Favourites India will look to continue their dominance when the men in blue lock horns against a demoralised Sri Lanka side in a high voltage Asia Cup T20 2016 encounter at the Sher-e-Bangla national stadium today.
MS Dhoni and his troop registered a five wicket win over the arch-rival Pakistan on their second game after a solid performance from the bowlers to bundle out the opposition on just 83/10.
Medium pacer Hardik Pandya bowled superbly to pick up three wickets and will once again look to prove his worth in the side along with Ashish Nehra and Jasprit Bumrah with the new ball.
However the Indian batters struggled at one stage when they were reeling on 8/3 but Virat Kohli played a brilliant knock of 49 runs under pressure to eventually take his side home.
On the other hand, defending champions Sri Lanka will be morally down after their 23 runs defeat to Bangladesh and will surely look to bounce back to stay in hunt for the final spot.
Regular skipper Lasith Malinga, who missed the previous game against the hosts due to an injury, is unlikely to play against India as well which will be a major blow for the holders.
The Sri Lankan are going through a transition period after the retirement of the legendary pair Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene and this time the young Lankan players will have to step up and perform well under skipper Angelo Matthews.
Batting has been the major area of concern for Sri Lanka after they were able to score just 129/8 and 124/8 against UAE and Bangladesh respectively.
Apart from Dinesh Chandimal at the opening spot, none of the Lankan batters were able to score significantly. Veteran cricketer Tillakaratne Dilshan also failed to score in both the games and his team needs him to perform in the vital match against the Indians.
On the other hand Nuwan Kulasekara will lead the fast bowling along with skipper Matthews while experienced left arm spinner Rangana Herath will take care of the spin department.
