India vs Sri Lanka: We were a batsman short – Dhawan after 4-wicket loss in 2nd T20I

After Sri Lanka beat India by 4 wickets to even the score in the 3-match series 1-1, India captain Shikhar Dhawan felt that his team lacked a batsman in a low-scoring thriller.

Notably, Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav, Manish Pandey and Ishan Kishan did not play for India after getting identified as closed contacts of Covid-positive Krunal Pandya. BCCI on Thursday said that as many as 8 Team India remembers were self-isolating despite testing negative twice in the last 24 hours. The 2nd T20I, which was scheduled to be played on Tuesday, was postponed after all-rounder Krunal returned positive following Rapid Antigen Test.

“The surface turned and was a stopping a bit. We knew we were one batter short. We knew we had to construct our innings smartly. We were 10-15 runs short. That would have made the difference,” Dhawan said after the match in Colombo.

India were off to flying start and openers Shikhar Dhawan and Ruturaj Gaikwad scored 49 runs in 7 overs. However, the going got tough on the slow wicket after the departure of Gaikwad. India lost only 5 wickets in 20 overs but at the same time managed just 132 runs. Dhawan top-scored for India with 40 runs.

Shikhar Dhawan hails the never-say-die attitude of bowlers

The southpaw also praised the bowlers for taking the match to the 20th over despite a low total. Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav and Rahul Chahar showcased top quality spin bowling to put India in command of the match. Sri Lanka were 6 down at one stage and needed 20 off 12 balls but with no over of spin left, the hosts capitalized on the opportunity and chased down the target with 2 balls remaining.

“I am proud of the boys. Never say die attitude is amazing. Hats off to the boys for taking it into the last over,” Dhawan said hailing the bowlers.