IND vs SL Live, 1st T20I: Hardik Pandya gifting Chamika Karunaratne spare bat is the nicest thing you’ll see today

After being thumped by 3 wickets in the last ODI by Sri Lanka, Team India overcame the disappointment and started the three-match T20I series on high by completing a comprehensive 38-run victory over hosts at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday (July 25). The remaining two T20Is will be played on the 27th and 29th July respectively at the same venue.

Hardik Pandya gifts Sri Lanka’s Chamika Karunaratne his bat

Even though Hardik Pandya had a disappointing outing with his on-field performance in the first T20I against Sri Lanka, he won the hearts of almost every Indian and Sri Lankan fan. The flamboyant all-rounder gifted his bat to the hosts’ all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne before the start of the match and If this was not enough, the junior Pandya got massive appreciation from the cricket pundits and fans on social media after a video of him got viral in which he was seen singing Sri National anthem.

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya will be disappointed with his performance so far in the tour against Sri Lanka. His form with the bat is worrying for the team India as in the three innings he batted, the swashbuckling all-rounder failed to trouble the scorers much and also was taken apart for runs in the few overs he bowled across the four outings.

Read Also: Sri Lanka vs India: Ishan Kishan recreates MS Dhoni-like stumping in 1st T20I – WATCH

Hardik Pandya giving Chamika Karunaratne a spare bat is one of the nicest things you'll see today. @hardikpandya7 #SLVSind pic.twitter.com/IM9z9UOwam

— Inshaf Caffoor (@inshafcaffoor) July 25, 2021

IND vs SL 1st T20I: Suryakumar Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar give India 1-0 lead in the first T20I 

Indian cricket team got off to the worst possible start as they lost debutant Prithvi Shaw on the first delivery of the match. The duo of Shikhar Dhawan and Sanju Samson tried to steady the Indian ship but were unable to score big.

Coming to bat at No.4 Suryakumar Yadav once again proved his mettle. After bagging the man of the series award in the recently concluded ODI series, the Mumbai Indians batsman began the T20I series with a fantastic half-century off just 34 balls and helped his team put a respectable total of 164 runs. Defending the target Bhuvneshwar Kumar made sure that Team India romped home with ease by taking 4/22. His stunning performance with the ball helped Team India bowl out hosts for just 126 runs and take inaccessible 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series. The Indian pacer was also awarded man of the match award for his heroics.