INDIA V SRI LANKA T20 SERIES: All you need to know

The T20 World Cup year begins as Virat Kohli's side hosts Sri Lanka in a three-match series in Guwahati, Indore and Pune

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What is it?

Sri Lanka open their preparation for October's T20 World Cup with a three-match short-form tour of India.

What's the schedule?

FIRST T20: Barsapara Cricket Ground, Guwahati (Sunday, January 5, 7.00pm IST, 1.30pm GMT)

SECOND T20: Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore (Tuesday, January 7, 7.00pm IST, 1.30pm GMT)

THIRD T20: Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune (Friday, January 10, 7.00pm IST, 1.30pm GMT)

What are India's chances?

The hosts may have closed out 2019 in imperious form, but Virat Kohli's men suffered more losses in T20 cricket during it than in any other year in the format's history.

More concerning still, five of those came in 10 games on home turf – each of Australia, Bangladesh, South Africa and the West Indies all claimed at least one victory before their tours ended – and scrappy series wins masked some rusty performances in high-scoring games.

However, after injuries tore through the side in recent months, there is finally some good news for fans as Jasprit Bumrah returns to an international squad for the first time since picking up a back injury in the West Indies in September. 

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Rohit Sharma is rested after leading the T20 team against Bangladesh

Shikhar Dhawan also returns after playing just one competitive match in December thanks to a wounded knee, coming into the squad as a replacement for the rested Rohit Sharma.

Elsewhere in the pace attack, Shardul Thakur and Navdeep Saini both hold on to the places they won during last month's ODI series against the West Indies as emergency injury cover, with Bhuvneshwar Kumar (sports hernia) and Deepak Chahar (stress fracture of the back) remaining unavailable as they continue rehabilitation. 

The pair join Mohammed Shami on the sidelines, as the 29-year-old is rested to facilitate Bumrah's return.

 

Who's in and who's out?

India squad: Virat Kohli (c), Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, Shivam Dube, Shreyas Iyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant (wk), KL Rahul, Navdeep Saini, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav

What about Sri Lanka?

2019 was an unusual year for Sri Lanka in T20 cricket, having managed to whitewash Pakistan – the world's No.1-ranked side in the format – away from home with a squad missing 10 senior players, but coming away with just one win and one tie from their remaining 10 outings.

However, such mixed performances are not at all unusual for the 2014 World Twenty20 champions, who have claimed victory in just five of their 16 meetings with India in the format to date, despite boasting the best win percentage of any side bar Nepal in its global tournament.

Against a home side that has chased down 207 and defended 240 in its two home victories over the West Indies earlier this month, a lack of equivalent firepower in the Sri Lankan lineup is likely to be the main cause for concern.

Lasith Malinga's side averaged just 7.45 per over through the course of the last 12 months, and no new specialist batsmen have come in to reinforce the batting lineup that stumbled to totals of 117 all out and 99 for 9 during October's 3-0 series loss in Australia.

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Angelo Mathews returns to the squad after more than a year out of T20 cricket

The tourists head to India having made just two changes to that squad, as all-rounders Dhananjaya de Silva and Angelo Mathews are both set to make returns to the side.

Neither has featured in any T20 cricket for quite some time – de Silva's most recent outing came against South Africa last March, where he was promoted to open for the first time since 2017, and Mathews' latest appearance for both club and country was as far back as August 2018.

Shehan Jayasuriya drops out having managed only 68 runs at a sub-110 strike rate in five matches since returning September after more than three years out of the T20 side, while Kasun Rajitha only holds onto his place in the 16-man setup after injury ruled out fellow seamer Nuwan Pradeep after the squad announcement earlier this week. 

Sri Lanka squad: Lasith Malinga (c), Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Avishka Fernando, Oshada Fernando, Danushka Gunathilaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Angelo Mathews, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Kasun Rajitha, Lakshan Sandakan, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana

What will the weather be like?

The teams will need to keep an eye on the clouds in Guwahati for the series opener, with showery conditions forecast in the lead-up to the match and chances of more of the same as the match goes on.

Looking ahead, players can expect better conditions in Indore (around 27 degrees during the day) before getting the warmest day of all in Pune to close the series.

How can I follow it?

Star Gold will air the series in both the UK and India, with pre-match coverage from 5.30pm IST (12pm GMT). The series will also stream via the Hotstar platform.

What if I fancy a bet?

Dafabet has India as 1/5 favourites to take the opening game, while Sri Lanka can be backed at 10/3 in Guwahati.

 

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