Team India reached 460-9 after 116 overs at stumps on Day 2 of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle on Sunday, August 16. They resumed their first innings at 288-2 after 73 overs, but only 43 overs were possible on Day 2 due to persistent rain. The entire first session of play on Day 2 was washed out and proceedings only began after 2:30pm.
Devdutt Padikkal, who was unbeaten on 131 overnight, went on to cross the 150-run mark. The southpaw’s maiden Test ton eventually ended on 167. He occupied the crease for 230 balls in what was a stellar performance and struck 15 fours and a six. Batting at No. 6, Dhruv Jurel contributed a brisk 51 off 68 balls.
While Team India will be reasonably pleased with where they stand after two days of the Galle Test, the visitors did not quite dominate Day 2. There were a few errors that they could have avoided. In this feature, we take a look at three things India did wrong on Day 2 of the Galle Test.
#1 Poor start for Team India as Rishabh Pant throws his wicket away
Team India’s hopes of posting a 500-plus score in their first innings suffered a significant blow as aggressive keeper-batter Rishabh Pant failed to get going. He perished to a poor short, just a few overs after the day’s play got underway in the second session. Looking to take on Keshara Nuwantha, the southpaw sliced one up in the air, having added only 12 runs to his overnight score.
Had Pant carried on for longer, India could have reached the 500-run mark by close of play in Galle on Day 2. However, the left-handed batter looked itchy out in the middle. He kept charging down the track to the debutant spinner, but the latter had the last laugh in the contest.
#2 Indian batters fail to convert starts
Pant had a chance to get a decent score in Galle on Day 2 of the Test match, but his impetuosity got the better of him before that. However, he was not the only one who lost the opportunity to convert a start into something significant.
Seasoned all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was dismissed for 13 off 25 balls. The left-handed Indian batter was trapped in front of the wicket by a delivery from Nuwantha zipped through from a full length. Jadeja was clearly caught off guard. The other all-rounder in the side, Manav Suthar, also got a start, but perished for 24 off 43 balls as he looked to take on a tossed up delivery from Jayasuriya.
Earlier in the day, KL Rahul, who retired hurt on 77 on Saturday due to cramps, came out to bat at the fall of Pant’s wicket. However, he perished for 82, adding just a few runs to his overnight score. Barring Padikkal and Jurel no one really got going for India with the bat on Day 2 as they lost seven wickets for 172 runs.
#3 Some question marks over tackling Sri Lankan spinners
Team India did very well to lose only two wickets on the opening day of the Galle Test against Sri Lanka even though there was some help for spinners from the island nation. However, concern over how they would tackle slow bowling on Day 2 of the rain-hit Test match remained as this area has been India’s Achilles’ heel for quite a long period of time.
To be fair to the visiting batters, they were not too bad against Sri Lanka‘s spinners on Day 2. However, they made enough mistakes to reiterate that they do have an issue when it comes to playing spin on tracks that offer help to slow bowlers. The dismissals of Pant, Rahul, Jadeja and Suthar hinted towards the same. It would be intriguing to see how India’s batters tackle spin for the rest of the Test series.
Edited by Renin Wilben Albert
