Wasim Jaffer expresses concern over limited ODIs for India before 2025 ICC Champions Trophy despite series loss to Sri Lanka. Team India lost their three-game ODI series to Sri Lanka. It was the first time in 27 years that India lost an ODI series to Sri Lanka. After tying the first ODI, India succumbed to a loss in the second and third clashes, which resulted in Sri Lanka clinching the series in a massive upset.
With the series done and dusted, former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer took centre stage and talked about the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy. Wasim Jaffer raised concerns over how India only had a handful of ODIs before the marquee tournament.
India’s disastrous loss in 3rd ODI and overview of the series
Sri Lanka posted a total of 248 off 7 wickets in 50 overs on Wednesday after winning the toss against India. Sri Lanka’s Avishka Fernando scored 96 off 102 balls, while Kusal Mendis (59) and Pathum Nissanka (45) contributed with their bat. Riyan Parag took three wickets for India, while Mohammed Siraj, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav clinched one wicket each.
Chasing a target of 249 runs, India were ALL OUT in 138 runs in just 26.1 overs. Skipper Rohit Sharma scored 35 off 20 balls for India, and Washington Sundar hit 30 off 25 deliveries. Apart from this, no other batter could cross 20 runs, including Virat Kohli. For Sri Lanka, Dunith Wellalage took five wickets, Maheesh Theekshana and Jeffrey Vandersay took two wickets each, and Asitha Fernando clinched one wicket.
Stats-wise, Sri Lanka’s Dunith Wellalage has become the first spinner to take five wickets in an ODI against India on more than one occasion, as he picked a fifer (5/40 in Colombo) on 2023 and 5/27 in Colombo) on 2024. Avishka Fernando was awarded the player of the match, while Dunith Wellalage won the player of the series.
Mohammed Siraj has enjoyed some of his best times in international cricket against Sri Lanka. The tour of 2024 wasn’t among them though. For as well as he bowled in conditions not best suited for pace bowling, he returned only three wickets in as many games – exactly the number of times he aggressively stared down at the opposition batters unprovoked. Given the combined contribution of the Indian pace attack in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, the charged-in aggression probably didn’t fit in too well.
It wasn’t too different for Asitha Fernando either though, the one-man pace attack for Sri Lanka, who had reserved his version of the ‘fast bowler’s unprovoked aggression’ for Virat Kohli. For the 27-year-old who had featured in only seven ODIs before the series, and managed to find a place so easily in the XI at the back of six other frontline pacers getting ruled out due to injury, there was probably a victory to show in the end.
Irrespective of the brave front of machoism that was showcased by the pacers, eventually the spotlight of the series was stolen by their lesser-aggressive bowling partners – the spinners, who combined to bag 44 wickets across three games. The trial by spin in Colombo was won by Sri Lanka yet again on Wednesday – this time more emphatically – as they distanced themselves from India by 110 runs.
India’s struggles in the series which were largely prominent while batting in the middle overs in the first two games, had advanced to the powerplay by the time it reached the last game of the series. Their chase had shut shop by the time it even reached the middle phase on Wednesday.
The spin struggle, instead of being ironed out during the two-day rest, only accentuated with as many as eight batters getting dismissed either leg before, bowled or stumped. The struggle to even put bat to ball resulted in 21 of the 27 dismissals that were effected against spin, screamed loud enough for the Indian captain Rohit Sharma to admit “We all know what the issues are, no point digging deep.”
Across all three games, there was only one noteworthy batter – Rohit Sharma, who not only top-scored for India in all three games but also presented the only real threat on behalf of the visiting side. A big reason for that was his advantage of facing the spinners with the hard ball and field restrictions on, which allowed him to effectively play on the up and take them apart in the Powerplay.
As the ball got softer and started turning, the pitch slowed down and the field restrictions were lifted, the limitations of the Indian batters to play in such conditions were also exposed. Former Indian batter Wasim Jaffer said that while it does not worry him that Men in Blue lost the series, it does concern him that they have only three more ODIs left before the ICC Champions Trophy scheduled for the next year.
Wasim Jaffer raises concern after Men in Blue’s series defeat against SL in 3 match series
Former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer raised concerns about Men in Blue’s preparations for the 2025 Champions Trophy, saying that they have only a handful of games left before the mega ICC event. The comments came after Rohit Sharma and company went down against Sri Lanka 0-2 in the three-match ODI series.
This was India’s first ODI assignment under new head coach Gautam Gambhir, and the new coach didn’t have a great start. While the first game ended in a tie, the 2023 ODI World Cup runner-ups went down in the next two outings by 32 and 110 runs, respectively, to lose the series.
Reviewing the series on X, Jaffer reckoned that Sri Lanka were the better team throughout the three games. He added that while he isn’t bothered about India’s series loss, he seemed concerned by the fact that the Men in Blue have only three games before the Champions Trophy next year.
“SL played better cricket and deserve the series win. It doesn’t worry me that India lost a series. Wins and losses are part of the game. However it’s a point of concern that India has just 3 ODIs before the Champions Trophy. #SLvIND,” Jaffer wrote on his X account.
India’s first ODI assignment under new head coach Gautam Gambhir ended in disappointment for the visitors, and taking X, Jaffer opined that losses are part and parcel of the game, but having a small number of ODIs to practice before the Champions Trophy is something that makes him worry. India’s next ODI series is scheduled for February next year when they square off against England in a three-match series at home.