Sri Lanka vs India 3rd T20I Prediction, Preview, Odds

• India have been dominant in T20I cricket and have remained unbeaten for eight bilateral T20I series’ in a row.
• Sri Lanka have been dismal in T20Is and have just one win from their last 15 T20Is.
• India will be the overwhelming favorite. They have already showcased their great depth and talent despite most of their first-choice players missing.

Sri Lanka vs India Odds

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Sri Lanka vs India Prediction and Picks

Sri Lanka and India have squared off as many as 21 times in T20I cricket and the latter have won 14games. Sri Lanka have just six wins to their name. Since the start of 2016, Sri Lanka have beaten India only thrice in T20Is, the last of them coming yesterday against a considerably weakened India side.

Besides this, India have lost just two T20Is against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, winning five. There is absolutely no doubt that the Shikhar Dhawan-led Indian side will start as big-time favorites, despite the unavailability of players, for this game and the series as well.

Predicted XI

Sri Lanka: Avishka Fernando, Minod Bhanuka (wk), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Isuru Udana, Dushmantha Chameera, Akila Dananjaya

India: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Rana, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Varun Chakravarthy, Navdeep Saini.

How to Watch Sri Lanka vs India

Can Sri Lanka Improve with the Bat and Shrug Off a Shoddy T20I Record?

Sri Lanka haven’t had the best of runs in the recent past, especially in white-ball cricket. They’ve struggled big time in ODI cricket and their form in T20I cricket has been absolutely shoddy as well. Since the start of their tour to Australia in 2019, Sri Lanka have recorded a mere one win in T20I cricket and have lost as many as 13 matches (one game was washed out). That solitary win came against West Indies earlier this year.

Sri Lanka have bowled decently throughout the ODI series and the lone T20I so far. However, it is the batting that has been a big disappointment. In their last 15 T20Is, Sri Lanka have gone past the 150-run mark only three times. That underlines Sri Lanka’s problems with the bat. Even in the first T20I, the bowlers did a fair job of restricting India to 164 but the batsmen couldn’t even come close. Sri Lanka desperately need to improve with the bat.

Meanwhile, India have been in dominant form. They proved that the third ODI was just an aberration and brushed Sri Lanka aside in the first T20I in commanding fashion. Their second T20I loss cannot really be considered given the absence of big stars.

India’s bilateral record has been top-notch and they are unbeaten in eight successive series. They will be looking to extend that streak and continue their dominance over Sri Lanka.

Team News

Bhanuka Rajapaksa might replace Ashen Bandara who looked completely out of sorts in the first T20I. The rest of the side is likely to remain the same. Wanindu Hasaranga had a few injury concerns but he seems to be fully fit.

As Rahul Dravid stated, India just have 11 available players after Krunal, who tested positive for COVID-19, and his close contacts went into quarantine. They really have few options but to go with the same  group of players.

Key Players

Wanindu Hasaranga: Wanindu Hasaranga has been one of the shining lights for Sri Lanka in white-ball cricket in 2021. The leg-spinning all-rounder may not have set the stage on fire with the bat but he has been excellent with the ball. He has returned with 12 wickets from seven games at an average of 12.00 in T20I cricket this year, with a miserly economy rate of 5.33. Hasaranga was superb in the first T20I as well and returned with figures of 2/28, picking up the wickets of Sanju Samson and Suryakumar Yadav. He will once again be the key for the hosts.

Shikhar Dhawan: Shikhar Dhawan seems to be batting well and has looked in top form throughout this tour. However, the Indian skipper for this Sri Lankan tour hasn’t been able to convert his starts. Dhawan has got solid starts in every game on this tour. He scored an unbeaten 86 in the first ODI but since then, his scores read 29 and 13 in the last two ODIs and 46 in the first T20I. This was followed by a 42-ball 40 in the second ODI, where he was the only senior batter. Dhawan will want to end this and get a big score. He isn’t a sure starter in India’s full-strength T20I side and he will want to make a case for himself.