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The third T20I between India and Sri Lanka in Pallekele took a dramatic turn as India's bowlers, particularly Washington Sundar, delivered a stunning Super Over victory, securing a clean sweep of the series. Sri Lanka, chasing a modest target of 143 runs, found themselves needing 30 runs off the final 30 balls with nine wickets in hand. However, they stumbled, allowing India to force a Super Over thanks to Suryakumar Yadav's impressive performance.
The Super Over began with Kusal Perera and Kusal Mendis, Sri Lanka's top scorers, facing off against India's bowlers. After Rinku Singh bowled a superb penultimate over, conceding just 3 runs and taking 2 wickets, India's captain Suryakumar Yadav entrusted the Super Over to Washington Sundar. Despite conceding 23 runs in his previous four overs, Sundar proved to be the game changer. He started the Super Over with a wide, followed by a single conceded off the next delivery. He then bowled a slower delivery slightly short, inducing Perera to pull it straight into the hands of Ravi Bishnoi at deep backward square leg. The new batsman, Pathum Nissanka, was dismissed for a duck on the first ball as Sundar bowled a full ball that Nissanka attempted to slog sweep, only to find Rinku at deep mid-wicket. With this dismissal, Sri Lanka were all out for a mere 2 runs.
India's turn in the Super Over saw Suryakumar Yadav facing Maheesh Theekshana. With a powerful sweep off the first ball, Yadav sent the ball to the fine leg fence, sealing India's victory in the Super Over and the T20I series. Sundar was awarded the Man of the Match for his heroic Super Over performance, while Suryakumar Yadav was named Player of the Series. This win marked India's fifth victory in as many tied finishes in T20Is, with four victories coming through Super Overs and one via Bowl Out. All five of these tied finishes occurred while India was defending a total. This is the third time India has whitewashed Sri Lanka in a three-match T20I series, having previously achieved this feat in 2017 and 2022. Sri Lanka, unfortunately, has now suffered its third loss in five Super Overs. The two teams will now face off in an ODI series, commencing on Friday in Colombo.
Source: Watch: How Washington Sundar's Super Over won the T20I series against Sri Lanka