Devdutt Padikkal headlines batting attack as India finish in driver’s seat on Day 1
Team India got off to a solid start on Day 1 of the second Test in Colombo as Devdutt Padikkal headlined the charge again. On a day where the latter half saw the bowlers fight back to keep India from running away with a sizeable total, Padikkal commandeered an excellent innings while finding significant support from Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja.
India had one change to their side as Saransh Jain was handed his international debut, coming in place of Kuldeep Yadav. Winning the toss, India opted to bat first. KL Rahul (18) got the start he was looking forward to, but Lahiru Kumara was quick to snuff out his innings.
Yashasvi Jaiswal looked in control for his 45 off just 53 balls but couldn’t keep going as Asitha Fernando breached his defences. The fall of Jaiswal led to an unfortunate escalation between the southpaw and Fernando, making it an extremely emotionally charged moment.
As India wobbled at 66/2, captain Shubman Gill walked out to the center and joined forces with Devdutt Padikkal who already two lifelines handed to him when he was yet to open his scoring and very shortly after when he was batting on one. But Padikkal moved on from his mistakes and brought out his absolute best to punish the hosts.
The duo of Padikkal and Gill (50) added 120 runs for the third wicket as India steadied the ship, setting the platform for a grandstand finish at the end of Day 1. Shubman Gill’s half-century saw him becoming the fourth youngest Indian to rack up the milestone of scoring 3000 Test runs.
At 26 years and 349 days, Gill leapfrogged Kapil Dev’s record. Dev garnered 3000 Test runs at the age of 26 years and 356 days. The ones who stayed ahead of him were Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Dilip Vengsarkar. Gill also hit his first Test half-century in Sri Lanka, helping him return to form after a modest run in the series opener.
Much to India’s woes, Rishabh Pant had to retire hurt after copping a wrist injury against Lahiru Kumara. However, India didn’t let their rhythm drop as Ravindra Jadeja’s arrival in the center allayed any fears of a potential infringement of the hosts.
Jadeja and Padikkal added 95 runs for the fourth wicket before the latter eventually succumbed to Keshara Nuwantha. Padikkal (117) brought up his second Test century in style as he struck two consecutive boundaries against Prabath Jayasuriya before nicking a single to arrive to the hallowed destination. He had 10 fours by then and looked in complete control of his innings.
Sri Lanka added a fifth wicket to their day’s tally as Asitha Fernando claimed the prized scalp of Jadeja (43) almost with the minutes running out on Day 1. The fall of Padikkal and Jadeja did apply brakes to the Indian juggernaut as they concluded the day at 300 for five.
Dhruv Jurel (7*) and Saransh Jain (4*) stayed unbeaten as India will be hopeful of commandeering another assault to get themselves a formidable total. Asitha Fernando spearheaded the Sri Lankan battery with figures of 3/46.
Brief scores:
India – 300/5 (Devdutt Padikkal 117, Shubman Gill – 50, Asitha Fernando – 3/46)
