NEW DELHI: Debutant Shivam Mavi made a dream debut on Tuesday, but India were in a spot of bother before eking out a narrow two-run victory against Sri Lanka at the Wankhede stadium. The thrilling last-ball win in the opener gave India a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series.
Sent in to bat, India recovered from a top-order collapse to post a competitive 162 for five riding on the unbeaten 68-run stand for the sixth wicket between Deepak Hooda (41 not out off 23 balls) and Axar Patel (31* off 20).
As it happened: India vs Sri Lanka, 1st T20I
In reply, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 160 in 20 overs with young Mavi taking four wickets. Mavi returned figures of 4 for 22 and was well supported by his fellow pacers Umran Malik (2 for 27) and Harshal Patel (2 for 41).
Hooda was adjudged Man-of-the-Match for his unbeaten 41, which took India to a par score. India batters found the Sri Lankan spinners hard to put away before Hooda and Axar arrived in the middle.
The Sri Lankans surely had the firepower to chase down 163 but Mavi's strikes at front and back end of the innings tilted the game in favour of the home team. The game went down to the wire with spinner Axar managing to defend 13 runs in the final over.
The fighting knocks from skipper Dasun Shanaka (45 off 27) and Chamika Karunaratne (23 not out off 16) went in vain for the visitors in the end.
1/10:1st T20I: Dream debut for Shivam Mavi as India edge Sri Lanka
AP
2/10:Dream debut
<p>Debutant fast bowler Shivam Mavi took 4 wickets as India edged out Sri Lanka by 2 runs in a thrilling opening Twenty20 International.</p>AP
3/10:Shivam Mavi
<p>Mavi took 4/22 to help India bowl out Sri Lanka for 160 in a victory target of 163 and lead the three-match series 1-0 in Mumbai. </p>AP
4/10:Deepak Hooda
<p>Deepak Hooda (41) and Axar (31) set up victory with an unbeaten 68-run sixth-wicket stand that steered India to 162/5. </p>ANI
5/10:Ishan Kishan
<p>Ishan Kishan came out attacking as he hit Kasun Rajitha for a six and two fours in a 17-run opening over after Sri Lanka asked India to bat.</p>AFP
6/10:Lanka fight back
<p>India raced to 26 in the first two overs but the momentum dipped after losing their top and middle-order. </p>AFP
7/10:Suryakumar Yadav
<p>Karunaratne sent back Suryakumar Yadav who mistimed one of his audacious scoop shots to be caught at short fine leg. </p>AP
8/10:Wanindu Hasaranga
<p>India lost two more wickets and slipped to 77/4 when Wanindu Hasaranga got Kishan out for 37. </p>ANI
9/10:Hardik Pandya
<p>Left-arm quick Dilshan Madushanka added more misery to India batting as he got Hardik Pandya caught behind for 29. </p>PTI
10/10:Deepak Hooda
<p>Hooda, who hit four sixes in his 23-ball knock and was named man of the match, and the left-handed Axar then took charge. </p>AFPThis is the lowest total India defended at this stadium.
Skipper Hardik Pandya decided to bowl the first over and the pressure created by him helped debutant Mavi at the other end. Hardik bowled full tilt and hardly gave anything away, conceding only 12 runs in his three-over spell.
Mavi's moment to cherish came in his first over as he showed remarkable composure to strike back after being hit for two fours by Kusal Mendis. Having already got a life in Hardik's first over, Pathum Nissanka had no clue about Mavi's beauty of a delivery that jagged back in to shatter the stumps.
In his second over too, Mavi got hit for a couple of fours before he had Dhanajaya de Silva caught at mid-on.
It became 47 for three in the eighth over when Ishan Kishan took a brilliant catch running backwards after Charith Asalanka mistimed a pull off Umran Malik.
Pacer Harshal got lucky with his first wicket as a dangerous looking Mendis found the deep point fielder before getting rid of Bhanuka Rajapaksa with a slower ball, leaving Sri Lanka struggling at 68 for five in the 11th over. Hardik had to leave the field briefly after taking Rajapaksa's catch.
Hasaranga and skipper Shanaka made the game interesting with a quickfire 40-run stand, off 23 balls. Hasaranga put the pressure back on the Indians by smashing Yuzvendra Chahal for back-to-back sixes over mid-wicket, reducing the equation to a very gettable 56 runs off 36 balls.
Mavi was brought back to break the threatening partnership and that is what he did by having Hasaranga caught at mid-off. Shanaka kept Sri Lanka in the game singlehandedly before falling to Umran in the 17th over.
The game somehow went down to the last over with Chamika Karunratne providing a ray of hope for the visitors. With Hardik unable to bowl his fourth over after a fall on the field, Axar was called in to defend 13 in the final over.
Earlier, Hooda and Axar shared an unbeaten 68-run stand off 38 balls for the sixth wicket after India found themselves at a shaky 94 for five at the high-scoring Wankhede Stadium.
Playing his first international innings since the double hundred in Bangladesh, Kishan (37 off 29) went ballistic in the first over itself that yielded 17 runs.
Searching for some swing, right-arm pacer Kasun Rajitha pitched it up and Kishan was quick to flick it over deep square leg for a massive six. Then a slower ball was hit down the ground for four before Kishan pulled Rajitha for another boundary.
Shubman Gill (7), who made his T20 debut alongside Mavi, began his innings with a delightful cover drive off Dilshan Madushanka.
Shanaka introduced spin in the third over via Maheesh Theekshana and he delivered with the wicket of Gill who missed a straighter one from the mystery spinner to be trapped in front of the stumps. Hoping against hope, Gill wasted a review in the process.
India's best T20 batter Suryakumar Yadav (7) too perished cheaply, leaving the hosts at 41 for two in the powerplay. Playing his first game in front of his home crowd, Surya went for his usual scoop shot but mistimed it to be caught at short fine leg by Bhanuka Rajapaksa off Chamika Karunaratne.
Sanum Samson (5) wasted another opportunity by mistiming a slog off Dhananjaya de Silva.
The spinners stemmed the flow of runs in the middle overs with India collecting only 26 in overs 10-15 with the loss of Kishan and skipper Hardik Pandya (29 off 27), who could not find his range after starting with a couple of exquisite strokes on the off side.
Coming in at number six, Hooda tried to change the course of the innings with back-to- back sixes over deep midwicket off Theekshana. He targeted the same area against Hasaranga in the next over, depositing him for a maximum. He had good support from Axar as the duo helped India get to a fighting total.
India and Sri Lanka will play the second match of the series on Thursday in Pune.
(With inputs from PTI)
