1st Test: Padikkal, Jurel carry India to 460/9 on day two
Devdutt Padikkal’s sophisticated 167 was the centrepiece in India’s strong 460 for nine at stumps despite the Sri Lankan spinners growing fangs on a truncated second day of the first Test here on Sunday. Kuldeep Yadav (12) and Prasidh Krishna (1) were batting at close.
Rains of varying intensity and the resultant wet outfield delayed the start of the day’s play until 2.35 pm, and the long break seemed to have rejuvenated the Lankans more. The home bowlers produced better lines and lengths than day one, cutting down the scoring areas of Indian batters, who resumed from a far stronger 288 for two. It was the perfect launching pad to be in a far healthier position, but the tourists lost seven wickets - some to the Lankan spinners’ guile and some to their own indiscretions — for 172 runs. Padikkal, who started from 131, brought up his maiden 150 in 215 balls when he pulled pacer Asitha Fernando for a boundary.
However, before the left-hander reached his landmark, India had lost the other overnight batter Rishabh Pant for 39. Pant seemed impatient to stamp his authority over the bowlers, but the overzealousness ended his stint, as a feeble loft off off-spinner Keshara Nuwantha was snaffled by a running-in Sonal Dinusha.
KL Rahul, who had to retire on 77 because of cramps the previous day, walked in next but could only add four more runs to his overnight score.
Rahul failed to negotiate the turn and bounce from Nuwantha, giving a simple catch to Nishan Madhushka at short leg. Capturing two big wickets by giving away just 12 runs put a spring on Lankan bowlers’ step, and the hosts added the big wicket of Padikkal at the stroke of tea to further boost their standing. The left-hander was deceived on flight by left-arm spinner Prabath Jayarsuriya and stumper Niroshan Dickwella did the rest. However, the bigwigs will be delighted to see the way Padikkal responded to the task of occupying a crucial slot like No. 3. It has given them another option even when original resident Sai Sudharsan returns from his toe injury. India went to tea at 364 for five, and needed a few more runs to really pull away from Sri Lanka.
Ravindra Jadeja was trapped leg before by Nuwantha immediately after the break, leaving India at 377 for six. But Jurel, who was struggling for runs of late, rose to the occasion to play a nifty innings. There was a huge slice of fortune as Lankan skipper Dhananjaya de Silva grassed Jurel’s healthy edge off Jayasuriya at the first slip.
The right-hander was on 29 then, and went past fifty soon for the first time in eight innings. It was a fluent innings as well, lifting Nuwantha for a six over mid-wicket and then pulling an expensive Lahiru Kumara for a boundary. However, Jurel, who added 55 runs for the seventh wicket with Manav Suthar (24), did not stay back to convert his fifty into something bigger.
De Silva took a flying catch at slip off Jayasuriya to atone for his earlier slip-up. But by then India, despite losing wickets, have reached firm grounds with Mohammad Siraj and Suthar producing some heavy blows. From a Sri Lankan perspective, the home think-tank would have been massively disappointed with two pacers —Kumara and Fernando —who neither were very effective in taking wickets nor contained runs when it was needed. The knock by Suthar will also please the team management as skipper Shubman Gill had underscored the need for late-order batters to chip in with some runs in absence of injured all-rounders like Washington Sundar.
