KL Rahul showed some glimpses of form with a gutsy half-century as he anchored India to a hard-earned four-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the second ODI on Thursday. Rahul scored an unbeaten 64 off 103 balls on a difficult track as India chased down a modest target of 216 in 43.2 overs.
The second-highest score for India was vice-captain Hardik Pandya's 36. Earlier, Sri Lanka were all out for 215 in 39.4 overs with debutant Nuwanido Fernando scoring 50. Mohammed Siraj (3/30) and Kuldeep Yadav (3/51) were the most successful bowlers for the hosts.
KL Rahul Shines for India
Snubbed time and again by Indian think-tank, Kuldeep Yadav proved his mettle yet another time as he formed a lovely bowling alliance with pacer Mohammed Siraj to demolish Sri Lanka for 215 inside 40 overs after they opted to bat. The paltry chase on the quick Eden outfield however was not a cakewalk for Indian team, which lost its top-four batters for 86 runs in 14.2 overs.
Needing 130 from 214 balls, Rahul was the only designated batter left as he once again proved his utility in the middle overs with an unbeaten 64 off 103 balls that took India home with 40 balls to spare. While there was a bit of seam movement on offer and ball from spinners gripping a bit, to be fair, there was no scoreboard pressure on the home team.
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Kuldeep Yadav leads with ball
Treated as disposable time and again by the current Indian team management, Kuldeep Yadav once again displayed his skills with the ball and required calmness with the bat in his two boundaries towards end of the chase.
The left-arm wrist spinner, who was mysteriously left out after a five-wicket haul in his comeback Test against Bangladesh in Chattogram last month, got a surprise call-up after leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal pulled out with a "sore right shoulder".
Kuldeep (3/51) answered the call grabbing three wickets in his first five overs, in a spell that triggered Sri Lankan collapse from being 102/1 just when it seemed that debutant Nuwanidu Fernando (50 from 63 balls) and Kusal Mendis (34 from 34 balls)had started to frustrate Indian bowlers post Powerplay with a swift counter-attack.
The win also gave India an unassailable 2-0 series lead going into the Trivandraum ODI on Sunday.
