Indian spinners restrict Lanka to 216 in Dambulla ODI

India bundled out Sri Lanka for mere 216 runs in the opening ODI of the five-match series at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium here on Sunday.

Winning the toss and electing the bowl, the Men in Blue came out with a brilliant bowling performance as they bowled out the hosts in just 43.2 overs.

Left-arm spinner Axar Patel was the pick of the Indian bowlers as he scalped three wickets, giving away just 34 runs in his quota of 10 overs.

He was ably supported by Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kedar Jadhav as they all chipped in with two-two wickets each.

For the hosts, wicketkeeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella was the star performer with the bat as he played a prolific knock of 64 runs, which included eight boundaries. The other notable contributions came from Danushka Gunathilaka (35), Kusal Mendis (36) and Angelo Mathews (36).

Considering the nature of the pitch and the strong Indian batting line-up, it should be difficult for Virat Kohli and Co. to achieve the victory and take a 1-0 lead in the series.