The recently concluded Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, which India won in sensational fashion off the very last ball, was a massive success. It was one of the most watched tournaments in recent times and gave us an idea that tri-series are the future of T20 Internationals.

The tournament was fiercely contested between hosts Sri Lanka, along with India and Bangladesh. Team India, with a second-string side, managed to put together an impressive show through the course of the series and the team management would be thoroughly pleased with this effort.

There were a lot of takeaways for India in the Nidahas Trophy. Here is a look at a few of them.&nbsp

Dinesh Karthik’s second coming

Dinesh Karthik wasn’t dismissed in the Nidahas Trophy. In whatever little opportunities he got, the wicket-keeper batsman made the most of it. His unbeaten 39 off 25 balls helped India beat Sri Lanka in the league stages while chasing a target of 153. And then he played the innings of his life with that cameo of 29 off 8 balls in the final against Bangladesh that gave India one of its most stunning wins ever. Karthik looked fluent and confident and struck the ball crisply. The 32-year-old has lived under the shadows of MS Dhoni for long and is now trying to establish his place in the side. This performance will now perhaps help him make a case for himself as a permanent member of the side and can be seen as his second coming.

Washington Sundar is one for the future

18-year-old Washington Sundar was the biggest positive for India from this series. The young off-spinner was absolutely brilliant with his bowling in the Powerplays and hardly gave the batsmen an inch. Sundar was adjudged the Man of the Series for his 8 wickets at an astounding economy rate of 5.70. The young man showed great maturity and seems to have a calm head on his shoulders. He varied his pace and length regularly and read the batsmen astutely. With age on his side and the performance he has shown in this series, Washington Sundar can definitely be considered as one for the future. With him as a regular in the limited overs teams, India’s bowling would look stronger than ever.

India’s fast bowling reserves are weak

One of the biggest disappointments for India in this tri-series was how poorly India’s fast bowlers performed. The likes of Shradul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Sriraj and even Vijay Shankar were really mediocre and patchy. They could not find the right lengths to bowl and were consistently punished. Save for a few moments here and there, the seam bowlers for India were rather ordinary and all had economy rates of well over 9 in the series which is unacceptable in this format. This will be a worry for the Indian selectors and should force them to look for other options to bolster the Indian fast bowling reserve which might come in handy in future tournaments.

Rohit the captain&nbsp 
Although he was a stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma did a very fine job leading a second-string Indian side in this tournament and came out with flying colours. He was pro-active with his bowling changes and even though his fast bowlers went for a lot of runs, he never let that get to him. Rohit read the game situations well and affected the field placements and bowling changes very shrewdly. He tried to give opportunities to all the players in the squad and was always seen talking to the youngsters, backing them steadfastly. Rohit has a lot of experience leading the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. And he has shown his leadership qualities in international cricket too now. Perhaps, the selectors can consider having him as the permanent T20I captain for India, which will also give some relief to Virat Kohli.&nbsp

The Nidahas Trophy tri-series will go down as one of the most memorable moments in Indian cricket and will be treasured by its fans for long. It came to a perfect end for a long and successful Indian season and the players can now look forward to the upcoming seasons with a lot of hope. 
&nbsp

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, which India won in sensational fashion was a massive success. It was one of the most watched tournaments in recent times and gave us an idea that tri-series are the future of T20 Internationals.

The recently concluded Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, which India won in sensational fashion off the very last ball, was a massive success. It was one of the most watched tournaments in recent times and gave us an idea that tri-series are the future of T20 Internationals. The tournament was fiercely contested between hosts Sri Lanka, along with India and Bangladesh. Team India, with a second-string side, managed to put together an impressive show through the course of the series and the team management would be thoroughly pleased with this effort. There were a lot of takeaways for India in the Nidahas Trophy. Here is a look at a few of them. Dinesh Karthik’s second coming Dinesh Karthik wasn’t dismissed in the Nidahas Trophy. In whatever little opportunities he got, the wicket-keeper batsman made the most of it. His unbeaten 39 off 25 balls helped India beat Sri Lanka in the league stages while chasing a target of 153. And then he played the innings of his life with that cameo of 29 off 8 balls in the final against Bangladesh that gave India one of its most stunning wins ever. Karthik looked fluent and confident and struck the ball crisply. The 32-year-old has lived under the shadows of MS Dhoni for long and is now trying to establish his place in the side. This performance will now perhaps help him make a case for himself as a permanent member of the side and can be seen as his second coming. Washington Sundar is one for the future 18-year-old Washington Sundar was the biggest positive for India from this series. The young off-spinner was absolutely brilliant with his bowling in the Powerplays and hardly gave the batsmen an inch. Sundar was adjudged the Man of the Series for his 8 wickets at an astounding economy rate of 5.70. The young man showed great maturity and seems to have a calm head on his shoulders. He varied his pace and length regularly and read the batsmen astutely. With age on his side and the performance he has shown in this series, Washington Sundar can definitely be considered as one for the future. With him as a regular in the limited overs teams, India’s bowling would look stronger than ever. India’s fast bowling reserves are weak One of the biggest disappointments for India in this tri-series was how poorly India’s fast bowlers performed. The likes of Shradul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Sriraj and even Vijay Shankar were really mediocre and patchy. They could not find the right lengths to bowl and were consistently punished. Save for a few moments here and there, the seam bowlers for India were rather ordinary and all had economy rates of well over 9 in the series which is unacceptable in this format. This will be a worry for the Indian selectors and should force them to look for other options to bolster the Indian fast bowling reserve which might come in handy in future tournaments. Rohit the captain Although he was a stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma did a very fine job leading a second-string Indian side in this tournament and came out with flying colours. He was pro-active with his bowling changes and even though his fast bowlers went for a lot of runs, he never let that get to him. Rohit read the game situations well and affected the field placements and bowling changes very shrewdly. He tried to give opportunities to all the players in the squad and was always seen talking to the youngsters, backing them steadfastly. Rohit has a lot of experience leading the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. And he has shown his leadership qualities in international cricket too now. Perhaps, the selectors can consider having him as the permanent T20I captain for India, which will also give some relief to Virat Kohli. The Nidahas Trophy tri-series will go down as one of the most memorable moments in Indian cricket and will be treasured by its fans for long. It came to a perfect end for a long and successful Indian season and the players can now look forward to the upcoming seasons with a lot of hope. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: T20 Nidahas paves future for many in upcoming ODI series

The recently concluded Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, which India won in sensational fashion off the very last ball, was a massive success. It was one of the most watched tournaments in recent times and gave us an idea that tri-series are the future of T20 Internationals.

The tournament was fiercely contested between hosts Sri Lanka, along with India and Bangladesh. Team India, with a second-string side, managed to put together an impressive show through the course of the series and the team management would be thoroughly pleased with this effort.

There were a lot of takeaways for India in the Nidahas Trophy. Here is a look at a few of them.&nbsp;

Dinesh Karthik&rsquo;s second coming

Dinesh Karthik wasn&rsquo;t dismissed in the Nidahas Trophy. In whatever little opportunities he got, the wicket-keeper batsman made the most of it. His unbeaten 39 off 25 balls helped India beat Sri Lanka in the league stages while chasing a target of 153. And then he played the innings of his life with that cameo of 29 off 8 balls in the final against Bangladesh that gave India one of its most stunning wins ever. Karthik looked fluent and confident and struck the ball crisply. The 32-year-old has lived under the shadows of MS Dhoni for long and is now trying to establish his place in the side. This performance will now perhaps help him make a case for himself as a permanent member of the side and can be seen as his second coming.

Washington Sundar is one for the future

18-year-old Washington Sundar was the biggest positive for India from this series. The young off-spinner was absolutely brilliant with his bowling in the Powerplays and hardly gave the batsmen an inch. Sundar was adjudged the Man of the Series for his 8 wickets at an astounding economy rate of 5.70. The young man showed great maturity and seems to have a calm head on his shoulders. He varied his pace and length regularly and read the batsmen astutely. With age on his side and the performance he has shown in this series, Washington Sundar can definitely be considered as one for the future. With him as a regular in the limited overs teams, India&rsquo;s bowling would look stronger than ever.

India&rsquo;s fast bowling reserves are weak

One of the biggest disappointments for India in this tri-series was how poorly India&rsquo;s fast bowlers performed. The likes of Shradul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Sriraj and even Vijay Shankar were really mediocre and patchy. They could not find the right lengths to bowl and were consistently punished. Save for a few moments here and there, the seam bowlers for India were rather ordinary and all had economy rates of well over 9 in the series which is unacceptable in this format. This will be a worry for the Indian selectors and should force them to look for other options to bolster the Indian fast bowling reserve which might come in handy in future tournaments.

Rohit the captain&nbsp; 
Although he was a stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma did a very fine job leading a second-string Indian side in this tournament and came out with flying colours. He was pro-active with his bowling changes and even though his fast bowlers went for a lot of runs, he never let that get to him. Rohit read the game situations well and affected the field placements and bowling changes very shrewdly. He tried to give opportunities to all the players in the squad and was always seen talking to the youngsters, backing them steadfastly. Rohit has a lot of experience leading the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. And he has shown his leadership qualities in international cricket too now. Perhaps, the selectors can consider having him as the permanent T20I captain for India, which will also give some relief to Virat Kohli.&nbsp;

The Nidahas Trophy tri-series will go down as one of the most memorable moments in Indian cricket and will be treasured by its fans for long. It came to a perfect end for a long and successful Indian season and the players can now look forward to the upcoming seasons with a lot of hope. 
&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

He wasn&rsquo;t at his fluent best. But stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma, finally found some good form in India&rsquo;s Nidahas Trophy 2018 encounter against Bangladesh and led his team into the finals of the tournament. Rohit led from the front on a sticky wicket at Colombo and his 89 off 61 balls was instrumental in giving India a comprehensive 17-run victory.

After winning the toss, Bangladesh decided to put India in. Prior to last night&rsquo;s game, every team that had batted second in this tournament had won the match. But India put on a solid batting display on a tough wicket that thwarted the opposition. The pitch at Colombo was a little different from the ones used earlier and the ball wasn&rsquo;t coming off the bat. Stroke-making was difficult as the ball was gripping and it wasn&#39;t easy to hit on the up. But the Indian openers showed patience and formed a solid 70-run stand. After Shikhar Dhawan departed for 35, Suresh Raina (47 off 30 balls) came in and played an effortless knock that helped chug the Indian innings along.

Raina and Rohit formed a scintillating 102-run stand for the second wicket that gave India a solid foundation. Rohit&rsquo;s innings was especially laudable. He took his time to get in. Initially he wasn&rsquo;t getting the big hits but slowly, as he got used to the pace of the wicket, Rohit began striking the ball well and eventually struck some glorious strokes all over the park. Rohit got dismissed in the last ball of the innings for a fantastic 89 off 61 balls with 5 fours and 5 sixes. It was an excellent knock and helped India achieve an above-par total of 176-3.

Bangladesh began their chase well with Tamim Iqbal in good striking form. The left-handed opener took 18 runs of Shardul Thakur&#39;s first over and it looked like Bangladesh would give this target a real chase. However, young Washington Sundar yet again proved his worth in the Powerplay overs. The 18-year-old off-spinner bowled exceptionally well and grabbed three wickets inside the first six overs. He gave the ball a lot of loops, bowled tight channels and kept things simple. The batsmen found it hard to go against him and kept losing their wickets. In the end, Sundar&rsquo;s 22 runs for 3 wickets in four overs proved to be decisive. &nbsp;This youngster has proved his mettle regularly and it is time that the selectors begin thinking of Sundar as a future prospect as he clearly has the abilities for it.

The only blip in an otherwise complete performance by India was Mohammed Siraj&rsquo;s bowling. The young fast bowler went for 50 runs in his 4 overs and this is now his fourth international T20 game where he has conceded more than 40 runs. Perhaps it is time to start looking beyond him now.

For Bangladesh, save for Mushfiqur Rahim&rsquo;s 72 off 55 balls, none of the other batsmen showed any real gumption to stay at the wicket. Had someone played alongside Rahim, Bangladesh might have got to the target. With just one more game remaining in the tournament, Bangladesh&rsquo;s team management has to be a little more cautious in how they approach their game because another slip up would mean curtains for them. Their next match is against Sri Lanka on Friday and the winner of that game would progress to the finals. The Tigers would hope for a better show from their batsmen next time.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, things are looking good for this new-look Team India. Captain Rohit Sharma should be pretty pleased as things are falling place for the team pretty nicely. India would certainly be high on confidence for the finals and would be hoping for another clinical show from the players.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma, finally found some good form in India’s Nidahas Trophy against Bangladesh and led his team into the finals. However, it is time to start looking beyond bowler Mohammed Siraj as he has been failing to perform with giving 50 runs in 4 overs.

He wasn’t at his fluent best. But stand-in captain, Rohit Sharma, finally found some good form in India’s Nidahas Trophy 2018 encounter against Bangladesh and led his team into the finals of the tournament. Rohit led from the front on a sticky wicket at Colombo and his 89 off 61 balls was instrumental in giving India a comprehensive 17-run victory. After winning the toss, Bangladesh decided to put India in. Prior to last night’s game, every team that had batted second in this tournament had won the match. But India put on a solid batting display on a tough wicket that thwarted the opposition. The pitch at Colombo was a little different from the ones used earlier and the ball wasn’t coming off the bat. Stroke-making was difficult as the ball was gripping and it wasn't easy to hit on the up. But the Indian openers showed patience and formed a solid 70-run stand. After Shikhar Dhawan departed for 35, Suresh Raina (47 off 30 balls) came in and played an effortless knock that helped chug the Indian innings along. Raina and Rohit formed a scintillating 102-run stand for the second wicket that gave India a solid foundation. Rohit’s innings was especially laudable. He took his time to get in. Initially he wasn’t getting the big hits but slowly, as he got used to the pace of the wicket, Rohit began striking the ball well and eventually struck some glorious strokes all over the park. Rohit got dismissed in the last ball of the innings for a fantastic 89 off 61 balls with 5 fours and 5 sixes. It was an excellent knock and helped India achieve an above-par total of 176-3. Bangladesh began their chase well with Tamim Iqbal in good striking form. The left-handed opener took 18 runs of Shardul Thakur's first over and it looked like Bangladesh would give this target a real chase. However, young Washington Sundar yet again proved his worth in the Powerplay overs. The 18-year-old off-spinner bowled exceptionally well and grabbed three wickets inside the first six overs. He gave the ball a lot of loops, bowled tight channels and kept things simple. The batsmen found it hard to go against him and kept losing their wickets. In the end, Sundar’s 22 runs for 3 wickets in four overs proved to be decisive. This youngster has proved his mettle regularly and it is time that the selectors begin thinking of Sundar as a future prospect as he clearly has the abilities for it. The only blip in an otherwise complete performance by India was Mohammed Siraj’s bowling. The young fast bowler went for 50 runs in his 4 overs and this is now his fourth international T20 game where he has conceded more than 40 runs. Perhaps it is time to start looking beyond him now. For Bangladesh, save for Mushfiqur Rahim’s 72 off 55 balls, none of the other batsmen showed any real gumption to stay at the wicket. Had someone played alongside Rahim, Bangladesh might have got to the target. With just one more game remaining in the tournament, Bangladesh’s team management has to be a little more cautious in how they approach their game because another slip up would mean curtains for them. Their next match is against Sri Lanka on Friday and the winner of that game would progress to the finals. The Tigers would hope for a better show from their batsmen next time. Meanwhile, things are looking good for this new-look Team India. Captain Rohit Sharma should be pretty pleased as things are falling place for the team pretty nicely. India would certainly be high on confidence for the finals and would be hoping for another clinical show from the players. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: India should look beyond bowler Siraj to keep momentum going in Nidahas T20 finals

Team India has slowly begun to get into its groove in the ongoing Nidahas Trophy. They thumped Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in a truncated 19-overs a side game last night at Colombo and went to the top of the table with two wins in their kitty. Now unless something untoward happens in the remaining two league games of the series, India should be able to make its place in the final.

The victory was achieved through some proficient bowling and smart batting. After electing to field first, the Indian seamers began well and although Sri Lanka came hard, they managed to keep things in check. The wicket was sticky and the ball was gripping the surface. Batting wasn&rsquo;t easy and someone needed to hold the innings together. Unfortunately, apart from opener Kusal Mendis (55 off 38 balls) none of the other batsmen showed any gumption to stay at the wicket. The Indian bowlers used good variations and bowled tight channels to reign Sri Lanka in. Eventually, Sri Lanka could only manage 152-9 in 19 overs. India&rsquo;s star performers were seamer Shardul Thakur, who returned with superb figures of 4-27, and young spinner Washington Sundar who was again brilliant with a spell of 2-21.

India made light work of the chase and got there courtesy a solid unbeaten 42 by Manish Pandey and a sparkling 39 off 25 balls by Dinesh Karthik. The Sri Lankan bowlers did try and bowl well and had reduced India to 85-4 at one stage. However, India was too good and clinical last night and got to the target with 9 balls to spare.

The home team would rue their missed opportunity of batting well. After their second straight defeat, things now look dicey for Sri Lanka and their next match with Bangladesh now can become interesting if the Tigers lose against India. The Lankans need to fix their batting order and they must bat with more responsibility. Too many loose shots are being played at present by their top-order batsmen and apart from Kusal Mendis, nobody else seems to be taking responsibility of playing through the innings. The bowling needs some fine tuning as well. Akila Dananjaya was good, but the likes of Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Pradeep would need to pull up their socks.

India, despite their victory, has some concerns as well. Captain Rohit Sharma continues to struggle with poor form. His last seven international innings have had scores of 11, 17, 0, 11, 0, 21, and 15. The captain needs to lead from the front but Rohit, it seems, has yet again fallen into the web of inconsistency that has often been a part of his career.

Suresh Raina&rsquo;s 14-ball 27 was entertaining. However, he would need to show more prudence in his batting and try and stay longer at the crease. Seamer Jaydev Unadkat, who has been bought for a whopping 11.5 crores at the IPL recently, is having a rather poor tournament. He has gone at an economy rate of 10.60 in this series and being the lead bowler of the side this is something that he simply will have to change.

These minor concerns aside, Team India would be rather pleased with their performance last night. It was a clinical show and would hold India in good stead for the remainder of the tournament. Their batting order now looks sorted and in form and the inexperienced bowling too is coming onto its own. If the captain can get his form back, then this new-look Indian team might well be unstoppable going ahead.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;

India's batting order now looks sorted and the inexperienced bowling too is coming onto its own. If the captain can get his form back, then this new-look Indian team might well be unstoppable going ahead.

Team India has slowly begun to get into its groove in the ongoing Nidahas Trophy. They thumped Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in a truncated 19-overs a side game last night at Colombo and went to the top of the table with two wins in their kitty. Now unless something untoward happens in the remaining two league games of the series, India should be able to make its place in the final. The victory was achieved through some proficient bowling and smart batting. After electing to field first, the Indian seamers began well and although Sri Lanka came hard, they managed to keep things in check. The wicket was sticky and the ball was gripping the surface. Batting wasn’t easy and someone needed to hold the innings together. Unfortunately, apart from opener Kusal Mendis (55 off 38 balls) none of the other batsmen showed any gumption to stay at the wicket. The Indian bowlers used good variations and bowled tight channels to reign Sri Lanka in. Eventually, Sri Lanka could only manage 152-9 in 19 overs. India’s star performers were seamer Shardul Thakur, who returned with superb figures of 4-27, and young spinner Washington Sundar who was again brilliant with a spell of 2-21. India made light work of the chase and got there courtesy a solid unbeaten 42 by Manish Pandey and a sparkling 39 off 25 balls by Dinesh Karthik. The Sri Lankan bowlers did try and bowl well and had reduced India to 85-4 at one stage. However, India was too good and clinical last night and got to the target with 9 balls to spare. The home team would rue their missed opportunity of batting well. After their second straight defeat, things now look dicey for Sri Lanka and their next match with Bangladesh now can become interesting if the Tigers lose against India. The Lankans need to fix their batting order and they must bat with more responsibility. Too many loose shots are being played at present by their top-order batsmen and apart from Kusal Mendis, nobody else seems to be taking responsibility of playing through the innings. The bowling needs some fine tuning as well. Akila Dananjaya was good, but the likes of Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Pradeep would need to pull up their socks. India, despite their victory, has some concerns as well. Captain Rohit Sharma continues to struggle with poor form. His last seven international innings have had scores of 11, 17, 0, 11, 0, 21, and 15. The captain needs to lead from the front but Rohit, it seems, has yet again fallen into the web of inconsistency that has often been a part of his career. Suresh Raina’s 14-ball 27 was entertaining. However, he would need to show more prudence in his batting and try and stay longer at the crease. Seamer Jaydev Unadkat, who has been bought for a whopping 11.5 crores at the IPL recently, is having a rather poor tournament. He has gone at an economy rate of 10.60 in this series and being the lead bowler of the side this is something that he simply will have to change. These minor concerns aside, Team India would be rather pleased with their performance last night. It was a clinical show and would hold India in good stead for the remainder of the tournament. Their batting order now looks sorted and in form and the inexperienced bowling too is coming onto its own. If the captain can get his form back, then this new-look Indian team might well be unstoppable going ahead. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Captain Rohit needs to get into batting form soon in Nidahas T20

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Opinion: T20 Nidahas paves future for many in upcoming ODI series

Opinion: T20 Nidahas paves future for many in upcoming ODI series

Opinion: India should look beyond bowler Siraj to keep momentum going in Nidahas T20 finals

Opinion: Captain Rohit needs to get into batting form soon in Nidahas T20