IND vs SL, 3rd T20I: Preview, Probable XI, Prediction

Sri Lanka won the 2nd T20I [Source: Associated Press]

A series where the stakes were not so high, India and Sri Lanka have produced two epic edge of the seat battles that has kept the fans glued to their screens.

India came into the series with a new looked side, led by Hardik Pandya. Senior players were given the rest and it was a great opportunity to see how the youngsters perform under pressure.

If the first game of the series at Wankhede gave a mini heart attack to the fans, the second one at Pune was a great spectacle for the people who enjoy watching the shortest format of the game.

India have their own issues to deal with ahead of the series decider. The top-order woes continues despite a fresh breath of air in the form of Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan at the top. However, Gill's inability to play at a higher strike-rate and his failures in the first two games have put a question mark on his position in the T20I side.

Bowling is another area of concern for the Men in Blue. Arshdeep returned from injury and looked a pale shadow of himself. Yuzi Chahal looks under-confident and India need to find a solution ahead of the game at Rajkot.

Coming to the visitors, they have actually played well in both the fixtures, but couldn't hold onto their nerves in the first game.

The Dasun Shanaka led side showed their prowess in Pune and bludgeoned their way to a series levelling win. With the openers playing well, the bowlers firing all cylinders, the Lankan Lions will be relatively confident of winning the series, come Saturday.

Match Details

Date and Time: January 7, 7 PM IST

Venue: Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot

Live Streaming and Telecast: Star Sports Network, Hotstar

Pitch Report: The Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium offers assistance to the seamers early on, and the spinners will eventually come into play. It is still a batting friendly pitch and expect high-scoring encounter to take place. The SCA has hosted 4 T20Is, with teams batting and chasing have both won 2 times each.

Predicted XI

Expect India to go with an unchanged playing XI for the final encounter. Hardik Pandya doesn't believe in too many chopping and changing and he'll fully trust the same team to do the job at Rajkot.

With a series levelling win, Sri Lanka will be riding high on confidence. They've played well in both the fixtures and barring an injury, Shanaka will opt for the same playing XI.

India: Ishan Kishan (wk), Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Rahul Tripathi, Hardik Pandya (c), Deepak Hooda, Axar Patel, Shivam Mavi, Umran Malik, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dilshan Madushanka

Predictions

A tough one to call. Any other day India would have been the favourites to clinch the series, but the way Sri Lanka have played in the first two games, expect the Lankan Lions to edge past the hosts in the decider.

Also Read: Dasun Shanaka praises openers for Sri Lanka's 16-run win over India in Pune