India vs Sri Lanka: Rohit Sharma On The Brink Of Becoming 2nd Indian To Score 1500 T20I Runs
Rohit Sharma set the stage alight as he smashed an unbeaten 208, his third double-century in ODIs, against Sri Lanka in the second ODI in Mohali. The right-hander also showed exemplary skills in leading the side in the absence of Virat Kohli. Following India’s 2-1 ODI series win, the focus now shifts to the Twenty20 International series that starts on Wednesday in Cuttack. Rohit will once again captain a young Team India with some members looking to prove a point. The stand-in skipper himself is on the brink of a big landmark and will look to get it out of the way as soon as possible.
Rohit has 1,485 T20I runs to his name and is just 15 runs away from becoming the second Indian after Virat Kohli to score 1,500 runs.
The elegant opener has played 68 T20Is and averages 30.30 with a strike rate of 129.92. He has a century and 12 fifties to his name.
The Indian batsman will become the 14th cricketer to score 1,500 in T20I history.
Kohli is well ahead of Sharma. The regular Indian skipper has 1,956 runs with an average of 52.86, the highest in T20I cricket. Kohli has 18 half-centuries but has no hundreds in the shortest format.
Kohli is second in the list of top run-getters in T20I cricket behind New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum. The New Zealander, having played 70 T20I matches, amassed 2,140 runs at an average of 35.66.
Meanwhile, India will be fielding a youthful side in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. The hosts will feature three first-timers in form of Washington Sundar, Basil Thampi and Deepak Hooda.
India do not have a happy memory of the solitary T20I that they played at the Barabati Stadium when they were folded for 92 against South Africa in 2015 as crowd trouble brought infamy to the venue.
On head-to-head count, India lead Sri Lanka 7-4 and are yet to lose against them in the last four outings. And keeping the Dharamsala batting disaster in mind, the hosts will aim to give a better account of their batting.
