India emerge victorious against Sri Lanka

Virat Kholi

Asian Champions Sri Lanka yielded pretty easily to the boys in Blue on Sunday, the 15th of January in front of a tightly packed Greenfield stadium in Trivandrum.

The final ODI would see the hosts beating the Lankans by a margin of 317 runs, the highest in the history of the format.

Virat Kohli was up and roaring once again as he brought up his 46th hundred in ODIs in style, his 74th across all formats of the game.

The right-hander scored a glittering 166 off 110 balls, littered with 13 boundaries and 8 sixes.

Virat was also declared the Player Of The Series having amassed 283 runs in 3 outings, a real confidence booster for a man who was almost written off a year ago.

Mohammed Siraj was also on point with the new ball, taking four for 32 in his ten overs as the Sri Lankans collapsed before they could even reach the 100-run-mark.

The Hyderabad pacer found movement off the Greenfield surface complimenting the natural bounce he generates. The early dew was a bonus to India's plans as it gave the new ball bowlers, Siraj and his compatriot Shami, plenty to capitalise on.

The whole series victory , including the three T20Is in which India emerged victorious 2-1, has been a testament to their burgeoning form at home and even the pundits have conceded it will be a natural advantage for the men in blue at the World Cup later this year.

For now, India's next opponents are New Zealand in what will be a hotly contested month of entertaining cricket. 

The Series opener is the 1st ODI at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad on the 18th of this month.