India and Sri Lanka squared off against each other in the second T20I of the three-match series on January 5, Thursday and it was the Lankan Lions who won the match by 16 runs, post restricting India to 190 at the end of the second innings, setting a target of 207 runs. To add more, it was Dasun Shanaka, the skipper, who stood up for the Sri Lankan team with his quickfire 22-ball 56, to put on a massive total on the board.
While many appreciated the Sri Lankan skipper for his brave innings, few of them claimed that it was Arshdeep Singh who let the team down with his no-balls during the first innings. To add more, the left-armer bowled five no-balls during his spell of 2 overs in which he conceded 37 runs.
Fans, who took cognizance of the same, left no stone unturned to slam the pacer on their social media accounts and claimed that the pacer might have fixed the game. Notably, Arshdeep bowled a hat-trick of no-balls in his first over, frustrating the fans and the Indian skipper Hardik Pandya.
India fall short of target letting Sri Lanka draw the series with one match to go
Much to the surprise of the Indian fans, the Men in Blue got off to a poor start losing 3 wickets after putting on 21 runs on the board chasing the mighty target. However, it was Suryakumar Yadav who stood up for the team once again with his well-crafted 51. However, it was Axar Patel who almost took the game away from the Sri Lankan team with his quickfire 65.
It remains to be seen if Arshdeep would feature in the third T20I to be played on Saturday, given that the Indian team do have a history of dropping player on the basis of the performance of a single match. On the other hand, the left-arm pacer would hope to make a comeback in the deciding game, given that the player was one of the prime reasons India managed to reach the semi-finals of the 20-20 World Cup 2022.
Here’s how fans reacted to Arshdeep Singh’s spell in which he conceded five no-balls, calling him a fixer:
Arshdeep has fixed this
— 👓 (@___Ajinkya) January 5, 2023
I think Arshdeep should be checked for spot fixing. The match is FIXED!
— Rohit Bapat 🇮🇳 (@rhtbapat) January 5, 2023
It's shameful and disgusting to watch this performance.#arshdeepsingh #Cricket #MatchFixing #INDvSL
Arshdeep Singh=Muhammad Amir.#Fixer pic.twitter.com/DhgKTYnCnz
— 🍂Zeeshan (@ZEESHU05) January 5, 2023
Looked like India fixed the match at first, now it looks like Sri Lanka fixed it #INDvSL
— Hans Holani (@hahahahahahans) January 5, 2023
Are they bowlers? what wisdom, what responsibility , what expectations they bear? All they want is to play in the fixed #ipl #INDvsSL
— Paidalchalnawale Engineersaabka Beta (@a4arnav_notB_V) January 5, 2023
No ball issue fixed.....😐@IndianCricNews #arshdeepsingh #arshdeepsingh #INDvsSL pic.twitter.com/Pwwc57UQq4
— Abhishek Bidve (@Abhibidwe7241) January 5, 2023