Off-spin bowling all-rounder Saransh Jain has been handed his debut as India won the toss and elected to bat first against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) Ground here on Sunday.
After winning the toss for the second consecutive time, skipper Shubman Gill said Saransh replaces left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who misses out due to an infection. India are having a 1-0 lead in the two-game series after winning the first Test in Galle by 165 runs.
In the team huddle, Indore-based Jain got his debut cap from senior spin-bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. “It looks like a much harder, much better surface compared to Galle. Galle was also a very good wicket, but I think as the game went on, it got a little bit slower and the ball started to turn. We’re expecting the same, but I think for the first two or three days, I think it’ll be a really good wicket to bat on. Obviously there were some areas where we could have got a little bit better, but, you know, this is Test cricket. India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill (captain), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Saransh Jain, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna
Because there’s always room for improvement, and I think we played a pretty good match, a decent match, “I would say probably a nine (out of ten for win in Galle),. Because you’re playing for five days, and to play that dominant and consistent cricket, especially in Test, is hard, “It’s very, very difficult to be able to have a near-perfect game. I thought it’s good for batting, and I don’t mind it bowling because, cloud covers, maybe we can strike early and put them under pressure.
But I think overall we had a pretty good match,” said Gill. Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva said Kamil Mishara and Pasindu Sooriyabandara are making their debut in the format. “Yes, of course, as Shubman said, it’s quite harder than Galle. Well, as I said, we had to strike early when we’re bowling and when batting, not losing wickets early, keep the scoreboard ticking and get runs on the board,” he said.
Sooriyabandara had previously been a concussion substitute in Galle after Dinesh Chandimal suffered neck and shoulder injuries while fielding.
