India start their preparations for the 2020 World T20 when they take on Sri Lanka in the first match of the three-match series at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Sunday. (More Cricket News)
One of the biggest talking points ahead of the match is the return of Jasprint Bumrah, and how his presence has made the Men in Blue the clear favourites. But Sri Lanka, under legendary Lasith Malinga, can be more than a handful in their day. India will surely miss Rohit Sharma. But they have got the reinforcement in the form of Shikhar Dhawan.
Here's everything you need to know about the match:
When and where is India vs Sri Lanka, 1st T20I taking place?
The 1st T20I match between India and Sri Lanka will take place at Baraspara Stadium in Guwahati on Sunday (January 05, 2020).
What time does India vs Sri Lanka, 1st T20I start?
The 1st T20I match between India and Sri Lanka starts at 7 pm IST with the toss happening half an hour before the first ball.
How to watch India vs Sri Lanka, 1st T20I live on TV?
The 1st T20I match between India and Sri Lanka will be telecast live on Star Sports 1/HD (for English commentary) and Star Sports 3/HD (for Hindi commentary). Doordarshan will also broadcast the match. Besides, Star Sports will broadcast the match in Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Maldives, and Bhutan. In Sri Lanka, Channel Eye (SLRC) will broadcast the match live.
For other countries and regions:
UK: Sky Sports Cricket
South Africa: SuperSport
USA: Willow TV
Carribean: ESPN Caribbean
Canada: ATN Cricket Plus
How to watch India vs Sri Lanka 1st T20I match online?
Live streaming of the 1st T20I match between India and Sri Lanka T20I will be available online on Hotstar digital platform (both website, app). Download the Hotstar app to watch live streaming on handheld devices. Payment details are available when you subscribe. The match can also be streamed live on the Jio TV app.
For ball-by-ball live commentary, click HERE.
Weather forecast: Scattered rains but a full match on the card. But as it happens, sky opened soon after the toss and the start to the match has been delayed. Here's a quick look at the forecast.
Weather.com screengrab.
What to expect: The pitch at Guwahati generally tends to be on the slower side and thus both the teams would be tempted to field a spin-heavy attack.
Match prediction: India are clear favourites.
Key Facts:
- Only one T20I match has been played at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati. India lost to Australia by eight wickets in 2017.
- India have won 11 out of 16 T20Is against Sri Lanka.
- India have never lost a bilateral T20I series against Sri Lanka, winning six.
- India have won the last 5 T20Is at home against Sri Lanka. The last defeat was in 2016 at Pune.
- Kohli needs one run to overtake Rohit Sharma, who's rested, as the leading run-getter in T20Is.
- Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal need two and one wickets respectively to overtake Ravichandran Ashwin (52 wickets) as India's leading wicket-taker in T20Is.
Likely XIs:
India: Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah
Sri Lanka: Danushka Gunathilaka, Oshada Fernando, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Kusal Perera (wk), Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lasith Malinga (c), Lahiru Kumara
Squads:
India: Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Manish Pandey, Washington Sundar, Sanju Samson.
Sri Lanka: Lasith Malinga (c), Dhanushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya De Silva, Isuru Udana, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Oshada Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Kusal Mendis, Lakshan Sandakan, Kasun Rajitha
The second and third T20Is are schedule for January 7 and 10 at Indore and Pune respectively.
