India thumped Sri Lanka by 238 runs in the Pink Ball Test to sweep the series 2-0. It was a clinical performance from the hosts, as most players contributed to this resounding win. Shreyas Iyer led the batting charts by scoring fifties in both innings, helped by two momentum-changing innings from Pant. Jasprit Bumrah was the chief destroyer, picking up match figures of 8/47 across two innings. For Sri Lanka, it was a lone effort from their skipper, Dimuth Karunaratne, who scored a sublime century in the fourth innings.
Let’s look at some of the key moments from the game.
Karunatratne’s valiant effort
Ravichandran Ashwin is the most lethal bowler against left-handed batters in the history of Test cricket. 221 of his 442 wickets have been of left-handers – he is the only one to take 200+ wickets against the southpaws. On a raging turner, Ashwin was supposed to run through the Lankan lineup, especially with the opposition filled with left-handed batters. Ashwin had match figures of 6/85, but Karunaratne kept him at bay, eventually scoring 107 runs off 174 balls.
The reason behind Karunaratne’s success against all Indian spinners, especially against Ashwin was his technique. Karunaratne kept his guard on the leg stump and avoided shuffling across the stumps. He also brought his bat down straight and not from an angle, with his straight bat helping him avoid the inside and outside edges.
Against Ashwin, his leg stump guard also helped him keep his legs out of the line of stumps to avoid getting LBW. To avoid poking at the ball and risking the outside edge, he often played inside the line of the ball.
One of the key aspects of batting against spin in subcontinental conditions is reading the ball from the hand and judging its length early, playing it as late as possible. Karunaratne didn’t commit to the ball by coming onto the front foot. He waited for the ball to come and didn’t take a long stride forward. This also kept him ready to play off the back foot as soon as anything was pitched short. For anything full, he trusted his sweep and reverse sweep shots to score.
Sharma’s field changes and Ashwin’s artistry
Sri Lanka got off to a rapid start on the third day. The field that was set was an attacking one, with catchers around the bat on both sides. But Kusal Mendis kept coming down the pitch to whip the ball to the midwicket region for easy singles, even boundaries. Realizing this, Rohit Sharma brought a quick change in the field, keeping short midwicket, even two at times, restricting the safe scoring shot.
However, the midwicket was removed once Ashwin, someone who brings the ball back into the right-handed Mendis, came round the wicket to him. After a couple of traditional off-spin balls, Ashwin anticipated Mendis coming down the track and bowled a carrom ball. Already committed to coming down the pitch, Mendis failed to read the ‘other one’ and was swiftly stumped by Pant. With that wicket, Ashwin also went past Dale Steyn’s tally of 439 Test wickets.
Ashwin also found a minor chink in the defense of Dhananjaya de Silva. With de Silva defending away from the body, Ashwin stayed round the wicket and tossed one up nicely onto his stumps. Loose in his defense, de Silva defended the ball away from his body, and the gap between his bat and pads allowed his inside edge to rebound off his pads for Hanuma Vihari to take a sharp catch at forward short-leg.
Pant creates history
Rishabh Pant created history by becoming the first-ever Indian wicket-keeper to win the Player of the Series award in Tests. He was rewarded with the award for his two blistering knocks, the second one being the fastest fifty by an Indian in Tests.
Pant also became the first batter in Tests to score 30+ runs in both innings of a Test with a strike rate of 150 or more. He is now one of five batters to average 40+ at a strike rate of 70 or more in Test matches.
It was always going to be a big task for Sri Lanka to overcome the Indian challenge away from home. It didn’t help them that most Indian players put their hands up and chipped in with key performances throughout the two-match series.