This was a triumph that ironically suffered the after-effects of a loss. India’s 1-0 series victory in the two-Test outing recently in Sri Lanka, in normal circumstances, would have been seen as a positive. However, in the race for key points in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, the ideal India-centric result would have been a clean sweep at 2-0. But with Dhananjaya de Silva’s men thwarting India’s bid for a win in the second Test at Colombo’s Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, and forcing a draw, the visitors continue to occupy the fifth slot in the WTC rankings. It is a position one below Bangladesh after the eastern neighbour secured a 1-1 draw against Australia in the series Down Under. If a WTC final berth has to be secured then India has to do extremely well away against New Zealand and at home against Australia, and then hope that the various permutations cropping up will be favourable. Shubman Gill’s men find themselves in this piquant situation due to their vulnerability at home, having lost a Test series to South Africa last year. The transition angst within the Indian unit is yet to abate following the exit of R. Ashwin, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Slowly, new heroes are emerging and the results could improve.
Stepping into the Emerald Isle and hamstrung by the injured Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, India did its homework. A warm-up fixture was won, while some of its players had earlier turned out for India A against Sri Lanka A and were ready. When the series commenced with the first Test at picturesque Galle, India led from the front and won by 165 runs to secure a 1-0 lead. Devdutt Padikkal’s 167 and 44 led the run charts and most importantly it also meant that the critical number three spot in the batting order had found an apt occupant for now. This is the same position that in the past had featured pedigreed men such as Dilip Vengsarkar, Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara. Left-arm spinner Manav Suthar too did well and his classical mode is a throwback to a gentle past. Sri Lanka’s brief resistance hinged on Sonal Dinusha, who registered a ton. Soon he would become an immovable personality at the batting crease and India learnt it the hard way at Colombo. His twin hundreds helped Sri Lanka erase the ignominy of suffering a follow-on and also survive a tense final day to wrest a draw. The conclusion felt like a victory for the host and India is now placed in a must-win corner in its future Tests.
Published – August 31, 2026 12:10 am IST
