CWC 2023, IND vs SL: Pacers dismantle SL; India progress to semi-final stage

CWC 2023, India vs Sri Lanka: Shubman Gill-Virat Kohli's 189-run stand, Shreyas Iyer's 82 and Mohammed Siraj-Mohammed Shami's combined 8-34 are top performances. India beat Sri Lanka and become first team to qualify for semi-final.

India beat Sri Lanka and qualify for semi-finals (Photo: ©BCCI/Twitter)

Brief Scores: IND 357/8 (Gill 92, Kohli 88, Madushanka 5/80) beat SL 55 (Ranjitha 14, Shami 5/18, Siraj 3/16) by 302 runs.

Player of the Match: Mohammad Shami (5/18)

With 14 points, unbeaten India became the first team to book the semi-final tickets of the CWC 2023, thanks to their wonderful pace bowling after their continuous aggressive brand of batting. Since getting the second ball wicket, Sri Lanka was never in the encounter. India didn’t allow them to make any comeback.

Confident India, a few steps short of the semifinal ticket coming into this game, met a depleted Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The latter needed to win every game besides focusing on other results.

Even though India is ahead of Sri Lanka in the overall ODI head-to-head by 98-57, in ODI WCs, both are tied at 4-4 faceoff with one abandoned result.

Talking point: India’s pace bowling and return of Iyer among positives for India

India’s biggest positive from this game has been the return of Shreyas Iyer, who displayed some fierce batting against both pacers and spinners to regain his confidence. India’s pacers bowled with the same control to continue their dominance with the new ball.

Read More: India's Bowling Brilliance: A Six-Game Symphony of Supremacy in CWC 2023

India book semi-final ticket with 302-run victory

Sri Lanka captain Kusal Mendis, on winning the toss, opted to bowl first on a surface that was a bit shiny and could slow down in the evening. India went with an unchanged eleven, while Sri Lanka left out Dhananjaya de Silva to include Dushan Hemantha.

India could have struggled with the second ball wicket, but they recovered well with an 189-run second-wicket partnership to reach 225/3 in 35 overs. Iyer’s 56-ball 82-run knock fired them to 357/8 in their allotted 50 overs.

Sri Lanka never found themselves in the chase since losing their opener on the first ball of their batting. They were reduced to 14/6 in the first 10 overs before being bundled out for a paltry total of 55. India achieved a 302-run victory.

Top performances from the India vs Sri Lanka game in CWC 2023

Kohli-Gill added 189-run for 2nd wicket for India (Photo: ©BCCI/Twitter)

Kohli-Gill recovered India with a 189-run partnership

The second-ball loss of captain Rohit Sharma put India under little pressure when Virat Kohli joined Shubman Gill in the middle.

Kohli whipped Dilshan Madushanka in front of the square for a boundary, while Gill punched him for two consecutive boundaries into the square region. After pushing Kasun Ranjitha straight down the ground, he drove Maheesh Theekshana over covers for a four to notch up his 70th ODI fifty in 50 deliveries.

Gill flicked Theekshana behind square for a boundary after creaming Ranjitha, past cover point fielder, for the same result. He crunched Dushan Hemantha for a straight four to record his 11th ODI fifty in 56 balls. He lofted Hemantha for a straight six as the 189-run stand saved India from early damage.

Gill got out on 92 with 11 fours and two sixes to now have 2113 runs in 40 innings, while Kohli’s 88 with 11 boundaries carried him to 13525 runs in 276 ODI innings.

Read More: CWC 2023, IND vs ENG: India's bowlers decimate Eng: hosts back to no. 1 spot

Shreyas Iyer scored 82 off 56 against Sri Lanka (Photo: ©BCCI/Twitter)

Iyer showed firepower with a hostile 82-run knock

Shreyas Iyer came into this game under pressure of giving justification for his WC spot, with just 134 runs in five previous innings.

He launched Ranjitha over long-off for a six before smashing Hemantha over long-off for the same result. He muscled Ranjitha through point for another six before lofting Theekshana over covers for his fourth over boundary. Guiding Theekshana into the third-man fence, Iyer reached his 16th ODI fifty in 36 balls.

He smacked Madushanka for two back-to-back sixes. Finally, one miscued shot ended his journey of 82 runs in 36 balls, shouldering on three fours and six sixes, to have 2017 ODI runs in 54 games.

Read More: CWC 2023: Does Shreyas Iyer justify his inclusion in India’s playing XI?

Mohammed Siraj took 3-16 against Sri Lanka (Photo: ©BCCI/Twitter)

Siraj-Shami broke down Sri Lanka with a combined 8/34

Mohammad Siraj had been a little off-color before this affair, but he changed the dynamics against his dearest opposition.

He trapped Dimuth Karunaratne's plumb before the stumps on a first-ball duck before finding the outside edge of Sadeera Samarawickrama on a fourth-ball duck into the hands of the third slip fielder. He also broke the stumps of Mendis (1), who was beaten on the back foot. He ended with 3/16, to have 63 ODI scalps in 37 games.

Mohammed Shami sent back both Charith Asalanka (1) and Hemantha (0) on consecutive balls before blowing the furniture of Angelo Matthews (12). He finished 5/18 in five overs, now having 185 ODI scalps in 97 games.

Read More: CWC 2023, IND vs NZ: Shami takes fifer, Kohli scores 95 to execute another successful chase

Statistical highlights from India vs Sri Lanka, Mumbai, CWC 2023

• The 189-run stand between Gill & Kohli is India’s second-highest second-wicket stand against Sri Lanka in ODI WCs.

• Madushanka is the leading wicket-taker of the CWC 2023 with 18 wickets.

• Shreyas Iyer becomes the third fastest (49 innings) for India to score 2000 ODI runs.

• Madushanka now has the best bowling figure (5/80) against India in ODI WCs for Sri Lanka.

• Kohli is now the fourth-highest run-getter with 1472 runs in ODI WCs.

• Shami becomes the highest wicket-taker for India in ODI WCs with 45 scalps in 14 innings, going past Zaheer Khan (44 scalps in 23 innings).

ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Points Table

Points Table after India vs Sri Lanka game

Points table scenario & what’s to come

India booked their semi-final spot with 14 points in seven games at an NRR of +2.102, while Sri Lanka remains at seven with a damaged NRR of -1.162.

The Netherlands will take on Afghanistan on November 3 at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium.

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