SL vs IND First Test Match Highlights: For India, the Galle Test was not just another Test match. This was Team India’s 600th Test and the Indian players left no stone unturned in making this special match memorable with victory. Amidst fears of rain and ups and downs that lasted for five days, India defeated Sri Lanka by 165 runs and took a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. Besides, he also added 12 important points to his account in the World Test Championship.
Two names were most discussed in this victory- Devdutt Padikkal And human betterment. Padikkal performed brilliantly with the bat in the return Test, while 24-year-old Suthar completed the first 10-wicket match of his Test career by taking 10 wickets in both the innings.
Padikkal made his comeback special
India won the toss and decided to bat first. The conditions were not easy in the beginning, but the Indian batsmen faced the Sri Lankan bowlers bravely. The most talked about was Devdutt Padikkal’s inning of 167 runs. The style in which Padikkal batted, who was returning to the Test team after a long time, also gave relief to the team management. He showed patience in the beginning and then converted the innings into a big score. Apart from them, KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel also scored half-centuries, due to which India made a strong score of 462 runs in the first innings.
Padikkal’s specialty was not just his century scoring. Even after completing his century, he continued his aggressive style and reached 167 runs. Captain Shubman Gill also praised his innings and said that playing big innings after the century took him from the lead to a comfortable position in the match.
Sri Lanka had a bad start, then Dinusha took over the innings.
In reply to 462 runs, Sri Lanka had a very bad start. The Indian bowlers kept the opening batsmen of the host team under pressure and at one time Sri Lanka’s score was 90/5. It seemed that India would force Sri Lanka to follow on, but here Sonal Dinusha and Dickwella took charge. Both of them made an important partnership of 146 runs and saved Sri Lanka from follow-on.
Sonal Dinusha batted brilliantly in both the innings. He scored a century in the first innings, while in the second innings also he played an important inning of 80 runs. Sweep shot was his biggest weapon against spin.
Sweep became a big weapon for the batsmen in Galle.
An interesting story of this test was Galle’s sweep shot against the pitch and spin. In the Test matches played in Galle after 2007, batsmen have tried to play sweep shots on about 6.8 percent of the balls against spin. This is the highest percentage among grounds where at least 10 Tests have been played during this period. Sonal Dinusha also tried to put pressure on the spinners using the same strategy. He challenged the Indian bowlers with the use of his sweep and legs in both the innings.
India took a lead of more than 370 runs in the second innings
After Sri Lanka’s struggle in the first innings, India tried to score runs quickly in the second innings. The team’s aim was to score such a big score that Sri Lanka gets a very difficult target in the fourth innings and India gets enough time to win. However, Indian batsmen could not score big in the second innings and wickets kept falling quickly, but Rishabh Pant’s quick inning of 66 runs put India in a strong position. India set a target of more than 370 for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka showed fighting ability in the fourth innings
Sri Lanka, which set out to chase a big target, got off to a bad start again. His first four batsmen were out cheaply… but Dhananjaya de Silva and Sonal Dinusha did not give up. Together they made a partnership of 95 runs and made the Indian bowlers yearn for wickets for about 202 balls. India had to show a lot of patience to break this partnership.
Ultimately Ravindra Jadeja gave a big success to India by dismissing Dhananjaya de Silva. After this, Dickwella did not last long, but Sri Lanka once again troubled India. Sonal Dinusha and Keshara Nuwantha faced the Indian bowlers for some time.
Then came Manav Suthar’s magical spell… 4 wickets in 10 balls and Sri Lanka’s innings was over.. Sonal Dinusha was once again seen moving towards a century, but as soon as her wicket fell, Sri Lanka’s resistance broke. After this, Manav Suthar completely destroyed the Sri Lankan innings by taking three wickets in just 10 balls. He ultimately completed 10 wickets in the match and sealed India’s victory. In this way Suthar completed the first 10-wicket match of his Test career.
Suthar created a special record for India
Manav Suthar has joined the list of select spinners from India to take 10 wickets in a Test match on foreign soil. Earlier for India, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrashekhar, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh have achieved the feat of 10 wickets in foreign tests. Suthar’s age at that time was only 24 years and 16 days. He became the only Indian spinner in this list to achieve this feat before the age of 28.
Took 5 wickets twice in the first two tests
Suthar’s performance is also special because he has joined the list of bowlers who have taken 5 wickets twice in their first two Tests for India. Names like Narendra Hirwani (3 times), Akshar Patel (3 wickets) and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Mohammad Nisar (2-2 wickets) are already present in this list. Suthar showed with his performance that he can become a useful option for the Indian Test team in the coming times.
The journey of 600 tests was also memorable
- India completed its 600 matches in Test cricket with this match. From the beginning of India’s Test journey till the 600th match, the team won 187 Tests, lost 188, one match was tied and 244 matches were drawn.
- Interestingly, India’s win-loss record in the first 100 Tests was very weak, but as the team became stronger, the winning percentage also increased.
- India had won only 10 out of 100 Test matches, while it had to face defeat in 40. At the same time, 50 matches were drawn. After this, during 101 to 200 test matches, he won 25 and lost 32, while 43 matches were drawn.
- If we talk about 201 to 300 matches, India won only 21 matches, while it had to face defeat in 26 matches. There itself. 1 match was tied and 52 matches were drawn.
- If we talk about the journey from 301 to 400 matches, India won 32 and lost 31, while 37 matches were drawn. At the same time, during 401 to 500 Test matches, India won 42 and lost 28. At the same time, 30 matches were drawn.
- Between 501 and 600, India won 57 tests, lost 31 and 2 matches were drawn. During this period, India’s win-loss ratio was 1.838, which shows the strongest phase of its Test journey.
What were the biggest positives for India?
Team India has many positive things after the Galle Test. The first is the return of Devdutt Padikkal. The second big news is the brilliant performance of Manav Suthar. Suthar made the most impact among India’s three left-arm spin options. Padikkal gave strength to the team by batting reliably in both the innings. Captain Shubhman Gill also praised Suthar’s bowling and described him as a player who has the ability to play for India for a long time.
Some hopes remain for Sri Lanka too
Despite the defeat, Sonal Dinusha and Keshara Nuwantha were two big positives for Sri Lanka. Dinusha faced India’s strong spin attack in both the innings. By scoring a century in the first innings and 80 runs in the second innings, he showed that he can play long innings under pressure. Keshara Nuvantha also struggled in difficult circumstances. The off-spinner made a good comeback after initial difficulties.
Sri Lanka could not win against India in 11 tests
With this defeat, Sri Lanka’s poor record in Test matches against India has become longer. Sri Lanka has now not won against India for 11 consecutive tests, out of which it has lost 9 matches. However, in the Galle Test, Sri Lanka challenged India on several occasions and the match was not completely one-sided.
Now the next clash will take place in Colombo
India has taken a 1-0 lead in the series in Galle. Now the second test between the two teams will be played in Colombo from 23rd August. India will now focus on winning the series, while Sri Lanka will try to make a comeback and level the series. The way Padikkal and Suthar have left their mark in Galle, special attention will be kept on these two players in the second test also.
What number did Team India reach in WTC Points?
Despite the 165-run win against Sri Lanka, Team India remains at fifth position in the WTC Points Table. His points percentage is 53.33 percent. It is behind Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Bangladesh.