasy XI Avishka Fernando, Dasun Shanaka, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Rahul Chahar Captain: Shikhar Dhawan Vice-captain: Sanju Samson