Daijiworld Media Network
Hambantota, Jul 24: Welcome to the coverage of the second ODI between India and Sri Lanka, once again from Hambantota. India won the first match rather comfortably, and will look to continue their momentum. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have been playing a lot of cricket in recent times and will look to keep up their energy levels against a fresh Indian side. Stay tuned for the toss and other updates..
India have won the toss and elected to bat
Mahela: It's pretty unusual (the wind). We have to get used to it and adjust to the conditions. There is a bit more grass but it's dead grass so it shouldn't affect the pitch much. Good to have Udana in the side, he is a fighter and a young talent. Nuwan Pradeep is already here, the A team has just arrived so he'll join us in Colombo.
Dhoni: It seems like the practice is working (about winning the toss). There is a bit more grass, so maybe there will be a bit more swing in the evening. If you bowl towards the pavilion end, the surface was drier so the spinners could exploit it more. The batsmen can score on both sides as the ball skids on and it travels. We bowled 15-16 wides in the last match, so we bowled 2 and a half overs extra. That had an effect on the over rate.
Pitch report: The wicket is similar to the previous match. It is hard, dry and flat. There is a bit more grass on this pitch compared to what we saw in the first ODI. The conditions are good for batting despite the moisture on the track.
Teams:
India (Playing XI): Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni(w/c), Irfan Pathan, Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Umesh Yadav, Pragyan Ojha
Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara(w), Dinesh Chandimal, Mahela Jayawardene(c), Angelo Mathews, Lahiru Thirimanne, Thisara Perera, Lasith Malinga, Rangana Herath, Isuru Udana