"Pichli baar kya bola tha? Second-string?" - Fans roast Sri Lanka as India coast to victory

India have begun their tour of Sri Lanka in resounding fashion as they thumped the hosts by seven wickets in the first ODI. Needing 263 runs to win, the visitors comfortably coasted to the target with 13.2 overs to spare.

The chase under the lights was going to be tricky, but half-centuries from birthday boy Ishan Kishan and skipper Shikhar Dhawan ensured that the Indian team reached the target without much difficulty.

Twitterati hails India for comprehensive victory

Fans on Twitter hailed the new-look Team India for the way they thrashed Sri Lanka in their own den. Many had termed this team a 'second-string' squad but they showed there was no lack of quality in India's bench strength. Here is how the fans reacted to the comprehensive win:

That audacity from ishan kishan. Wow,welcome to the new indian team!#INDvsSL

— Abhinav mukund (@mukundabhinav) July 18, 2021

#INDvsSLWell played Prithvi Shaw,🔥 pic.twitter.com/n5Yb2O0pkp

— Shivani (@meme_ki_diwani) July 18, 2021

KulCha First Time playing Together in a same ODI match since 2019 World Cup, and both perfomed Brilliantly well together once again. Bowling figure 19-1-100-4. 4 wickets in 100 runs. Their job taking wickets in middle Overs, & they did so well in this match once again. #INDvsSL pic.twitter.com/d26zgrqfhG

— CricketMAN2 (@man4_cricket) July 18, 2021

The Prithvi Shaws and Ishan Kishans have the right template for T20: fearless with an array of strokes. Pity, they may not play in the Indian XI this T-20 World Cup @PrithviShaw @ishankishan51 #INDvsSL

— Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) July 18, 2021

Virender Sehwag watching Prithvi Shaw bat in #INDvsSL pic.twitter.com/qLVL7gUhog

— Vishal Verma (@VishalVerma_9) July 18, 2021

Prithvi Shaw might score one double hundred against this bowling lineup if India gets to bat first in next two ODIs. #INDvsSL

— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) July 18, 2021

After Team B 's performance in 1st ODI against Sri Lanka:#INDvSL #RaviShastri #RahulDravid #Coach #INDvsSL #ShikharDhawan pic.twitter.com/K4FdOF54sV

— GURPANTH SANDHU (@Gurpanthinsan) July 18, 2021

#INDvsSL #SLvIND Great to see Shikhar Dhawan Manish Pandey Ishan Kishan Prithvi Shaw Suryakumar Yadav Bhuvi Deepak Chahar Hardik Pandya Krunal Pandya Kuldeep Yadav Chahal doing well in this ODIs. Team B ready for T20 WC also. Thanks to Rahul Dravid sir🙏 pic.twitter.com/T5sRT4pLzE

— Ashutosh Srivastava 🇮🇳 (@kingashu_786) July 18, 2021

#INDvsSL #SLvINDDhawan : It's a golden opportunity, I'll score a hundred !Meanwhile Sky : pic.twitter.com/DvL4SAX4vV

— Varad Ralegaonkar (@varadr_tistic) July 18, 2021

Great stuff by @SDhawan25 .Led the side beautifully, held one end and allowed youngsters to express themselves freely, and finished the game with full authority. Calm, composed and in full control. No over the top celebrations. #INDvsSL #INDvSL

— Manas Tiwari (@manast10) July 18, 2021

" This is a second string Indian team and their coming here is an insult on our cricket " ~ RanatungaAnd That Team chased down 260+ target in just 37 Overs

— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) July 18, 2021

Arjuna Ranatunga thought that playing India B would be an insult to Sri Lanka. I think that Sri Lanka would've faced even more insult if they'd played our main team.#SLvIND

— Not Daniel Alexander (@_UnrealDaniel) July 18, 2021

Former Sri Lanka captain Arjun Ranatunga: India sending a second string side to SL is an insult.SL: *loses one-sided first ODI*BCCI: pic.twitter.com/aBbSRT4ncn

— The Meme Makers (@the7mememakers) July 18, 2021

Srilankan team after seeing India's Brutal batting :#INDvsSL #shaw #IshanKishan #T20 pic.twitter.com/FVh7vTrA2n

— chaat (@chaatmasaala) July 18, 2021

India needed a good start as the target of 263 was the sort of mid-score where chasing teams might get confused with the way they need to approach the game. However, Prithvi Shaw came out all guns blazing and showed just how ready he is to dominate at this level.

Cover drive, back-foot punches, all of Shaw's shots were top drawer and Sri Lanka looked subdued by the onslaught. But more was to come as ODI debutant Ishan Kishan played a similar brand of cricket.

Smacking his very first delivery for a six, Kishan threw caution to the wind. His attacking mindset allowed skipper Dhawan to play the role of a sheet anchor. After the young southpaw departed for a well-made 59, it was time for the experienced Dhawan to ensure there were no late hiccups in the run-chase.

On his captaincy debut, the 35-year-old scored a classy 86* and made sure he was there right till the end to take his team home. India will take tremendous confidence from this game as their spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal also had a good day, picking up a couple of wickets each.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have lots of questions they need to find answers for quickly if they are to keep the series alive.