India v SL: All Eyes On Dravid & Dhawan!

After the horrors of the WTC final last month, the Indian cricket fans are now gearing up for the bilateral ODI and T20 series with Sri Lanka. The first match of the ODI series will be held today at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.

For the first time, BCCI is experimenting with the squad strength of the Indian team. While the core members of the regular Indian squad are in England, prepping up for the upcoming Test series against Brits, a mixed bag of experienced and inexperienced players will face off Sri Lanka in the ODI and T20 series.

Shikar Dhawan will be leading this new side while Rahul Dravid will be the head coach. This is their first international appearance in their respective positions. Shikhar has an experience of captaining domestic teams and in IPL, but never led an Indian side. Rather than calling it a litmus test, this series may give us hints at the leadership capabilities of the left-handed opener. With his experience, calm and friendly approach to the game, Shikhar is definitely an ideal captain for this squad.

The Indian squad features some experienced players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya, Yuzhvendra Chahal, and Manish Pandey. There are also inexperienced but highly talented young players like Chetan Shakariya, Ishan Kishan, and Surya Kumar Yadav. Performing in IPL gave them confidence in playing in international stages. We have seen it in Ishan and Surya Kumar Yadav in their respective maiden games for India.

On the flip side, Rahul Dravid has been the unsung hero of the Indian cricket team over the last few years. He has been nurturing some young bright cricketers in U19, India-A, and National Cricket Academy. The likes of Rishab Pant, Prithvi Shaw, and Mohammed Siraj are the prodigies of this former Indian captain. There is also buzz stating that he may become the full-time Indian coach in the coming days. Thus, everyone is looking forward to seeing him guiding the youngsters in this series.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka has been in a rough patch over the last three-four years. The lack of consistently performing players, frequent change in captains, and the dispute between the board and cricketers regarding central contracts have affected the team very badly. Dasun Shanaka has been appointed as the new skipper of the Sri Lankan team. Most members in the squad are relatively inexperienced and may fall flat in front of the confident Indian squad.

The first ODI will start at 3 PM IST. It will be broadcasted by Sony Network and will also stream on Sony Liv.