Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka won the toss and opted to bat first in the third and final ODI of the series at R.Premadasa Stadium, Colombo on August 7. Young all-rounder Riyan Parag received his debut cap from Virat Kohli.
Asalanka made one change in the winning combination by replacing Akila Dananjaya with Maheesh Theekshana. He expects any of his batters to score a hundred in the final match of the series.
“We are going to bat first. It looks same like the previous two ODIs. Theekshana comes in for Akila Dananjaya. Guys are doing very well, we are in a good position. I would like to see someone score a hundred on this pitch,” he said after winning the toss.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma made two changes to the side. Parag replaced Arshdeep Singh in the side whereas an out-of-form KL Rahul made way for Rishabh Pant. Rohit also said that the problem in middle order has been addressed as well after a 32-run defeat in the second ODI.
“Plenty to play for, we've been challenged in the last two matches. It's clear as to what we need to do with the bat and ball. We've addressed it - what we need to do as a group. You got to give credit to the opposition, they played well and understood the position well. Another opportunity for us to correct. Two changes. We have Rishabh and Riyan Parag in place of KL and Arshdeep,” Rohit said at the coin toss.
Parag's List A record
The Assamese cricketer has played 49 List A (One-Day) games and scored 1,798 runs from 44 innings at an average of 41.95 including five centuries and eight half-centuries. His strike rate is an impressive 102.56. With the ball, he has 50 wickets at an average of 31. He has three four-wicket hauls in domestic white-ball cricket so far.
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Playing XIs
Sri Lanka Playing XI: Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis(w), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka(c), Janith Liyanage, Kamindu Mendis, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Asitha Fernando
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Shreyas Iyer, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
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