India vs Sri Lanka: Emotional Shami, destructive Iyer and other top moments from the match
India vs Sri Lanka: Emotional Shami, destructive Iyer and other top moments from the match
India made light work of Sri Lanka as they cruised to the 2023 World Cup semi-finals with a comprehensive 302-run win at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday. Asked to bat first, India slammed a mammoth 357/8 which at that time looked under par at a batting-friendly Wankhede, but Mohammed Shami-led home team pacers were in inspired form and the match got over inside 70 overs in the day.
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The Men in Blue are the first team to progress to the semi-finals in the 2023 World Cup and have now won seven out of seven matches. Here’s a look at the top five moments from the match as Team India continues its winning run:
Black armbands
Sri Lankan players sported black armbands during the match, but don’t fret, they weren’t protesting against BCCI’s poor management of this World Cup. It was a touching tribute to superfan Percy Abeysekera also known as ‘Uncle’ Percy. One of the most known Sri Lankan cricket fans, Percy recently passed away at 87.
Kohli’s record-breaking single
The last single that Virat Kohli took off Maheesh Theekshana in the 11th over of India’s innings looked innocuous in many ways but it’s worth its weight in gold nonetheless. It was the single that took Kohli to 1000 ODI runs in 2023 as he became the only cricketer to have done so in eight calendar years. He surpassed the great Sachin Tendulkar’s record of achieving the same in seven calendar years.
Iyer’s mega six
Shreyas Iyer regained his form with a quick-fire 82 off 56 balls. The Mumbai batter’s blistering knock was a major reason India crossed the 350-run mark and while he hit six maximums during his stay at the crease, the one he hit in the 36th over off Kasun Rajitha was extra special. That six went 106m far, the longest in this World Cup so far.
Shami’s emotional celebration
The 33-year-old pacer is not big on celebrations but when he dismissed Kasun Rajitha for his fifth wicket in the match there was something that made the senior bowler collapse to the ground on his knees. His emotions were quite palpable. Maybe it was a feeling of vindication as he now has 14 wickets in three matches after sitting out in the first four games. Maybe it was the happiness of taking 45 wickets in ODI World Cups — the most for an Indian bowler. Whatever it was, the celebration was quite poignant.
The winning moment
Soon after Shami’s fifer, Ravindra Jadeja dismissed Dilshan Madushanka to fire India into the semi-finals of the 2023 World Cup. The Men in Blue are the first team to do so and have won all seven matches so far. There were a lot of expectations from Team India coming into the tournament but Rohit Sharma and Co have been in a league of their own.
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