IND vs SL 1st T20I: India all-rounder Hardik Pandya sings Sri Lanka national anthem, video goes viral – WATCH

Team India star all-rounder Hardik Pandya grabbed the attention of cricket fans on social media when he was apparently spotted singing the Sri Lankan national anthem before the start of the first T20I between the two teams at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday (July 25).

During the customary singing of national anthems of both the countries, the cameraman spotted Hardik humming the opponent’s national anthem.

The video of the same went viral on social media and many cricket fans lauded Hardik for the great gesture.

Is it just me that saw @hardikpandya7 singing the SL national anthem, then? #SLvInd pic.twitter.com/TuALbiRFu4

— Pranith (@Pranith16) July 25, 2021

@hardikpandya7 is an absolute cutie https://t.co/bfNkt9NFYd

— (@basiqueee) July 25, 2021

The Moment @hardikpandya7 sang #SriLanka anthem #INDvSL Proud of you Bro #MI #MumbaiIndians pic.twitter.com/q1f60sRZYO

— Mohamed Ruzny Nisfer (@MhdRuz) July 25, 2021

Hardik Pandya Appreciation tweet @hardikpandya7 is singing Sri Lanka national anthem #Cricket #SLvIND #HardikPandya #SL #BCCI

P.S. I learnt it couple of years ago. Give it a try 🙂 pic.twitter.com/THatyPmHvX

— raghava.eth (@imraghava) July 25, 2021

Talking about the match, Suryakumar Yadav’s 50 (off 34 balls) and skipper Shikhar Dhawan’s 46 (off 36 balls) helped India score 164/5 in 20 overs in the first T20 International of the three-match series.

The two batsmen’s knocks kept India steady in the face of some disciplined Sri Lankan bowling that was powered by impressive spells from leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga (2/28) and pace bowler Dushmantha Chameera (2/24).

Put in to bat first, India got off to a bad start as debutant Prithvi Shaw departed for a golden duck. It was an entertaining first over from Chameera as Sri Lanka got the perfect start.

Dhawan and Sanju Samson revived visitors’ inning as they brought 50 runs inside the powerplay. However, Sri Lanka again pulled things back as they dismissed Samson in the seventh over.

Dhawan then along with Suryakumar took India’s score to the 100-run mark in 12 overs and brought up the fifty-run partnership.

Just when things started looking easy, India lost both Dhawan and Suryakumar in consecutive overs. While Dhawan scored 46, Suryakumar smashed 50 off 34 balls.

India were 121/3 after the 15th over, in order to score quick runs Hardik Pandya whacked what came in his way but wasn’t able to connect the ball. The all-rounder gave his wicket in the penultimate over.

In the last five overs, India scored 43 runs and it was Ishan Kishan who smashed 20 runs off 14 balls to help India reach 164 in the allotted 20 overs.

Brief Scores: India 164/5 (Suryakumar Yadav 50, Shikhar Dhawan 46; Dushmantha Chameera 2-24 ) vs Sri Lanka