Matheesha Pathirana shines with four-fer in maiden T20I versus India
Young pacer Matheesha Pathirana was the pick of the bowlers for hosts Sri Lanka in the opening T20I against India at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. While most of the SL bowlers had a hard time at the office, Pathirana restricted the damage with a four-wicket haul. He finished with 4/40 in four overs as India finished at 213/7. Here are his stats.
A crucial spell from Pathirana
Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav, who blasted a fiery 58, was Pathirana's first victim as his side breathed a sigh of relief. The pacer then starred in the death overs as dashers like Hardik Pandya (9) and Riyan Parag (7) couldn't do much. The well-set Rishabh Pant (49) was his final victim of the day. However, Pathirana didn't receive much support from his teammates.
Second four-fer in T20Is
According to ESPNcricinfo, this was Pathirana's second four-fer in T20I cricket as he now owns 18 wickets across 10 games at an economy of 8.28. Pathirana, who is playing his maiden T20I against India, owns 12 scalps at home. He (97) is also closing in on 100 T20 wickets. Pathirana currently boasts 97 wickets from 64 outings with his economy being around 8.
India's highest T20I total in Sri Lanka
Pant went for the big shots after SKY's departure as India posted a strong total. Earlier, Shubman Gill made 34 while Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 40 as India were off to a dominant start. Dilshan Madushanka and Asitha Fernando claimed one wicket apiece. The 213/7 is now India's highest T20I total in SL soil. It is also their third-highest score against the Lankan team.
