IND vs SL 2nd ODI: KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya shine as India beat Sri Lanka by 4-wickets; take 2-0 series lead

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KL Rahul composed a masterful fifty after Mohammed Siraj and Kuldeep Yadav’s brilliance with the ball helped India secure a four-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the second ODI, giving them an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series on Thursday. The duo’s impressive bowling performance restricted Sri Lanka to a modest total, setting the stage for Rahul’s heroics with the bat.

Rahul along with Hardik Pandya, had to dig deep after India’s top-order suffered an early collapse. Openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill began the 216-run chase cautiously, but just as they began to shift gears, Sri Lanka secured the much-needed breakthrough. Despite the setback, Rahul and Pandya persevered, eventually leading India to a hard-fought victory.

Chamika Karunaratne dismissed captain Rohit, who had two fifty-plus runs in his previous two outings. Lahiru Kumara joined the celebration, dismissing Gill for 21 runs before taking Virat Kohli’s prized wicket. Kohli, who had been on a roll with back-to-back ODI hundreds, was dismissed for four runs.

Shreyas Iyer (28) attempted to survive the storm but was unable to stay in the crease for long. Pandya joined Rahul in the middle and the two put up a controlled 75-run partnership to keep India in the game. Rahul and Pandya slowly forged a fifth-wicket partnership in an attempt to push India closer to 200 runs.

Sri Lanka removed Pandya (36) and Axar Patel (21) before Rahul steered India to victory. Earlier, Siraj and Kuldeep had combined to take six wickets, bowling out Sri Lanka for 215 in 40 overs. Siraj made the breakthrough, dismissing Avishka Fernando for 20.

Kuldeep, who had been in and out of the side, dealt a devastating blow to Sri Lanka’s innings as he removed captain Dasun Shanaka (2), the centurion from the opening match, and Charith Asalanka (15) in quick succession. In the process, Kuldeep achieved a milestone of 200 wickets in international cricket.

India will face Sri Lanka in the third and final One-Day International (ODI) at Thiruvananthapuram on January 15th. 

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