Birthday boy Yuvraj blows away Sri Lanka
Yuvraj Singh who celebrates his 28th birthday on Saturday took 3-23 and smashed an unbeaten 60 off 25 balls as India crushed Sri Lanka by six wickets on Saturday to draw the two-match Twenty20 series 1-1.
India, chased down Sri Lanka’s challenging 206-7 with five balls to spare at Mohali.
It was the highest successful chase in the shortest form of the game, surpassing South Africa’s 208-2 against the West Indies in the World Twenty20 in Johannesburg in September 2007.
Delhi dasher Virender Sehwag set up the record run spree with 64 off 36 balls and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni chipped in with a quick fire 46.
But Yuvraj took the game away from the Sri Lankans with five sixes, the last off Angelo Mathews clinching the match for the hosts.
Yuvraj plundered 23 runs in the 16th over bowled by seamer Nuwan Kulasekara, which included two sixes and two boundaries.
Earlier, it was yet another sorry show at the office for Mahendra Singh Dhoni as his team gave away 17 runs through wides whilst 23 is the world record in T20s and five catches were dropped as Sri Lanka posted 206 for 7, the second successive time the team has posted a 200 plus total for the Indians to chase under lights on Saturday at ther PCA stadium in Mohali.
For the visitors skipper Kumar Sangakkara scored a supremely timed 58 off 31 balls that had eight fours and two towering sixes in it. Lots was expected off the famed Indian opening pair of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag and they rocked the Lankan boat and how.
But Dhoni will be a worried man with seventeen runs through wides (23 is the T20 record), five dropped catches, Sanga’s brilliance, and the result however went in India’s favour because of Yuvraj Singh and Viru.
