Siraj and Bumrah continued to pose significant challenges for the Sri Lankan batsmen, exploiting the pitch’s subtle nuances in Mumbai. Despite the pitch being somewhat favorable for batters, the Indian duo generated pronounced movement off the surface. Particularly, Siraj exhibited an intimidating presence and engaged in a fiery duel with Charith Asalanka early in the game.
The Indian bowling assault intensified when Mohammed Shami, the first-change bowler for the Indian side, compounded Sri Lanka’s difficulties by removing both Asalanka and Dushan Hemantha in his opening over. Shami has sustained impressive form ever since his return to the Indian XI the previous week, initially stepping in as a replacement for the injured Hardik Pandya. He culminated with his third five-wicket haul in World Cups, marking the second of this edition, with extraordinary figures of 5/18 in 5 overs. Siraj, too, delivered an impressive performance with figures of 3/16, while Bumrah, following his initial spell, didn’t bowl further and concluded with figures of 1/8 in five overs.
In the batting department, India exhibited a remarkable display after being invited to bat by Sri Lankan captain Kusal Mendis. The Indian innings culminated at 357/8. Although three Indian batsmen – Shubman Gill (92), Virat Kohli (88), and Shreyas Iyer (82) – narrowly missed reaching three-figure scores, their contributions were pivotal. On the Sri Lankan side, the sole bright spot was Dilshan Madushanka, who secured a five-wicket haul (5/80).
India has enjoyed a stellar World Cup campaign, notching victories against five-time champions Australia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, New Zealand, England, and now Sri Lanka in their initial seven matches. With 14 points, India stands atop the tournament table. Their next challenge will be against South Africa, a high-performing team that has only suffered one loss in the competition so far, on Sunday.
