Only 44 times in the 53-year history of one-day internationals has the format witnessed drawn matches. India have been involved in 10 of them, second-most by a team after West Indies (11). The 10th instance for India was witnessed on Friday, at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, after the side collapsed dramatically and failed to chase down 231 against Sri Lanka in the opening ODI match of the three-game series. The sight left former India captain Virat Kohli and new India head coach Gautam Gambhir shell-shocked.

Sri Lanka managed 230 for eight in the first innings of the match. In response, India got off to a flying start after captain Rohit Sharma smashed a 33-ball fifty as the openers amassed 71 runs for no loss in the first powerplay. Dunith Wellalage then dismissed the two openers successively, before Washington Sundar, promoted to number four, was sent back after just five deliveries

India revived themselves on two occasions, during the partnerships between Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul and Axar Patel, but Sri Lanka kept chipping away with wickets at regular intervals to emerge on top. However, for one last time, India grabbed the momentum when Shivam Dube smashed two sixes and a boundary to level the score with 15 balls left in hand.

Kohli and Gambhir, who were seated together in the Indian dressing room and were seen constantly chatting about the match, couldn't keep calm when Dube smashed a boundary against Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka to level the score. Kohli was so excited, he almost got up from his seat applauding the effort from the left-hander, before patting Gambhir's back, who in turn smiled.

Asalanka trapped Dube lbw in the next ball. But hope was not lost for India. Gambhir and Kohli were both up from their seats as Arshdeep Singh walked out as the last man, with India needing one run to win. The other members in the dugout, too, were ready to run into the ground in celebration. But the India No. 11, in an absolute brain fade moment, decided to go for a big heave, and was out lbw, leaving the match tied.

As Arshdeep called for a review, Gambhir and Kohli were seen back in their seats in sheer disbelief. There were three reds on the HawkEye as the ball crashed into the leg stump. While Sri Lanka celebrated the draw, the Indian camp, who moments back were all smiles, were left shocked.

"The scores are gettable, it's just that you have to bat well to get that score. We batted well in patches. There was no consistent momentum through the game for us. We started really well with the bat but we knew the game will start after 10 overs once the spinners come in to bowl. We had the upper hand to start with, then we lost a couple of wickets and fell behind the game," India captain Rohit Sharma said after the match as he assessed the team's performance in the drawn game.

India will be back in action on Sunday for the second ODI match against Sri Lanka at the same venue.

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