Indian cricket team marks a victory in T20I series opener against Sri Lanka in Lucknow!

The Indian squad displayed a dominating game by registering their first win in this 3-match T20 International series against Sri Lanka on Thursday. While the Indian batsmen set up a challenging 199/2 score to beat, the bowlers limited the touring squad to 137/6. As a consequence, the Indian cricketers recorded a win by 62 runs at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

India marks its 10th consecutive T20I win

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Bringing in a cheer, the Indian cricket team marked their first victory against the Sri Lankan T20I squad in the first match of this white-ball series. While openers Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma set the pace with a 111-run partnership, Shreyas Iyer concluded the first inning with fireworks by scoring 57 runs off 28 balls. With this, India marks its 10th consecutive T20I win making it retain the crown of being the best team as per the International Cricket Council's T20 ranking.

Apart from the scintillating start by the star batsmen, the bowlers also showcased their fair share of magic on the home ground. With a dream spell by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the Indian team managed to send the star opener of the Sri Lankan squad Pathum Nissanka back to the pavilion on the very first ball. The other opener Kamil Mishara was also bowled out by the right-arm pacer in the powerplay after scoring 13 runs.

Remaining matches of the series to be played in Dharmshala

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While talking about the performance in the post-match presentation ceremony, Dasun Shanaka, the captain of the Sri Lankan team said, "We were really poor in all three departments. They batted beautifully, read the game and conditions really well. I could have bowled more." He further added, "We are without two frontline spinners, Theekshana and Hasaranga. The replacements aren't really experienced."

Despite the loss in the first game, the Sri Lankan squad still has time to make up in the next two games in this white-ball series. Notably, after the two T20 matches in Dharmshala on February 26 and February 27, both the teams will lock horns again in two Test matches as a part of the 2021-23 ICC World Test Championship cycle.

-with inputs from IANS