| 0.0 : If Sri Lanka made their presence felt in the first Test of the series by competing well, in the second, they were back to their recent just-mere-presence style where it was another abject surrender by their batsmen which set the game up for the hosts. Here we are for the third and final Test between India and Sri Lanka played at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi. Welcome to our coverage and we hope this game would see the tourists turn the table on the hosts. |
| India are going through a very good run in Tests and are having a problem of plenty in more than one department. While Shikhar Dhawan comes into the reckoning after taking time out for personal reasons, a fit-again Mohammed Shami would be eager to find a place in the side, too. Rohit Sharma is breathing down Ajinkya Rahane's neck with a ton to his name in the last outing. Sri Lanka, meanwhile, have lost Rangana Herath to a back injury and only time will tell who among Lakshan Sandakan and Jeffre |
| Test cricket would do well with a bit of competitive games. While the Test ranking table shows a huge gap between the two sides, the visitors would love to put up a performance that would reduce the rankings to a farce. There are talks of the light fading away pretty soon in the evenings. It will be notable to see if that affects the proceedings of the match. Will the story change this game? Will Sri Lanka put up a better batting performance? Will India be challenged and pushed to the wall? Let' |
| PITCH REPORT - Russel Arnold says that the weather is a bit cold and nippy right now but should warm up later. Observes that the track is a bit different than in Kolkata and Nagpur. Sunil Gavaskar agrees and states that the fair covering of grass on the pitch should help seamers initially. The cooler conditions should help the bowlers bowl longer spells, he opines. He goes on to add that the cracks might open up as the match progresses and should help spinners from Days 2 and 3. He reckons that |
| TOSS - Heads is the call from Chandimal... It comes down as TAILS. INDIA WIN THE TOSS AND BAT! |
| VIRAT KOHLI says it looks like a decent wicket to bat on. Opines that the first session will offer something to the bowlers and the Indian batters are up for the challenge. States that they would have liked more grass covering for sure but will take whatever is on offer. They would like to take the challenge of batting first in bowler friendly conditions, he adds. Reckons every game is important and they aren't taking any opposition lightly. Adds further that even in South Africa, it is more abo |
| DINESH CHANDIMAL says that they would have batted first as well although the toss isn't under anybody's control. Aims to restrict the opposition to as minimum as they can. After the previous game, they assessed the need to change their approach in batting. Informs that Rangana Herath, Lahiru Thirimanne and Dasun Shanaka make way for Lakshan Sandakan, debutant Roshen Silva and Dhananjaya de Silva. He adds that the newcomer has scored well in domestic circuit and hopefully will do well in this gam |
| India haven't lost a Test at this venue in the last 30 years. This would keep the hosts in good stead. Are the numbers pointing against the away side even here? Maybe, but a game of cricket isn't won on statistics alone. Meanwhile, the players and the umpires line up for the national anthems. It will be Sri Lanka's first followed by India's. |
| So... The anthems are done and dusted. Play is set to get underway. Out walk the Indian opening batsmen MURALI VIJAY and SHIKHAR DHAWAN. The former is coming off a wonderful hundred while the latter is back in the side after being out for personal reasons. Sri Lanka hand the new red rounded shiny object to SURANGA LAKMAL. Three slips and a gully to begin with. Let's roll... |
| 0.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, A little fuller in length, away swing on offer. Vijay defends it solidly. |
| 0.2 : S Lakmal to Vijay, The batsman plays a shot and defends it again to the off side. |
| 0.3 : S Lakmal to Vijay, FOUR! Length ball outside off, Vijay opens the face of the bat and guides it to the off side for the first boundary. Good start by Vijay. He looks in control. |
| 0.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, FOUR! Fuller on the pads, Vijay plays it on the leg side for another boundary. India are up and running here in Delhi. Lakmal not bowling the perfect length like he did in the two Test. These are welcome runs at the startof the innings for India. Lakmal should not be wasting the new ball and bowl it in good areas. |
| 0.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Outside off, the batsman shoulders arms to it. |
| 0.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, A little towards the leg side. Vijay plays it onto the ground with a straight bat. |
| LAHIRU GAMAGE to bowl from the other end. Two slips and a gully in place. |
| 1.1 : L Gamage to Dhawan, Gamage starts off with a loosener. Slips this one down the leg side, Dhawan tries to clip it away but misses. |
| 1.2 : L Gamage to Dhawan, Back of a length delivery around off, Dhawan hangs back and taps it to covers for a quick single. |
| 1.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, FOUR! Elegance at its best! That is a shot of a man who believes in his abilities and is oozing confidence. Full length ball on middle, not much nibble in the air. Vijay strides forward and just strokes it past his partner for a delightful boundary. The elegant right-hander held his pose after playing that. |
| 1.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Short of a length delivery in the channel outside off, Vijay lifts his bat skywards and allows it through. |
| 1.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Back of a length delivery in the zone of apprehension, moving in a bit. Vijay camps back and defends it stoutly. |
| 1.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Shortish delivery well outside off, defended solidly off the back foot. |
| 2.1 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, FOUR! Fuller in length again, around off and Dhawan drives it towards cover region for his first boundary. Glorious looking shot by Dhawan, he held his pose and the ball raced to the fence. |
| 2.2 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, The batsman has punched that ball through the offside. |
| 2.3 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Nipping back to the batsman, comes in from off to middle, he tries to play it but misses. |
| 2.4 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 2.5 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Back of a length ball by Lakmal. On the off side and Dhawan plays it on the back foot. |
| 2.6 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Good length ball around off, Dhawan doesn't bother playing at it. |
| 3.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Full length delivery around off, shaping away. Vijay plants his front foot across and lets it go. |
| 3.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length delivery in the corridor of uncertainty, Vijay doesn't fiddle with it. |
| 3.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, Back of a length delivery outside off, shaping in. Vijay makes use of the depth of the crease and answers it with a straight bat. |
| 3.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Gamage goes fuller this time, allowing the ball to swing away a bit. Vijay prods forward and eases it to mid off. Fullish lengths should be the order of the morning. Need to make use of the new ball and the helpful conditions. |
| 3.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Gamage steams in and bangs a short delivery but the direction is wayward. Vijay moves inside the line and lets it go safely. |
| 3.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Well bowled! A yorker around off, Murali is alert to it and jams it out in time. |
| 4.1 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Length ball by Lakmal, outside off, gets a little inswing and Dhawan leaves it alone. |
| 4.2 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Length ball again by Lakmal, around off, inviting Dhawan to drive but Dhawan doesn't fall prey to it. |
| 4.3 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Similar ball by the bowler. Dhawan leaves it and allows the keeper to do the rest. |
| 4.4 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, The batsman shoulders arms to let that one through. |
| 4.5 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Back of length this time from Lakmal. Dhawan quickly on his back foot at pushes it to covers. |
| 4.6 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Length ball, on middle and leg stump, Dhawan plays it to the mid on region and runs for a quick single. |
| 5.1 : L Gamage to Dhawan, On a length on off, not much space for Dhawan to work with. He stays inside the crease and punches it to covers. |
| 5.2 : L Gamage to Dhawan, Fuller in length, slanting away from the southpaw enticing him for an ambitious drive. However, Dhawan resists the urge and makes a watchful leave. This is the kind of line and length Gamage should be aiming to bowl on a consistent basis. |
| 5.3 : L Gamage to Dhawan, FOUR! Exquisite! Harsha Bhogle on-air mentions that there is something about a batsman when he plays a shot and doesn't move after that. Full length delivery outside off, Dhawan leans into it and punches it through covers for a boundary. Timing and grace written all over that one. |
| 5.4 : L Gamage to Dhawan, Nicely bowled! Good length delivery, swinging in. Dhawan stays back and blocks it off the inner half of the bat down the track. |
| Deep square leg in place now. Time for the bouncer may be. |
| 5.5 : L Gamage to Dhawan, On a length, very wide outside off. Shikhar doesn't flirt with it. |
| 5.6 : L Gamage to Dhawan, Straying on the pads, Dhawan tucks it around the corner for a run and will retain strike. |
| 6.1 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Good length ball outside the off stump and Dhawan leaves it alone. |
| 6.2 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Fuller length on the pads and Dhawan tries to flick it but misses. They seek a single here |
| 6.3 : S Lakmal to M Vijay, FOUR! Good length ball outside off. Vijay plays it with a soft bottom hand and it goes between third slip and gully region for a boundary. Intentionally done by Vijay. Playing positive cricket and getting quick runs. |
| Third slip moves a little wider. |
| 6.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 6.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Vijay defends this one from the back foot. |
| 6.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Length ball around off, he strides forward and defends. |
| Spin has been introduced early. Dilruwan Perera to roll his arm over now. He is just one shy of 100 Test wickets. Let's see what kind of purchase he gets from this surface. A slip and a short leg in place. The crowd is making a lot of buzz at the moment. |
| 7.1 : D Perera to Dhawan, A fraction short in length, going on with the arm. Dhawan sits back inside the crease and clips it to deep square leg to rotate strike. |
| 7.2 : D Perera to Vijay, There are a lot of times when direct hits create a lot of trouble for the batsman but this time no such situation arises. Drifting towards the pads, Vijay whips it to backward square leg and his partner calls him through for a run. Dhawan is running to the danger end and makes it home safely. |
| 7.3 : D Perera to Dhawan, FOUR! Easy pickings! Short delivery outside off, spinning away. Dhawan eyes light up. He rocks back and cracks it through cover-point to pick up another boundary. |
| 7.4 : D Perera to Dhawan, Perera continues to be short. Dhawan places it to covers for an easy run. |
| 7.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Spinning in to Vijay who allows it to come to him and works it to backward square leg. |
| 7.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Slow turn on offer, coming in from outside off. Vijay stays compact in his defence and plays it towards short leg. 7 from Perera's first over. |
| 8.1 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, A little back of a length by Lakmal. Dhawan offers no shot to it. |
| 8.2 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, The batsman chooses to leave the ball outside his off stump. |
| 8.3 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Length ball again outside off, Dhawan shoulders arms to it. |
| 8.4 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Length ball outside off, the batsman lets that go to the keeper. |
| 8.5 : S Lakmal to Dhawan, Fuller by length on the off stump, and Dhawan drives this towards cover region for a good looking shot. They pick up a quick single here. |
| Matthew Hayden and Murali Karthik on air discuss about Dhawan's improvement as a batsman. They feel that he plays with a lot of authority these days and has a knack of converting his starts into big ones. |
| 8.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. |
| 9.1 : D Perera to Dhawan, FOUR! Deft! Dhawan is looking ominous at the moment. Perera comes from around the wicket and bowls an arm ball outside off. Dhawan camps back, watches it closely and guides it past the keeper for a boundary. |
| 9.2 : D Perera to Dhawan, Another slider, this time in line of the stumps. Shikhar blocks it down the track. |
| 9.3 : D Perera to S Dhawan, Full on middle, Dhawan wrists it to mid on for a swift run. |
| 9.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Spinning towards the pads, Vijay tucks it to backward square leg for a run. |
| 9.5 : D Perera to Dhawan, Slower in pace, a bit of extra bounce there. Dhawan eases it to covers. |
| 9.6 : D Perera to Dhawan, OUT! 100th Test wicket for Perera! He becomes the third Sri Lankan spinner after Muralitharan and Herath to achieve this feat! Dhawan throws his wicket away after a promising start. That was a loose shot early in the innings and he pays the price for it. Coming back to the ball, it is slow through the air, drifting in towards the leg stump. Dhawan kneels and goes for the sweep but ends up top edging it. There is a lot of haze around as the ball skies towards Lakmal to d |
| Cheteshwar Pujara strides out to bat. He has recently moved to No. 2 in the ICC Test batting rankings. Will he score back-to-back centuries? |
| 10.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Fuller by length by the bowler, on middle stump and Vijay defends it firmly onto the ground. |
| 10.2 : S Lakmal to Vijay, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 10.3 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Teasing ball around off side and Vijay tries offering a shot to that and missses it. Good ball by Lakmal, perfect length and just what his captain would want from him. |
| 10.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. |
| 10.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Bouncer from Lakmal. Vijay ducks and lets the keeper collect it. |
| 10.6 : S Lakmal to C Pujara, 1 run. |
| 11.1 : D Perera to Vijay, FOUR! What a shot! Tossed up delivery on off, Vijay strides forward and drills it past the diving mid on fielder and the ball races to the fence. |
| 11.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Floated around off, driven firmly off the front foot to mid off. |
| 11.3 : D Perera to Vijay, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 11.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Shorter in length, Vijay stays back and smothers the turn nicely. |
| 11.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Spinning into Vijay who hangs back and tucks it through square leg for a run. |
| 11.6 : D Perera to Pujara, Tossed up delivery, defended with the spin to short leg. |
| 12.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Vijay opens the face of the bat at plays it through the cover area for a single. |
| 12.2 : S Lakmal to Pujara, The batsman lets the ball go outside his off stump. |
| 12.3 : S Lakmal to Pujara, The batsman shows the full face of the bat and defends the ball off the backfoot. |
| 12.4 : S Lakmal to Pujara, Back off a length ball by Lakmal, Pujara tucks it to square leg area and looses his balance, that didn't stop the run though. They pick up a single. |
| 12.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 12.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Fuller length ball, on middle and leg stump, Vijay pushes it to mid-wicket and goes to the other end. |
| Time for Drinks. India will be happy with the way things are going so on far. Going at a lengthy run rate. They have lost the wicket of Dhawan but other than that they look solid. Vijay not wasting time to get his runs and is looking good for a big score. Sri Lanka on the other hand have not really been disciplined in their bowling. Lakmal not at his best. |
| 13.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Shoter in length around off, spinning in slowly. Vijay tucks it nicely to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 13.2 : D Perera to Pujara, Slow through the air outside off, Pujara shimmies down the track and with a high backlift strokes it to mid on. |
| 13.3 : D Perera to Pujara, Fullish in length on middle, clipped neatly with the spin to short mid-wicket. |
| 13.4 : D Perera to Pujara, Similar delivery, similar shot, similar result. |
| 13.5 : D Perera to Pujara, Flighted delivery around off, Pujara uses his feet and works it to short mid-wicket. |
| 13.6 : D Perera to Pujara, Good shot and good fielding as well! Shorter in length outside off, Pujara rocks back and cuts it through cover-point. Sandakan hares after it and makes a spirited save near the ropes. Saves a run for his side. |
| Lahiru Gamage returns for a bowl. Two slips and a gully in place. |
| 14.1 : L Gamage to Pujara, Length delivery around off, Cheteshwar doesn't fiddle with it. Gamage's towel dropped while he delivered that but the umpire doesn't call it a dead ball this time. |
| 14.2 : L Gamage to Pujara, Wide outside off, Pujara is not bothered to play at that one. |
| 14.3 : L Gamage to Pujara, A rush of blood from Pujara! It is rare to see him play that way. He is usually cool as a cucumber. Short and width on offer, Pujara slashes at it but the ball goes under his bat and sails into the gloves of the keeper. |
| 14.4 : L Gamage to Pujara, Full length delivery in the zone outside off, Pujara makes a watchful leave. |
| 14.5 : L Gamage to Pujara, Back of a length delivery outside off, left alone. |
| 14.6 : L Gamage to Pujara, Similar delivery outside off, Cheteshwar remains circumspect in approach. |
| 15.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Full delivery around off, knocked down to long on for a run. |
| 15.2 : D Perera to Pujara, Great work from the debutant! Tossed up delivery, Pujara whips it towards short mid-wicket where Silva dives to his left to save certain runs for his side. |
| 15.3 : D Perera to Pujara, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 15.4 : D Perera to Pujara, Slow through the air around off, Pujara strides ahead and buries it into the ground. |
| 15.5 : D Perera to Pujara, Sharp turn for Perera! On a shorter length outside off, spins in substantially. Pujara hangs back and has it covered. Looks to cut it but gets a bottom edge besides the pitch on the off side. |
| 15.6 : D Perera to Pujara, Floated on off, Pujara clips it nicely through mid-wicket for a run and will retain strike. |
| 16.1 : L Gamage to Pujara, Length ball by Gamage, around off stump and Pujara shoulders arms to it. |
| 16.2 : L Gamage to Pujara, Wide outside off, Pujara leaves it alone. |
| Leg gully in place. |
| 16.3 : L Gamage to Pujara, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 16.4 : L Gamage to Pujara, Back of a length ball by Gamage, Pujara jumps and defends it onto the ground. |
| 16.5 : L Gamage to Pujara, Length ball around off, the batsman plays it to mid-wicket for no run. |
| 16.6 : L Gamage to Pujara, Some chin music for the batsman, he lets that bouncer through to the wicket-keeper. |
| There is a bowling comparison being made between Perera and Muralitharan. Perera does better in terms of strike rate and he has got 100 Test wicket in his 25th Test match while Murali had taken 95 wickets. He is also the fastest Sri Lankan to take 100 Test wickets. |
| 17.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Stays back to this one and keeps it out. |
| 17.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Tossed up delivery, Vijay prods forward in defense. |
| 17.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Slow through the air, Vijay punches it to long on to rotate strike. |
| 17.4 : D Perera to Pujara, FOUR! Shot! Shorter in length, turning in. Pujara makes good use of the depth of the crease and turns it through backward square leg to pick up a boundary. |
| 17.5 : Perera to Pujara, A strong appeal for an LBW is turned down! Tossed up delivery and a bit shorter in length outside off, spinning in. Pujara lunges forward to defend but misses to get pinged on the pads. The Sri Lankans shout for it but the umpire stays put. The visitors decide not to take the review. The Hawk Eye shows that it would have missed the leg stump, so a wise call. |
| Defensive field setting from the Sri Lankans. Not the ideal thing to do. Vijay and Pujara are using their feet and that has prompted Chandimal to keep a long on in place. You don't send the right message to your bowler when you do that. And that too, with Perera bowling, who is the go-to-man in the absence of Herath. |
| 17.6 : D Perera to Pujara, FOUR! Poor delivery and duly punished! Short and spinning down, Pujara tucks it past square leg who sprints after it but fails to keep the ball in play. |
| 18.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length ball, around off, Pujara tries to drive it but gets an inside edge. It goes to wide fine leg and they pick up a single. Sri Lanka would want some of these to go on to the stumps. |
| 18.2 : L Gamage to Pujara, The batsman picked that bouncer early and let it through to the keeper. |
| 18.3 : L Gamage to Pujara, Looks like Gamage has some plan for Pujara, he his keeping him on his toes. Another short ball, Pujara does well to evade it. |
| 18.4 : L Gamage to Pujara, The batsman shoulders arms to let that one through. |
| 18.5 : L Gamage to Pujara, FOUR! Pujara won't miss out on these balls. He picks up the length quickly and drives it beautifully to mid off region for a boundary. After continuous short balls he gets a fuller ball and plays it beautifully. Classical Pujara. |
| The umpires Joel Wilson and Nigel Llong are seen wearing black armbands. This is because Russel Evans, an English umpire in the first class circuit, passed away on the 30th of November, 2017. |
| 18.6 : L Gamage to Pujara, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. One run added to the total. |
| Lakshan Sandakan to bowl now. The wrist spinner has a lot of ability. Can he deliver on his comeback? |
| 19.1 : L Sandakan to Pujara, Floated on leg stump, Pujara plays it with soft hands to mid-wicket. |
| 19.2 : L Sandakan to Pujara, FOUR! Rank long hop and it has been hit away with disdain! Around off stump, Pujara rocks back and flat-bats it through the mid off region for a rocketing boundary. The Sri Lankan spinners need to bowl on much fuller lengths to make it challenging for the batsmen. |
| 19.3 : L Sandakan to Pujara, No ball! Slider in line of the stumps, whipped with the spin to deep mid-wicket for a run. Sandakan has overstepped, it is a crime for a spinner to do so. |
| L Sandakan to Vijay, Spinning down the leg side, Vijay tries to glance it but fails to do so. Dickwella moves to his left but fails to collect it properly. |
| 19.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The wrong one this time, Vijay reads it well and stonewalls it. |
| 19.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Slow through the air around off, kept out off the back foot. |
| 19.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Floated delivery on off, eased sweetly off the front foot to mid off. |
| 20.1 : L Gamage to Pujara, Fuller in length this time, on middle and leg, and he plays it on the square leg for no run. |
| 20.2 : L Gamage to Pujara, OUT! Pujara has fallen to a well-planned Sri Lankan move. Gamage bowls to his field. Length ball on the pads, Pujara tries to flick it away. He couldn't keep the ball down and hits it staright to the fielder at leg gully. A sharp catch by Samarawickrama there, ends Pujara's stay at the crease. |
| VIRAT KOHLI comes in to bat next. He is out there on the back of a well made double hundred. |
| 20.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, No run. |
| 20.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, No run. |
| 20.5 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR. |
| 20.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, No run. |
| 21.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Floated on off, Vijay is on the move as he clips it towards short mid-wicket. Silva is sharp as a hawk there as he dives to his left and makes a clean stop. |
| 21.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay hangs back and flicks it with the spin past short leg. The ball is racing away towards the fence but the deep mid-wicket fielder does well to hare to his right and keeps it down to a couple. |
| 21.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, In line of the stumps, patted back to the bowler. |
| 21.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Too short once again, Sandakan and Perera have been guilty of bowling too many of those. Ample time for Vijay to rock back and cut it to sweeper cover for a brace. |
| 21.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Low full toss on middle, flicked straight to the man at short mid-wicket. |
| 21.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, That kept a bit low. The wicket is playing tricks on odd occasions. Shortish on leg stump, Vijay whips it uppishly to deep square leg for a single. |
| 22.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, FOUR! That came right out of the textbook! For all the kids watching, this is how you should play a cover drive. Length delivery around off, holding its line. Vijay takes a confident strides forward and just pushes it. Such is the timing that there is no chance for any fielder whatsoever and away she whistles to the boundary. |
| 22.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, Ouch.. that must have hurt! Fullish delivery outside off, Vijay shuffles and looks to clip it but gets an inside edge onto his box area. The Lankans put in a chirpy appeal but to no avail. That blow is going to sting. |
| 22.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, In the channel outside off, left alone. |
| 22.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Short delivery, but it is not a well-directed one. It is well outside off which allows Vijay to drops his wrists. |
| 22.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, FOUR! Vijay is focusing on timing and he is getting the desired results. He has already produced a colourful array of strokes. Fullish in length and angling into Murali. He clips it beautifully through mid-wicket for a glorious boundary. |
| 22.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length ball, shaping in. Defended solidly off the back foot. |
| 23.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Full in length on off, Kohli drills it down to long on for a run. |
| 23.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Shortish this time on leg stump, stays low again. Vijay is surprised a bit and works it off the bottom half of the bat through square leg. A run taken. |
| 23.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Prods forward to this one and turns it to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 23.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Short once again but it is spinning in sharply. Vijay does well to tuck it past mid-wicket for a single. |
| 23.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, FOUR! Bowl to Kohli's strengths and he will keep milking you all day long. Full length delivery on middle, angling in. The Indian skipper brings those wrists into play and clips it with a lot of command. Gets it past short mid-wicket and the ball reaches the fence in a jiffy. |
| 23.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Spinning into Kohli who turns it to backward square leg for a run. 9 from the over, India keep on scoring runs with ease. |
| Suranga Lakmal back for another spell. |
| 24.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Good length ball around off and Virat shoulders arms to it. |
| 24.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 24.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli, The ball is too wide on the off side for the batsman to make any contact. |
| 24.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, A little fuller around off, Kohli tries to flick it to leg side but the ball hits the outer half of the bat and goes to the cover region for a dot ball. |
| 24.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Length ball from the bowler, Around off stump and this one nips back of the pitch. Kohli leaves it and allows the keeper to do the rest. |
| 24.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Half hearted appeal from Sri Lanka. A little fuller from Lakmal and it hits the leg of Kohli. Inside edge onto the pads. No damage done. |
| 25.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Tossed up delivery but down the leg side, Vijay goes for the sweep but misses. |
| 25.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, That's a really good delivery! Sandakan slips in the wrong one outside off. Vijay shapes for the drive but doesn't pick up the variation and as a result, is beaten. |
| 25.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. One run added to the total. |
| 25.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Slower in length and more revolutions on that one, Kohli puts his head down and defends it calmly. |
| 25.5 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, FOUR! How easy to the eye was that shot from the Indian skipper, in complete control. Fullish in length around off, Kohli clears his front leg and drives it elegantly through covers to find the fence. |
| 25.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Drifting away from Kohli. He strides forward and places it with an open bat face to cover-point for a run. |
| 26.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Outside off, Kohli taps it in front of cover-point for a quick single. The fielder from cover picks up the ball and hurls a wild throw at the stumps. Good running by the batsman. |
| 26.2 : S Lakmal to Vijay, FOUR overthrows! 16th Test fifty for Vijay. What a way to get to the landmark! Length delivery by Lakmal and Vijay opens the face of the bat and plays it towards the cover-point region for a quick single. Debutant Roshen Silva moves to his right to pick up the ball and has a shy at the stumps. It hits the bull's eye at the non-striker's end but Vijay is safe. The ball ricochets off the stumps and races away to the long on boundary. 5 runs off that delivery. |
| 26.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli, The batsman lets the ball go outside his off stump. |
| 26.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 26.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Kohli lifts his bat skyward and lets the ball go through. |
| 26.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Outside off stump, Kohli shoulders arms to that one. THAT'S LUNCH ON DAY 1! |
| Session highlights - 27 overs, 116 runs, two wickets. It has been India's morning and they continue to march on in this series. Chilly conditions and a tinge of green on the surface set up a good prospect for watching some exciting seam bowling on display but the two Indian openers, Vijay and Dhawan started off in a positive manner. They didn't let Lakmal and Gamage settle down, scoring at every possible opportunity and that prompted Chandimal to bring in Perera early into the attack. |
| Dhawan was in the mood to play attacking cricket and that resulted in his downfall. He fell attempting a sweep shot which has become his weak link and gifted his wicket to Perera, who reached the landmark of 100 Test wickets, being the quickest to do so. Pujara departed in quick succession and it was a rare failure for him. Got to give credit to Chandimal for keeping a leg gully in place. |
| Perera and Sandakan have been bowling short on most occasions. That has allowed Vijay and Kohli to score freely. The former has scored an eye-catching fifty and is looking ominous. The odd ball is keeping low and there is also some turn on offer. The visitors' spinners ought to utilize that. The duo will be aiming to play in the same manner and on the other hand, Sri Lanka need to keep chipping away at the wickets. If the tourists don't do so, the No.1 ranked side in the world will run away with |
| ... DAY 1, SESSION 2 ... |
| Here we are after the Lunch break. India have begun well in spite of a couple of setbacks. As the saying goes, well begun is half done. The Vijay-Kohli combo has got going with a fluent 38-run stand off just 40 deliveries. Sri Lanka will have to break this stand before it gets out of hands. Out come their players followed by the Indian batsmen. DILRUWAN PERERA it will be, who will start the proceedings with the ball. A slip and a bat-pad catcher in place. |
| 27.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Floated around off, Vijay smashes it straight back to the bowler. He stops it in his followthrough even as the umpire is seen taking evasive action. |
| 27.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Flatter around off, Vijay goes back and pushes it towards point. |
| 27.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Landed around off, Vijay gets forward and blocks. |
| 27.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Loopy delivery around off and middle, turned away to mid-wicket. |
| 27.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay goes back and punches it down to long on for one. |
| 27.6 : D Perera to Kohli, Flatter on the stumps, turned to short leg. |
| SURANGA LAKMAL will steam in from the other end. Strangely, he has looked off-color after the first Test. |
| 28.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, FOUR! Not a good way to start for Lakmal. Vijay is as pristine as ever with his timing. Lakmal spears it straight on a length around off and middle, Vijay gets his stride forward and times the flick through mid-wicket. The mid on fielder ran after the ball, only to retrieve it back from the fence. Wonderful leg position and head position from the opener. |
| 28.2 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Length outside off, shouldered arms to by Vijay. |
| 28.3 : S Lakmal to M Vijay, Excellent running now. Vijay pushes it towards mid on with soft hands and scurries to the other end for a run. |
| 28.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Well done, Samarawickrama! It is on a length outside off, Kohli leans forward and opens the face of the bat to guide it past gully. The ball rushes towards the third man fence. Sadeera chases it down, slides and makes sure that the ball is in play. A couple of runs is all that Kohli gets. |
| 28.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, This ball is kept out from within the crease. |
| 28.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Outside off, left alone. |
| 29.1 : D Perera to Vijay, On the pads, flicked away to backward square leg. |
| 29.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Loopy around off and middle, pushed towards mid on. |
| 29.3 : D Perera to M Vijay, Driven towards the mid-on region. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 29.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli crosses over to the other end by driving it through mid on. |
| 29.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Landed on a fuller length around off, driven back straight to the bowler. |
| 29.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Ohh Sadeera! Gets hit yet again at short leg. After taking a blow on the ribs in the previous game, now he wears one on the helmet grille. Vijay goes back and clips it to the leg side, only to find the protective gear of Samarawickrama. |
| 30.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, FOUR! 50-run stand between Vijay and Kohli! This has come in quick time. These two have combined well after India had lost a couple of wickets before even putting 100 on board. Lakmal bowls it on a length outside off, Kohli hangs back and slaps it through cover-point for a boundary. |
| 30.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, This ball is driven towards mid on. |
| The physio is on the field. Samarawickrama is seen holding his forehead and this doesn't look good. After a bit of a mini conference, he is seen walking off the field. Hope this isn't too serious. |
| 30.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli, FOUR! 5000 Test runs for the Indian skipper, 4th fastest Indian to the mark. He is unstoppable when he is in such good a flow that he is right now. An overpitched delivery outside off, Kohli leans ahead and drives it through covers. Bisects the gap between the cover fielder and the mid off fielder to get a boundary. |
| 30.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Driven through mid-on by the batsman. |
| 30.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Virat defends this from within the crease. |
| 30.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Short ball around off and middle, pulled away towards fine leg for a run. |
| Roshan Silva is preparing to get to the short leg position. He is seen putting on his shin guard and a guard to protect his ribs as well. In spite of all of these, there might be a fear lingering in his mind after seeing his teammate take a few blows on his body. |
| 31.1 : D Perera to Kohli, No run. |
| 31.2 : D Perera to Kohli, This ball is played towards short leg. |
| 31.3 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli lunges forward and blocks this one. |
| 31.4 : D Perera to V Kohli, FOUR! Wrists all the way! How does he manage to look so good with those flicks! Perera loops it up around off and middle, Kohli lunges ahead and uses his wrists to play it through mid on for a boundary. The Indian skipper is in the ODI mode already. |
| 31.5 : D Perera to Kohli, Driven towards mid on by Kohli. |
| 31.6 : D Perera to Kohli, On the pads, flicked away towards square leg. |
| LAHIRU GAMAGE is brought into the attack. The wicket-takers are on now from both the ends now. |
| 32.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Outside off, left alone. |
| 32.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length delivery outside off, Vijay gets it off the inner half towards mid off. The short cover fielder gets to his right to stop that. |
| 32.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, Another one! MV strides and looks to drive it to the off side, but gets it off the inner half towards the bowler. |
| 32.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, On the stumps, blocked with by getting forward. |
| 32.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Yet again Vijay looks to play it off the front foot but ends up pushing it towards mid on off the inner half. Not sure why at this stage in his innings this is happening to him. |
| 32.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, This time Vijay is sensible enough to let this length ball outside off go through to the keeper. |
| 33.1 : D Perera to Kohli, FOUR! Kohli just feasts on spinners and here is another proof of that. Perera loops it around off, Kohli gets low and plays the inside out drive through covers. Once he times that well, there's no stopping that. |
| 33.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Punched back off the back foot. |
| 33.3 : D Perera to Kohli, FOUR! Another one in the over! This one is dangerously cheeky though. Flatter outside off, Kohli goes back and looks to guide it past slip. Ends up getting it just past Mathews at slip who fails to get a hand to it. The desired result is achieved by Kohli who moves to 41 off just 42 deliveries. |
| 33.4 : D Perera to V Kohli, Kohli hits it towards long on for a single. |
| 33.5 : D Perera to Vijay, The batsman has driven it through mid off. |
| 33.6 : D Perera to M Vijay, Slower through the air outside off, Vijay lunges forward in defense. The ball takes the inside edge before hitting the front pad. |
| 34.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Fuller around off, driven to mid off. |
| 34.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Outside off, shouldered arms to by Virat. |
| 34.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, Length ball around off, Kohli stands tall and blocks it. |
| 34.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, This one is too wide to make VK play. |
| 34.5 : L Gamage to Kohli, Lovely shot for a dot ball. Fuller outside off, Kohli plays the cover drive but finds the fielder stationed in that region. |
| 34.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, Length ball outside off, Kohli walks down the track and blocks it down. |
| 35.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Flatter around middle and leg, MV goes back and hits it towards backward square leg. |
| 35.2 : D Perera to Vijay, On the stumps, Vijay pushes it back. Perera gets to his right and stops that. |
| 35.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay pushes this towards mid off. |
| 35.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay works this past short leg for a single. |
| 35.5 : D Perera to Kohli, Easy singles on offer, which the Indians won't miss out on. Kohli lunges forward, plays it in front of cover-point and ambles to the other end for a run. |
| 35.6 : D Perera to M Vijay, Flatter around off, Vijay goes back to open the face of his bat past slip. Gets a brace after doing so. |
| 36.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! I think we need to put off all the superlatives away, because we might be guilty of overusing them, says Harsha Bhogle on air. Pretty much sums up the way Virat Kohli is playing. We have seen him play such strokes in white-ball cricket and here he is doing so in the red-ball game. Gamage bowls it full outside off, Kohli leans into the shot and drives it through covers for a boundary that takes him to 47. |
| 36.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! Over-correction from Gamage results in another boundary that brings up Kohli's 15th Test fifty off just 52 balls. On the previous occasion there was width. Here the bowler angles it on a length on the pads. Easy peesy for the Indian skipper who whips it through fine leg. The fielder in the deep runs to his left and dives but is unable to prevent the Indian no.4 from getting to his landmark. |
| 36.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, Good judgement shown by Kohli this time as he shoulders arms to this delivery outside off. |
| 36.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, Played to the point region by the batsman. |
| 36.5 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! Often the movement and the body language of the players show how good and at ease a batter has looked. Banged on a shorter length around off, Kohli pulls it with disdain through wide mid on. The player at mid on didn't bother moving or, well, he didn't stand a chance of doing so. |
| 36.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, Virat works it down the leg side. They pick up a single. 13 runs off that over. |
| 37.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli eases this to long on for a single. |
| 37.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay strides forward and burries this delivery onto the ground. |
| 37.3 : D Perera to M Vijay, Driven through mid on by the batsman. |
| 37.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay crosses over to the other end by driving it through mid off. |
| 37.5 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman works it down the leg side. |
| 37.6 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli lunges forward and blocks it solidly. |
| 38.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Gamage bends his back and bowls it short around off. Vijay sways away from the line to let the keeper collect that. |
| 38.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, Another bouncer in line of the stumps, MV ducks and lets it go. |
| 38.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, Vijay whips it off his pads and crosses over to the other end. |
| 38.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, Kohli picks up a run after flicking it to fine leg. |
| Matthew Hayden on air discusses about not going far ahead of the moment. He says that on days when you are striking the ball well or when things are going your way, you often tend to forget about the bigger picture. Adds further that in the sport it is about only that one delivery that can often consume the batsman. So the batsmen need to be careful more so when in full flow. |
| 38.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Vijay pushes it back towards the bowler. |
| 38.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Poor bowling by Gamage. Even after conceding so many runs, he strays on the pads yet again. Vijay flicks it through backward square leg. Before Lakmal in the deep does the clean-up job, a couple results. |
| LAKSHAN SANDAKAN comes back for a bowl. A short leg and a short mid-wicket in place apart from a slip. |
| 39.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Floated around middle and leg, pushed towards short mid-wicket. |
| 39.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli wrists this in front of square on the leg side for a single. |
| 39.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay gets ahead and pushes it defensively back towards the bowler. |
| 39.4 : L Sandakan to M Vijay, Vijay ambles away to the other end by knocking this down to long on. |
| 39.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, FOUR! Kohli fulfills the desire of the ball wanting to be at the cover boundary, says the witty Harsha Bhogle as he lavishes praise on this shot. Sandakan drops it short around off, Kohli goes back and slaps it through covers. The real estate on that part of the ground leaves the ball unhindered as it makes its way to the fence. Kohli is soon catching up with Vijay as far as personal scores are concerned. |
| 39.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Flicked straight to the man at mid-wicket. |
| DILRUWAN PERERA to roll his arm over from the other end. |
| 40.1 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay finds the mid-wicket fielder with the flick. |
| 40.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Swept away to the short fine leg fielder. |
| 40.3 : D Perera to Vijay, 100-run stand between Vijay and Kohli is up! This journey has been only of 121 balls so far and is as chanceless as it looks. Vijay eases this through the cover region for a single. |
| 40.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli clips it through mid-wicket and rotates strike. |
| Perera aborts before delivering this one. Mind games? Maybe. |
| 40.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 40.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay gets down and plays the paddle sweep. Gets it fine on the leg side. Before Sandakan can chase it down from short fine leg, a brace results. |
| Drinks are on the field. Vijay and Kohli are just carrying on from where they left in the previous game. Their 103-run stand off 124 deliveries has just been full of strokes. Looks as if there is a competition of sorts and that's why both of them are matching each other stroke for stroke. Sri Lanka already seem to run out of ideas just half a day into this game. More than a refreshing drink, a fresh thought is what would help them. |
| 41.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Floated around off and middle, turned through mid-wicket for one. |
| 41.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Floated full delivery around off and middle, Vijay drives it towards covers, where the fielder stops it to his right. |
| 41.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, That's the wrong 'un! Bowled flatter outside off, Vijay goes back to cut but misses. |
| 41.4 : Sandakan to Vijay, A stifled appeal for an LBW, turned down. Sandakan tosses it up around leg, Vijay lunges forward to block but misses and wears it on the front pad. The Lankans appeal but to no avail. Going down leg for sure. |
| 41.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, This ball is played through cover-point for a run. |
| 41.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Driven towards the mid on region. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 42.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Flatter on the stumps, Kohli goes back and turns it through mid-wicket. Gets a run for doing so. |
| 42.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay finds the fielder stationed at mid-wicket with this clip. |
| 42.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Now Vijay works it in front of square on the leg side for a single. |
| 42.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli uses his wrists to work it past mid-wicket for a single. |
| 42.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Perera comes round the wicket and serves it around leg. Vijay taps it in front of square on the leg side for a single. |
| 42.6 : D Perera to Kohli, FOUR! Wow! All this while, Kohli went back and flicked such deliveries to the man at deep mid-wicket. This time brings his wrists into play a bit more to get it squarer. The ball rushes through square leg. The fielder in the deep rushes to his right but fails to prevent the boundary. |
| 43.1 : L Sandakan to M Vijay, Sandakan needs to bowl this line more often. Tosses it up around off, Vijay looks to play it with a straight bat. The ball takes the outside edge and runs towards the third man fence. Before the ball is returned three runs result. Replays show that as Vijay was running to complete his second run, Kohli was halfway down for the third. So the opener was left with no option but to rush to the other end. |
| 43.2 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, The batsman has driven it through mid on. They pick up a single. |
| 43.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 43.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay pushes it defensively back towards the bowler. |
| 43.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman shows the full face of the bat and defends the ball off the back foot. |
| 43.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, No ball! It is a crime for a spinner to overstep and Perera has already done it twice. Vijay negotiates this by blocking it from the crease. |
| L Sandakan to Vijay, No run. |
| 44.1 : D Perera to Kohli, 1 run. |
| 0.0 : Virat Kohli's key to success against the spinner has been the stride that he gets. He does so and converts the good length deliveries into fuller one and collects runs. He is seen picking up lengths early and hence when the delivery is slightly short, he is quick to go back and play it. Good to see, helpful for a young player to watch and learn. |
| 44.2 : D Perera to Vijay, The batsman has pushed it to the cover region. |
| 44.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Worked through square leg for a single. |
| 44.4 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 44.5 : D Perera to Kohli, This ball is flicked towards mid-wicket. |
| 44.6 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads |
| 45.1 : L Sandakan to M Vijay, Driven towards mid off. |
| 45.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay finds mid-wicket with this flick. |
| 45.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, HUGE APPEAL! No reaction from the umpire. Sandakan floats it around middle and leg, Vijay sees that it is on the shorter side and looks to go back and play the cut. The spin on that delivery makes him miss the ball and he gets rapped on the back pad. A huge appeal follows but to no avail. Hawk Eye shows that it wasn't a bad shout as the ball is seen clipping the leg stump. Wouldn't have been out on review as it is umpire's call. |
| 45.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Pushed to the cover region by the batsman. |
| 45.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay plays it through point for a run. |
| 45.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Virat has flicked the ball off his pads. One run added to the total. |
| 46.1 : D Perera to V Kohli, Hit straight to the man at mid on. |
| 46.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Played to the point region by the batsman. They pick up a single. |
| 46.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Vijay goes back and flicks it through mid-wicket. A brace results before the fielder in the deep does well to retrieve the ball. |
| 46.4 : D Perera to Vijay, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 46.5 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli lunges forward and blocks it. |
| 46.6 : D Perera to V Kohli, This is pushed towards mid off. |
| 47.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay taps it towards mid-wicket and crosses over to the other end. He moves to 81 now. |
| 47.2 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, Landed around middle, pushed towards mid on. |
| 47.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli turns this through mid-wicket and rotates strike. |
| 47.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Flatter down the leg side, Vijay goes back to flick but misses. |
| 47.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Another one down the leg side, Vijay goes back and misses the flick. |
| 47.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. |
| DHANANJAYA DE SILVA is given the ball now. He has been on the bench for the first couple of games and should be largely unaffected by the on-field fatigue then. Can he provide the Lankans the breakthrough? |
| 48.1 : de Silva to Kohli, Kohli rocks onto the back foot and punches the ball. One run added to the total. |
| 48.2 : de Silva to Vijay, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 48.3 : de Silva to Vijay, Played to mid-wicket region by MV. |
| 48.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Vijay pushes it towards mid on. |
| 48.5 : de Silva to M Vijay, Vijay eases this down to long on for a run. |
| 48.6 : de Silva to Kohli, Kohli does the same now as he knocks this down to long on for a run. |
| 49.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Floated around middle and leg, Kohli eases it down to long on for a run. What's more, Sandakan has overstepped. |
| L Sandakan to Vijay, Fuller outside off, Vijay plays it through cover-point for one run. |
| 49.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Played to the point region by the batsman. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 49.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Karunaratne should never have been conceding the single there, reckons Russel Arnold on air. This ball is flicked towards square leg and the batters set off for a run. Karunaratne is on his heels and hence is a touch late in getting to the ball. A run results. |
| 49.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Virat blocks it from the crease. |
| 49.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli turns it through mid-wicket for one run. |
| 49.6 : L Sandakan to M Vijay, Vijay eases this down to long on for a run. |
| 50.1 : de Silva to Vijay, Floated around leg, Vijay keeps it out to the leg side. |
| 50.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Similar delivery, MV works it towards short fine leg for a run. |
| 50.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Kohli goes back and whips it towards deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 50.4 : de Silva to Vijay, This ball is flicked towards mid-wicket. |
| 50.5 : de Silva to Vijay, Landed around middle and leg, Vijay blocks it watchfully. |
| 50.6 : de Silva to Vijay, This one's knocked down to long on for a single. |
| A chest guard and shin guards are brought on for Roshen Silva who is all set to grab his place at short leg. |
| 51.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, A wrong 'un around leg, Vijay goes back and presents a full bat face as he keeps this out safely. |
| 51.2 : Sandakan to Vijay, In the air but just out of the bowler's reach. Vijay charges down and wrists it over the bowler's head. Sandakan leaps but fails to get a hand to it. A run results as the long on fielder does the fielding. |
| 51.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Another appeal! Floated gently around middle and leg, Kohli lunges forward to keep it out but misses. The ball hits him on the front pad and that draws a huge shout from the Lankans. Because it is turned down, they ponder about the review before deciding against that. Ball Tracker shows it would have been umpire's call on impact and the ball would have spun down leg. |
| 51.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman has played it towards mid-wicket. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 51.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay goes back and flicks it towards fine leg for a brace. |
| 51.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Flatter on the pads, Vijay goes back and flicks it through short fine leg. Karunaratne chases it down, slides and keeps the ball in play. The batsmen pick up three runs before the ball is returned. The umpire goes upstairs to see if the boundary is saved. It is indeed, as confirmed after having a look at numerous replays. |
| SURANGA LAKMAL is back on. |
| 52.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, This partnership is now worth 150 runs. It just rolls on and on. Vijay plays it with soft hands towards mid on and sets off for a quick run. The fielder has a shy at the bowler's end but misses. The run is completed with ease. |
| 52.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Kohli flicks it through mid-wicket for the umpteenth time for a run. |
| 52.3 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Length delivery around off, Vijay blocks it solidly. |
| 52.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Straight bat face presented by MV as he keeps it out off the back foot. |
| 52.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Lakmal runs in and bangs it short on the stumps. Vijay crouched low and lets it go. It was bowled at 128kph. |
| 52.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, On a length outside off, Vijay gets his front foot forward and shoulders arms to that. |
| 53.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Flatter on the stumps, Virat gets back and hits it to the fielder stationed at deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 53.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Floated wide of the off stump, Vijay watches the ball go into the keeper's gloves. |
| 53.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay flicks it towards mid-wicket, where the fielder dives to his left to prevent a run. |
| 53.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay plays this straighter towards long on for a run. Moves to 95 now. |
| 53.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli hits it to the fielder manning the long on fence for a single. |
| 53.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Beautifully bowled. Sandakan tosses this just around off, Vijay lunges forward in defense but misses. It was the googly. Shows that if you land it in the right areas, it will cause problems even to the set batsman. |
| 54.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, On a length around off, Virat presents a straight bat as he keeps it out watchfully. |
| 0.0 : Two men in the deep in the leg for the bouncer for Kohli. |
| 54.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Kohli taps it towards covers for a quick run. |
| Lakmal had to abort bowling this one. As he ran in to bowl that, the towel tucked in his pant fell off. This distracted Vijay, who moved away from his position. Earlier in the day, such an instance hadn't resulted in the bowler aborting delivering the ball. |
| 54.3 : S Lakmal to Vijay, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 54.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Vijay clips it through mid-wicket for a single that takes him to 96. |
| 54.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Length delivery outside off, Kohli guides it straight to gully. |
| The Armed Forces week is going on in India. The Indian cricketers are wearing a badge on their chest in order to show respect to the Army men. |
| 54.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Here comes the bouncer! It was well advertised from a while ago. Kohli is well set for that and he flat-bats it towards deep mid-wicket. Gets a couple for doing so. |
| The short leg fielder is a bit deeper. Means that the fielder isn't for a bat-pad chance but for a flick shot that can be aerial. |
| 55.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 55.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, FOUR! 11th Test hundred for Murali Vijay! He has looked at ease from the moment he walked in. In the previous game, a loose shot brought his downfall when he looked set for a longer stint at the crease. This time he seems focused to not let the chance go. Sandakan drops it short outside off, Vijay goes back and slaps it through covers for a boundary. He gets out a jig as he celebrates his milestone. Back-to-back tons for the opener, the first time he has done so. Also, |
| 55.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Now picks up a single by easing it through point. |
| 55.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. |
| 55.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli presents a forward defense as he blocks this. |
| 55.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, FOUR! Can the local lad stay quiet when his partner is mustering the runs? Nope. He won't. He goes back to this shortish delivery and smashes it through covers for a boundary. Moves to 94 with this. |
| Last over before Tea. Kohli on 94 now. Can he get to triple figures before the break? |
| 56.1 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Length ball outside off, pushed towards point. |
| 56.2 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Length delivery around off, blocked off the front foot. |
| 56.3 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Vijay displays the forward defense as he keeps it out solidly. |
| 56.4 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| Interesting celebration! After Vijay got to the triple-figure mark, he and his skipper brought out the dab after signalling something towards KL Rahul. This had the youngster in splits. |
| 56.5 : S Lakmal to Vijay, Vijay gets behind the line of the ball and blocks it watchfully. |
| 56.6 : S Lakmal to Vijay, A touch fuller around off, Vijay defends it towards mid off. A maiden to end the session. That's TEA, DAY 1! |
| Well then! 129 runs from the session and it completely belonged to the Indian team. Vijay and Kohli are amidst a 167-run stand and are looking solid out there. After the loss of two wickets, Kohli started counter-attacking the Lankan bowlers. He got to his fifty in just 52 balls and has scored the majority of his runs through boundaries. Vijay on the other hand, has been in sublime form getting to his 11th Test century and his third back-to-back first-class ton. |
| Sri Lanka didn't capitalize on the wicket of Pujara and let things slip out of their hands. The spinners have been leaking way too many runs for their liking and nothing seems to be going according to plan. They need to break this partnership as soon as possible or else they will have to toil it out for another session. What will Chandimal have to tell his players during the break? Join us soon after the break to find out. |
| ... DAY 1, SESSION 3 ... |
| We are back for the last session of the day. The players and the umpires are out in the middle. Vijay and Kohli are back to resume their innings. How long will Kohli take to get to his ton? Dilruwan Perera to bowl first up. |
| 57.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Shortish in length, Kohli hangs back and blocks it. |
| 57.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Spinning towards the pads, Kohli tucks it to the man at short mid-wicket. |
| 57.3 : D Perera to V Kohli, Short delivery on middle, stays low. Kohli adjusts well and pulls it to deep mid-wicket to rotate strike. |
| 57.4 : D Perera to Vijay, Slow through the air on off, patted back to the bowler. |
| 57.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Hangs back to the flighted delivery and stonewalls it. |
| 57.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Quicker in pace and on a flatter trajectory on leg stump, Vijay helps it through mid-wicket for an easy run. |
| Lahiru Gamage to bowl from the other end. |
| 58.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Serves it on a good length ball, around off, Vijay plays it with a straight bat |
| 58.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, Offers it around off, Vijay doesn't bother playing at it. |
| 58.3 : L Gamage to M Vijay,Fuller this time, MV drives it confidently to mid off region for a dot ball. |
| 58.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, The batsman chooses to leave the ball outside his off stump. |
| 58.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length ball around off and it nips back from the pitch. Vijay leaves it alone. |
| 58.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Back of a length this time, Pujara on to his back foot and plays it on the ground. Maiden for Gamage to start with. |
| 59.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Flatter delivery on middle, Kohli has all the time in the world to hang back and ease it to short mid-wicket. |
| 59.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Similar delivery, spinning in. Virat turns it to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 59.3 : D Perera to M Vijay, Fullish in length, Vijay is on the move as he clips it to mid on for a run. |
| 59.4 : D Perera to V Kohli, Leans into the flighted delivery and knocks it through mid on to rotate strike. |
| 59.5 : D Perera to M Vijay, Hit hard but not in the gap! Floated delivery outside off, Vijay punches it but finds the man at extra cover. |
| 59.6 : D Perera to M Vijay, FOUR! This time he maneuvers the field with perfection. He has played that with a lot of authority. Tossed up delivery in line of the stumps, Vijay makes room and creams it through covers for an exquisite boundary. When he is in full flow, he is an absolute joy to watch! |
| 60.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Back of a length from Gamage, Kohli jumps and pushes it to cover region for a single. Moves to 98. |
| 60.2 : L Gamage to Vijay, FOUR. Glorious timing from Vijay. He really looks in good nick. This ball is served up around off and Vijay picks the length quickly and drives it to cover-point area for a boundary. Doesn't bother running for it. |
| Two short mid-wickets in place. |
| 60.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, Deliverers this at the off stump and Vijay pushes it to mid-wicket area for a couple of runs. |
| 60.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Vijay defends towards cover to rotate strike. |
| Third man comes inside the ring to create some pressure on Kohli. |
| 60.5 : L Gamage to Kohli, Kohli plays this ball to mid-wicket and picks up another single. |
| 60.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 61.1 : D Perera to Kohli, 20th Test ton for Virat Kohli, his 13th as captain. What a player! He has scored this one without breaking a sweat. Colourful array of strokes all around the park and he has achieved this in rapid pace. Looks like a man in complete control of himself and he has pummeled the opposition into submission. Coming back to the delivery, it is on a fullish length on the pads. Kohli clips it to deep mid-wicket for a run. Lifts his helmet and sinks in all the applause from the cro |
| 61.2 : D Perera to Vijay, Shortish delivery, Vijay camps back and cuts it to sweeper cover for a couple. |
| 61.3 : D Perera to Vijay, Flighted delivery, Vijay eases it down to long on for a run. |
| 61.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Spinning into Kohli who eases it to mid-wicket. |
| 61.5 : D Perera to V Kohli, Driven through mid on by the batsman. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 61.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Flighted delivery outside off, Murali strokes it to sweeper cover for a run. |
| 62.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, A bit straighter this time from Gamage. Angling to the leg side. MV nudges it to mid-wicket region for a single. |
| 62.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Served it at a fuller length and onto the pads, Kohli uses his wrists and flicks it to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 62.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 62.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Length ball on off, played onto the ground. |
| 62.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Way too leg side this from Gamage. Easy pickings for any batsman. Nudges it to wide fine leg and gets another run. |
| 62.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, Kohli gets this again on his leg he pushes it again to the fine leg region to move on the non-striker's end. |
| Review time! Finally some excitement among the Sri Lankan players. Kohli is the man in question and it is regarding an LBW decision. Seems to be spinning down the leg side but you never know. |
| 63.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Not Out! A review goes down the drain! Tossed up delivery around middle and leg, spinning down. Kohli tries to flick it away but misses and gets rapped on the pads. Perera is really confident and so is Dickwella but the umpire stays unmoved. Chandimal has a look at his bowler and finally decides to challenge the decision. Time for the Snickometer. It doesn't spot any deviation. The Hawk Eye rolls in. Oh ho! The ball has pitched outside leg and that puts the argument to b |
| 63.2 : D Perera to V Kohli, Slow through the air, Kohli makes room and bludgeons it but finds the man at mid off. |
| 63.3 : D Perera to Kohli, Tossed up delivery, eased to the same region. |
| 63.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Full on middle and leg, clipped all along the ground to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 63.5 : D Perera to Vijay, Takes a confident stride forward to this one and blocks it. |
| 63.6 : D Perera to Vijay, Fullish delivery around leg stump, Vijay sweeps it but gets it off the bottom half of the bat to fine leg. Two runs taken. |
| Dhananjaya de Silva comes back into the attack. Can he bowl a magic delivery and get a wicket? |
| 64.1 : de Silva to V Kohli, In the air... but safe! Floated on middle and leg, Kohli is early into his shot and hence, chips it uppishly. Gets it to the right side of the bowler for a run. |
| 64.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Quicker in pace, kept out watchfully. |
| 64.3 : de Silva to Vijay, Flighted delivery, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 64.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Waits for this one and nudges it to mid-wicket. |
| 64.5 : de Silva to Vijay, Almost a wicket! Tossed up delivery around off, Vijay looks to play an expansive drive through covers but ends up getting it off the inner half of the bat. The ball flies towards Chandimal at short mid-wicket who dives in front but only manages to take it on the bounce. |
| 64.6 : de Silva to Vijay, No run. |
| 65.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Short ball on the leg side, Kohli on his back foot and pushes it to mid-wicket region for no run. |
| 65.2 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman delicately works it fine down the leg side. The batsmen have run through for a single. The 200-run stand is up. They don't look like they are going to stop here. |
| 65.3 : D Perera to Vijay, FOUR! Reverse sweep from Vijay and it gets him a boundary. Delicately done by him. The player from slip runs to stop the ball from going to the fence but fails. |
| 65.4 : D Perera to Vijay, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. |
| 65.5 : D Perera to Vijay, This one swept by Vijay to fine leg for a single. |
| 65.6 : D Perera to Kohli, Driven towards the mid-on region. |
| 66.1 : de Silva to Vijay, Floated on middle and leg, turned to deep square leg for a run. |
| 66.2 : de Silva to Kohli, Drifting away this time, played with an angled bat behind point. A run taken. |
| 66.3 : de Silva to Vijay, Tossed up delivery, MV is compact in his defense. |
| 66.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Slow through the air, defended with soft hands to the leg side. |
| 66.5 : de Silva to Vijay, Floated delivery on middle, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 66.6 : de Silva to Vijay, In line of the stumps, kept out watchfully. |
| Lakshan Sandakan comes back to replace Perera. |
| 67.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli,Good length ball from Sandakan. Kohli pushes it to mid-wicket for no run. |
| 67.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Played to the point region by the batsman. |
| 67.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman rocks onto the backfoot and punches the ball. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 67.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Vijay flicks it away with a wristy shot. They pick up a single. |
| 67.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Tossed up, fuller in length and Kohli flicks it to rotate strike. |
| 67.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Fullish in length from Sandakan, around off and Vijay drives it sodily to cover-point for a single. |
| 68.1 : de Silva to Vijay, Short in length, Vijay works it to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 68.2 : de Silva to Kohli, Slower in pace, Kohli lunges forward in defense. |
| 68.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Straying on the pads, tucked to backward square leg for a run. |
| 68.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Going away with the arm, Vijay hangs back and punches it to covers. |
| 68.5 : de Silva to Vijay, Flighted delivery on off, MV leans ahead and blocks it into the ground. |
| 68.6 : de Silva to Vijay, In line of the stumps, tucked off the back foot towards short fine leg. |
| 69.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, FOUR! Powerful sweep from Kohli. Onto his knees and places it to perfection to the deep mid -wicket region. There was a fielder at deep mid-wicket and fine leg but it was in between them. |
| 69.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Wide down the leg side, No trouble at all for the batsman. |
| 69.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. One run added to the total. |
| Sadeera Samarawickrama got hit on the grille of his helmet earlier in the day. He was taken off the field as well. The on-air commentators tell us now, that he had been taken to the hospital for some precautionary scans. He is safe and not in any danger they add. |
| 69.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Short ball from Sandakan, Punched on the back foot from Vijay to pick up a single. |
| 69.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman shows the full face of the bat and defends the ball off the back foot. |
| 69.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli flicks it away off his pads for a run. |
| 70.1 : de Silva to Kohli, Fraction short in length, tucked off the back foot to short mid-wicket. |
| 70.2 : de Silva to Kohli, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 70.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Tossed up on leg stump, Virat makes good use of the depth of the crease and turns it to square leg. |
| 70.4 : de Silva to Kohli, Slow through the air on leg stump, Kohli waits for it and taps it besides the pitch on the leg side. |
| 70.5 : de Silva to Kohli, Spinning towards the pads, the Indian skipper turns it to backward square leg to rotate strike. |
| 70.6 : de Silva to Vijay, Fullish on middle and leg, kept out nicely. |
| 71.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Flighted delivery, pushed off the front foot to short mid-wicket. |
| 71.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, A miscued shot from Virat Kohli, perhaps the first one from the Indian skipper. Fullish on middle, Kohli clears his front leg and goes for an expansive shot towards long on but skews it off the inner half to deep mid-wicket. A run taken. 300 up for India. India keep on ticking the scoreboard with ease. |
| 71.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Outside off, patted back to Sandakan. |
| 71.4 : Sandakan to Vijay, A chirpy appeal for an LBW is turned down! Tossed up on middle and leg, spinning down. Vijay looks to keep it out but misses to wear it on the pads. Sandakan is confident but Dickwella is not quite sure. Chandimal has a look at his bowler but they don't go for the review this time. Right thing to do as it would have missed the leg stump. |
| 71.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Well outside off, the wrong one and it spins further away. MV doesn't fiddle with it. |
| 71.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Deft! Shortish in length outside off, Vijay dabs it past first slip and gets a couple to his name. |
| Drinks break. |
| 72.1 : de Silva to Kohli, Fraction short on off, Virat camps back and tucks it to wide long on for a single. |
| 72.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Oohs and Aahs from the Sri Lankans! Quicker through the air on off, Vijay plays for the turn but it carries on with the arm. As a result, he is opened up in his stance and gets it off the outer half besides the pitch on the off side. |
| 72.3 : de Silva to Vijay, Takes as confident stride forward and clips it to mid-wicket. |
| 72.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Loopy ball on off, Vijay comes forward and negotiates the spin. |
| 72.5 : de Silva to Vijay, Slow through the air, MV makes room to drive it but defends it eventually. |
| 72.6 : de Silva to Vijay, Loopy delivery on off, whipped to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| The helmet comes out for Vijay which indicates that a fast pace bowler will come back into the attack. Indeed, Lahiru Gamage will have a burst now. |
| 73.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Back of a length from Gamage, around off Kohli pushes it to point for a dot ball. |
| 73.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Takes a step and quickly goes to his back foot and defends it. |
| 73.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. One run added to the total. |
| 73.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, Bouncer from Gamage, Vijay picks up the length and lets it go to the keeper. |
| 73.5 : L Gamage to Vijay, Served in a good length and the ball has taken the inside edge of the batsman and thudded into his pads. |
| 73.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, The batsman has driven it through mid on. |
| 74.1 : de Silva to V Kohli, Uppish but safe! Slow through the air on off, Kohli looks to ease it down the ground but ends up chipping it just wide of the bowler on the off side. Perhaps signs of the track being two-paced? |
| 0.0 : The artificial lights are starting to take effect now. |
| 74.2 : de Silva to Kohli, Flighted delivery on off, Virat looks to flick it through mid-wicket but gets a leading edge which falls short of de Silva. |
| 74.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Short delivery, Kohli pulls it to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 74.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Loopy delivery, blocked watchfully. |
| 74.5 : de Silva to Vijay, A shout for a caught behind and an LBW is turned down! Tossed up delivery around leg stump, Vijay goes for the fancy reverse sweep but misses. The ball lobs off something and goes towards the leg side. Dickwella to move his left and collects it. The Sri Lankans appeal but the umpire turns it down. Dickwella immediately signals to his captain that there is no edge. The Snicko confirms that, it came off the arm actually. It also pitched outside leg. |
| 74.6 : de Silva to Vijay, The batsman has driven it through mid on. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 75.1 : L Gamage to Vijay, Good length ball from Gamage, around off and Vijay opens the face of the bat towards cover-point and picks up a single. |
| 75.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, The batsman works it down the leg side. They pick up a single. |
| 75.3 : L Gamage to Vijay, FOUR! This is class from Vijay. Soft hands using the pace of the bowlers and runs it down to third man for a boundary. Length ball outside, opens the face of the bat and neatly plays it, the ball runs to the fence to add four runs to the total. |
| 75.4 : L Gamage to Vijay, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. They pick up a single. |
| 75.5 : L Gamage to V Kohli, Length again from Gamage, Kohli drives it to mid-wicket for a single. With that he reaches to 3000 runs as captain in Test cricket. |
| 75.6 : L Gamage to Vijay, Some chin music for the batsman, he lets that bouncer through to the wicket-keeper. |
| 76.1 : de Silva to Kohli, Spinning towards the pads, Kohli tickles it fine past the keeper. Sandakan in the deep sprints to his right and shows some football skills to keep the ball in play. Two runs taken. |
| 76.2 : de Silva to Kohli, Some turn on this occasion! Kohli hangs back and helps it to square leg. |
| 76.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Works this one with the spin around the corner for a run. |
| Murali Kartik observes that Dhananjaya de Silva has looked the better spinner so far and wonders why. Sunil Gavaskar opines that it is because he is bowling at a good pace and not giving much air to the ball. This creates a dilemma in the minds of the batsmen as whether to get on the front foot or the back foot. |
| 76.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Vijay clips this one to deep mid-wicket for an easy single. |
| 76.5 : de Silva to V Kohli, Full delivery, Virat makes room and drills it towards mid on. |
| 76.6 : de Silva to Vijay, On leg stump, MV dead-bats it. |
| Lakshan Sandakan to bowl. |
| 77.1 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, Kohli drives this ball to mid on and it goes from the inner half of the bat. |
| 77.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Punched off the backfoot by the batsman. |
| 77.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Short of a length by Sandakan, Kohli on his back foot and punches it to mid-wicket for a run. |
| 77.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Short again, Kohli punches this on mid-wicket and gets a single this time. |
| 77.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Ball is bowled on the leg side. MV tries to flick it down to fine leg but misses it. The keeper shouts for a catch but to no a vail. |
| 77.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Pushed to the cover region by the batsman. |
| 78.1 : de Silva to Kohli, The big sweep but finds the fielder! Tossed up on leg stump, Kohli hits it hard but the fielder is present at deep backward square leg. |
| 78.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Played through mid-wicket by the batsman. They pick up a single. |
| 78.3 : de Silva to Kohli, In line of the stumps, turned to square leg. |
| 78.4 : de Silva to Kohli, Quicker in pace on off, played with soft hands to mid-wicket. |
| 78.5 : de Silva to Kohli, Well played! Drifting away from Kohli. He waits for it and guides it past first Mathews at first slip. The veteran hares after it and keeps the ball in play. Saves a run for his side. |
| 78.6 : de Silva to Vijay, Clears his front leg and knocks this down to long on for a single. The 250-run stand comes up between the duo. What an effort and they continue to play freely. |
| 79.1 : L Sandakan to Vijay, On the leg stump, Kohli tries to guide it to square leg but misses the ball and it hits his pad. |
| 79.2 : L Sandakan to M Vijay, Driven towards the mid on region. One run added to the total. |
| 79.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli flicks this ball to square leg and picks up two runs. He runs the first one hard and quickly sends MV for the second. |
| 79.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman rocks onto the back foot and punches the ball. The batsmen have picked up a couple of runs. |
| 79.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, This is his fourth no-ball. This one a little marginal but a no-ball is a no-ball. Played through mid-wicket and Kohli gets to the non-strikers end. |
| L Sandakan to Vijay, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. They pick up a single. |
| 79.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. One run added to the total. |
| The second new ball is available now but it has not been taken. |
| 80.1 : de Silva to Kohli, On a flatter trajectory on off, Kohli covers the line and defends it stoutly. |
| 80.2 : de Silva to Kohli, Hangs deep in the crease to this one and works it to deep mid-wicket to rotate strike. |
| 80.3 : de Silva to Vijay, Spinning into Vijay who works it to square leg and looks for a run. However, he is sent back by the Indian skipper. |
| 80.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Clears his front leg to the fullish delivery and milks it down to long on to rotate strike. |
| 80.5 : de Silva to Kohli, Not much feet movement on that but he eases it nicely to covers for an easy single. |
| 80.6 : de Silva to Vijay, Tossed up delivery, pushed off the front foot to covers. |
| 81.1 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, FOUR! Hit away with disdain! A rank long hop on hop, Kohli lines it up and smashes it over the leaping fielder at short mid-wicket. No protection in the deep and the ball races to the fence. |
| 81.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, No ball! 5th no ball of the day, poor stuff from the Sri Lankans. A spinner overstepping is just not done. Kohli plays this one with soft hands to covers for a run. |
| L Sandakan to Vijay, Stays back to the flatter delivery and blocks it stoutly. |
| 81.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Slow through the air, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 81.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The runs continue to flow from Vijay's bat. 4th 150 plus score for the elegant right-hander in Test cricket. The entire dressing room is up on its feet applauding his brilliant knock. Coming back to the ball, it is outside off. MV creams it to sweeper cover for a run. |
| 81.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Sits deep in the crease and works it to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| Hang on! The umpires had made a mistake. They had forgotten the no ball and so Sandakan has been called back to complete his over. A bit of an issue with the sightscreen as well. |
| 81.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Drifting down the leg side, tucked around the corner for a single. |
| 82.1 : de Silva to Vijay, Floated on off, Vijay prods forward to defend but gets it off the inner half towards the vacant short leg region. |
| 82.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Outside off, played with an open bat face towards point to rotate strike. |
| 82.3 : de Silva to Kohli, In line of the stumps, played with soft hands to mid-wicket. |
| 82.4 : de Silva to Kohli, No trouble at all for Kohli. He waits for the delivery which turns in slowly and tucks it to mid-wicket. |
| 82.5 : de Silva to Kohli, Full on middle and leg, drilled down to long on for a single. |
| 82.6 : de Silva to Vijay, Flatter this time, worked off the hips to square leg. |
| 83.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Leans ahead to the tossed up delivery and works it past mid-wicket for a single. |
| 83.2 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. |
| 83.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Slips in the googly this time, Vijay reads it and blocks it watchfully. |
| 83.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Slow through the air outside off, stroked to sweeper cover for a single. |
| 83.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Fullish in length, patted towards mid on. |
| 83.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, On a flatter trajectory, answered with a straight bat. |
| 84.1 : de Silva to Vijay, Tossed up delivery, Vijay eases it to mid on. |
| 84.2 : de Silva to Vijay, Drifting away from MV who taps it to vacant point region and crosses over for a single. |
| 84.3 : de Silva to Kohli, 8th 150-plus score for Virat Kohli! The way he is playing it seems like he is having a net practice. Sighting the ball like a football. Shorter in length, Kohli rocks back and punches it towards sweeper cover. The fielder does well to stop the ball from crossing the fence. Three runs taken. Another double century in sight for the Indian skipper. |
| 84.4 : de Silva to Vijay, Floated delivery, Vijay clips it to mid-wicket. |
| 84.5 : de Silva to Vijay, The batsman works it down the leg side. |
| 84.6 : de Silva to M Vijay, Fullish delivery in line of the stumps, clipped to mid on. |
| 85.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Tossed up, On the leg side, Kohli strides forward and defends it. |
| 85.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Played through mid-wicket by the batsman. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 85.3 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 85.4 : L Sandakan to Vijay, Sixth no ball here from Sandakan. He has some serious problem with his front foot. Back off a length and Vijay rocks back and punches it for a single. |
| L Sandakan to Kohli, Driven towards the mid off region. One run added to the total. |
| 85.5 : L Sandakan to Vijay, The batsman fails to get bat on that one and is hit on the pad. |
| Third umpire has been referred to for a stumping appeal against Vijay. Should be close but Dickwella looks confident. |
| 85.6 : L Sandakan to Vijay, OUT st Niroshan Dickwella b Lakshan Sandakan. India have lost their third wicket. |
| Ajinkya Rahane strides out to the middle. A tricky phase of play awaits him. He has been short of runs in this series. Perhaps the right time for Sri Lanka to attack him. |
| 86.1 : de Silva to Kohli, Flatter and shorter in length, punched off the back foot to mid-wicket. |
| 86.2 : de Silva to Kohli, A fraction fuller in length on off, turned wristily to the mid-wicket region. |
| 86.3 : de Silva to Kohli, Easy pickings for Virat! Spinning down the leg side, the Indian skipper helps it down to fine leg for an easy brace. |
| 86.4 : de Silva to Kohli, Kohli has scored a lot of runs through the mid-wicket region today. Fullish on middle, clipped to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 86.5 : de Silva to Rahane, Tossed up delivery, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 86.6 : de Silva to Rahane, Played to mid-wicket region by the batsman. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| Easy singles on offer for Rahane. Not the correct mindset to play with. When a batsman has been struggling, you need to make him feel uncomfortable. That is how you get wickets. |
| 87.1 : L Sandakan to Rahane, On the pads, tucked to backward square leg. |
| 87.2 : L Sandakan to Rahane, An appeal for an LBW is denied! Tossed up around leg stump, Rahane prods forward to defend but misses. The visitors shout in unison but the umpire stays put. Replays show that it was spinning down leg. |
| Another nervy moment for the Indians. Dickwella is once again confident and is claiming that he has caught Rahane short of his crease. It has been referred upstairs. Seems out to the naked eye. The body language of Rahane also suggests so. |
| 87.3 : L Sandakan to Rahane, OUT! What a brilliant piece of bowling and keeping! Sandakan has once again outsmarted a top batsman. Bowls this one slower through the air from over the wicket and it is the wrong one. Keeps it well outside off, drawing Rahane into the drive. He falls into the trap and goes for a half-hearted push. Ends up missing it and Dickwella behind the stumps is sharp as a hawk. He collects it and whips the bails off in a jiffy. Is the back foot out of the crease? It is taken u |
| Rohit Sharma is the new man in. Suddenly Sri Lanka are on the prowl. Can they sneak in another wicket before end of day's play? |
| 87.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Brilliant ball to get first up. Googly outside off, Sharma prods forward to defend but gets beaten. |
| 87.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, The batsman has played it to the point region. One run added to the total. |
| 87.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, On middle and leg, whipped to deep backward square leg for a run. |
| 88.1 : de Silva to Sharma, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. |
| 88.2 : de Silva to Sharma, FOUR! Nicely done! Outside off, Sharma hangs back and cuts it behind point to find the fence. |
| 88.3 : de Silva to Sharma, Defends this one off the front foot to the leg side. |
| 88.4 : de Silva to Sharma, Tossed up delivery, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 88.5 : de Silva to Sharma, Shorter in length, kept out watchfully. |
| 88.6 : de Silva to Sharma, Stays back footed and clips it to fine leg for a single. |
| Last over of the day coming up... |
| 89.1 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Flat and quick on off, defended solidly off the back foot. |
| 89.2 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Fullish in length, Sharma stays back and blocks it in a jittery manner. |
| 89.3 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Full and quick down the leg side, Sharma goes for a full fledged sweep but fails to make contact. |
| 89.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Another beauty of a delivery from Sandakan. He is bowling on fuller lengths and is immediately causing problems for the batsmen. Wrong one around off, Sharma pokes at it and gets beaten all ends up. |
| Second slip in place now. Good move. |
| 89.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Spinning into Sharma who plays it with soft hands to mid-wicket. |
| 89.6 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Slips in a googly on middle, Rohit reads it well and smothers it expertly. THAT'S STUMPS ON DAY 1! |
| Good comeback by Sri Lanka towards the close of the day's play. One way traffic otherwise in the game. The Indian openers, Dhawan and Vijay, gave India a good start scoring quickly from both ends before the former fell to a rash shot. It was a rare failure for Pujara and he got dismissed due to a well-planned field placement. And then came the counter attack from Kohli and Vijay. |
| The duo added 283 runs with both scoring 150-plus. Kohli got to his 20th ton while Vijay scored his 11th. They looked as if they would end up playing the entire day without losing another wicket. But Sandakan had other plans. Two wrong ones on a driving length got the better of Vijay and Rahane. Dickwella with some Dhoni-esque stumpings played a crucial part in those dismissals. Rahane will be disappointed with his shot selection as this was his opportunity to score some runs on a good batting t |
| Sri Lanka would be happy ending the day with back-to-back wickets but they still have a lot of work to do. They will be hoping Sandakan gets similar purchase on Day 2 and picks up a few more wickets. The tourists would hope to build up on this and start on similar lines tomorrow. They have their task cut out due to the presence of the Indian skipper at the crease. Will they trigger a collapse and restrict India under 450? Or will the hosts continue to surge ahead with their runs? Let's find out |
| ... DAY 2, SESSION 1 ... |
| Good morning! Hello and welcome to Day 2 of the third and final Test between India and Sri Lanka. Despite the loss of two quick wickets during the close of Day 1, India would be satisfied with their position in the game at the moment. With Kohli still unbeaten on 156, his aim would be to get consecutive double centuries. It will be an interesting watch as to how much more India add to the overnight score. |
| Sri Lanka on the other hand will look for early breakthroughs. Their bowlers looked off-colour and allowed the hosts to score quickly. They would hope their spinners get some sort of purchase from a track, where the odd ball is misbehaving. They should come out and begin the day with a different mindset - that of triggering an Indian collapse to restrict the score to as less as they can. Sandakan's spell towards the end of yesterday should act as an encouragement. Stay with us to find out whethe |
| Murali Kartik catches up with Murali Vijay on the sidelines, who says that his mindset is really good and he's hitting the ball really well. About his celebration post the century mark, he says that they are practicing a jig for the away series and are teaching Pujara the same, as they want the no.3 batter to dance in the future. He isn't even thinking about the wrist injury (that had hampered him in the last 6 months) and is happy with the way he is hitting the ball. He admits it is difficult t |
| Russel Arnold has a chat with Dilruwan Perera, the quickest Sri Lankan to pick up 100 Test wickets. He is delighted with the feat and says he knew Muralitharan was the quickest to the mark and was aware of beating the former spinner in this regard. States that he plays just a few games outside Sri Lanka and hence he aims to do well in the chances he gets. Says that the track is flat at the moment and he will look to pitch the ball in right areas to restrict India to a decent total. |
| Russel Arnold says that the sun has come out early today in Delhi and the pitch has not changed much after yesterday. The grass, as he thought, is a bit superficial and not much has changed. Sunil Gavaskar adds that the pitch is still very good for batting. After inspecting the pitch further, he states that the cracks are yet to open up and the footmarks are visible but not at a length that should trouble the batsmen. Further mentions that the pitch should remain the same during the course of pl |
| The Sri Lankan players make their way in middle with the umpires. The Indian pair of ROHIT SHARMA and VIRAT KOHLI are ready to give Sri Lanka another hard day's work. DILURWAN PERERA will start the first over of the day. A slip and a short leg to start with. Here we go! |
| 90.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Straighter ball, Kohli plays it onto the ground. |
| 90.2 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 90.3 : D Perera to Kohli, First runs of the day. Tossed up to the batsman and Kohli plays it to point by opening the face a little and picks up a run. |
| 90.4 : D Perera to Sharma, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 90.5 : D Perera to Sharma, Fuller in length this time, Rohit drives it to mid on. |
| 90.6 : D Perera to Sharma, Wide outside leg, Sharma tries to flick it to square leg but it is too far for him. |
| LAKSHAN SANDAKAN to begin from the other end. A slip and a bat-pad fielder in place for him too. |
| 91.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, No ball! Begins with a no ball! Not an ideal start from the tweaker. Tosses it up around middle and leg, Kohli flicks it away towards mid-wicket for a single. The replay shows that he is well over the line there. Not pardonable for a spinner. |
| L Sandakan to Sharma, Sharma flicks this one but straight to the fielder at mid-wicket. |
| 91.2 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Flatter outside off, Sharma looks to cut it but ends up chopping it towards the keeper. |
| 91.3 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Rohit punches this back towards the bowler. |
| 91.4 : L Sandakan to R Sharma, This ball is driven towards mid on. |
| 91.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Sharma gets off the mark for the day by turning this past mid-wicket for a single. |
| 91.6 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Easy run this for Virat. He goes back and uses his wrists to turn it away off his pads for a run to retain strike. |
| 92.1 : D Perera to V Kohli, The batsman has driven it through mid on. |
| 0.0 : Sunil Gavaskar recounts his playing days. He says that once Eknath Solkar was hit when he was fielding at short leg and had to get some scans done. After returning, he jokingly said that there is something inside his head and it is not empty! This talk came up after the video of Samarawickrama getting hit on the helmet yesterday was shown. |
| 92.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Tossed it up, Kohli defends it from his crease. |
| 92.3 : D Perera to Kohli, Pitched up, Kohli pushes it to mid-wicket for a single. |
| 92.4 : D Perera to Sharma, The batsman has punched the ball off the back foot. |
| 92.5 : D Perera to Sharma, In line of the stumps and Sharma plays it back to the bowler. |
| 92.6 : D Perera to Sharma, Tossed up again, Sharma nudges it to mid-wicket for no run. |
| 93.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Tossed up on a fullish length outside off, Kohli frees his arms and drills it towards sweeper cover. Lakmal races to his right and keeps it down to a couple. |
| 93.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Once again it is a full delivery and Virat nudges it to short mid-wicket. |
| 93.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Slow through the air on middle and leg, Kohli works it nicely to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 93.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, SIX! First maximum of the game. What a hit! Floated around off, Sharma clears his front leg and lifts it over long off for a biggie. The cameraman failed to spot it he rolled his camera towards long on. That shot would give Sharma a lot of confidence. Might be a good ploy to the attack the youngster to upset his rhythm. |
| 93.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Stays back and defends it towards forward short leg. |
| 93.6 : L Sandakan to Sharma, This one is wide outside off and Rohit doesn't fiddle with it. |
| 94.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Quicker one outside off, Kohli looks to slap it to point but misses it. Dickwella collects it. |
| 94.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. |
| 94.3 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot |
| 94.4 : D Perera to V Kohli, The batsman has driven it through mid-on. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 94.5 : D Perera to Sharma, FOUR! DEFT! Amazing shot from Rohit Sharma. So elegant to watch. This ball is just around off and Sharma opens the face of the bat again and plays it towards the third-man region and it goes all the way for a boundary. Fielder at slip chases it but cannot keep pace with the ball. RS looking good. |
| 94.6 : D Perera to Sharma, Flicked to mid-wicket for a single. |
| 95.1 : L Sandakan to Sharma, FOUR! Easy pickings! Sandakan opts for the wrong one but the line is really wayward. It is outside leg and Sharma takes full toll of it. Kneels and sweeps it hard through fine leg to find the fence. Sharma is looking in good touch, he is fresh from a hundred. |
| 95.2 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Straightaway after being hit for a boundary, Sandakan changes his angle and comes around the wicket. Drifts it down the leg side and Rohit misses it. |
| 95.3 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Coming in with the arm, blocked watchfully. |
| 95.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Sharma let's this one come to him and clips it with the angle to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 95.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Too short in length, Kohli has ample time to sit back and knock it down to long on for a run. |
| 95.6 : L Sandakan to Sharma, That's a peach of a delivery! Just shows what he can do when he pitches it in the right areas. Brings out the googly and lands it around off. Sharma is caught off guard as he fails to pick the variation. Pushes at it half-heartedly and gets beaten comprehensively. Sharp work from Dickwella to take the bails off but Sharma unlike Vijay and Rahane had his back foot grounded inside the crease. |
| The second new ball has been taken. They have done so after 96 overs. SURANGA LAKMAL will have the first bite at it. Let's see what he can get of the new cherry. |
| 96.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, FOUR! That's not how to start with the new ball. Not what the captain would like from him. Fuller length ball onto the pads on Kohli and he flicks it classically to mid-wicket region for a boundary. The fielder at mid on chases the ball only to get it back from the fence. |
| 96.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Length ball, Kohli doesn't get his bat to the ball. |
| 96.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Served on a fuller length, the batsman works it down the leg side for a dot. |
| 96.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Outside off, Kohli places it to the point area to rotate strike. |
| Deep point comes inside the circle. |
| 96.5 : S Lakmal to Sharma, The batsman shoulders arms to let that one through. |
| 96.6 : S Lakmal to Sharma, 2 runs. |
| Lahiru Gamage comes into the attack. Two slips and a gully in place. |
| 97.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Good fielding! Half-volley outside off, Kohli leans into it and nails the drive but the short cover fielder dives to his right to intercept. |
| 97.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, In the zone of apprehension, holding its line. Kohli points his bat skywards to allow it through. |
| 97.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, Back of a length delivery outside off, Kohli places it with an angled blade to the vacant point region and scurries across for a quick single. |
| 97.4 : L Gamage to Sharma, Length delivery outside off, a bit of inward movement on this occasion. Sharma doesn't flirt with it. |
| 97.5 : L Gamage to Sharma, Gamage goes full on this occasion, some nibble in the air as well. Sharma puts his head down and with a high elbow pushes it down the track. |
| 97.6 : L Gamage to R Sharma, Similar delivery, Rohit eases it off the front foot to mid off. |
| 98.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Served around off stump, Kohli plays it to point for nothing. |
| 98.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, The batsman has played that off the front foot and into the ground. |
| 98.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Back of a length, Kohli goes to his back foot and defends it. |
| 98.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, FOUR! Gracefully done from Kohli. Didn't seem at first that it would run all the way to the fence, but the timing on that was perfect. Length ball, around off, Kohli opens the face of the bat and it goes from the outer half of the bat. The fielder at fine leg ran to his right but couldn't save the certain boundary. |
| 98.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Back of a length this time, places to the point region and runs for a single. |
| 98.6 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Length ball, in line of the stumps and defends it from the crease. |
| 99.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Almost chopped it back! That is an area where Virat has got troubled in the past and the Sri Lankans need to bowl there much more. Length delivery outside off and a bit of width on offer as well. Kohli lazily pushes at it and gets a thick inside edge past his stumps and the ball goes past the keeper towards short fine leg. A run taken. That was a rare miscued shot from the Indian skipper. |
| 99.2 : L Gamage to Sharma, On a length outside off, left alone. |
| 99.3 : L Gamage to Sharma, Well bowled! Good length delivery in the off stump channel, Sharma goes fishing at it tentatively and is foxed complete. The away seam movement off the deck caught him off guard. |
| 99.4 : L Gamage to Sharma, Similar length delivery, Rohit camps back and defends it stoutly. |
| 99.5 : L Gamage to Sharma, A great shot but the fielding is better! Such a fielding effort can lift the morale of the whole side. More so when you are struggling, this is the kind of effort you need from your players. Coming back to the delivery, it is short and there is width on offer. Sharma cracks it but Silva dives to his left and saves a certain boundary. |
| 99.6 : L Gamage to Sharma, Fractionally overpitched outside off, Sharma drives it elegantly but finds the cover fielder. |
| 100.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Served around off, Kohli playing at the wrong line, looks to flick it from off stump, it hits the inner half of the bat and onto his pads. No damage done. |
| 100.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, FOUR! Not in control this time. Yet gets the desired result. This happens when you are in form and on your 180's. Outside off this time from Lakmal, Kohli opens the face of the bat at the last moment, there were two slips and a gully and it goes in between all of them. The boundary also gets them their 50 run stand and its come in quick time. |
| 100.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli,Kohli looks to drive it to the off side but ends up getting it off the inner half of the bat towards mid-wicket for a run. |
| 100.4 : S Lakmal to Sharma, The batsman defends it from within the crease. |
| 100.5 : S Lakmal to Sharma, In line of the stumps and Sharma jabs it onto the ground. |
| 100.6 : S Lakmal to Sharma, FOUR! How elegant was that! wonderful on the eye and a boundary from the moment it left the bat. |
| The physio comes running out. Seems like Kohli is having a slight issue with his back. The magic spray comes out. Just might be a little stiffness. The Indian skipper is in the midst of a big innings. |
| 101.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! Elegance at its best! In the last delivery of the previous over, Sharma had played a majestic cover drive and this time Kohli plays a beautifully timed stroke to the other side. Low full toss on the pads, Kohli stays well-balanced and clips it nonchalantly through mid-wicket for another boundary. |
| 101.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Short delivery around off, Virat gets on top of the bounce and pulls it through in front of square leg for a single. |
| 101.3 : L Gamage to Sharma, FOUR! The new ball is vanishing to all parts of the Feroz Shah Kotla. Gamage tests the pitch and bangs in another short delivery outside off. It sits up nicely for Sharma who swivels and pulls it with command over mid-wicket to find the fence again. |
| 101.4 : L Gamage to Sharma, Good length delivery outside off, Rohit leaves it alone. |
| 101.5 : L Gamage to Sharma, Fullish and length and swinging in from outside off, Rohit puts a confident stride forward and eases it to the cover region. |
| 101.6 : L Gamage to Sharma, Length delivery around off, Rohit leans ahead and blocks it right under his eyes. |
| DILRUWAN PERERA comes in for another spell. |
| In the last 6 overs, 32 runs have been scored off the second new ball. India are on the attack and they haven't let Lakmal and Gamage find any sort of rhythm. That has prompted a change and the veteran is back to roll his arm over. Sri Lanka need to find some inspiration from somewhere otherwise the Indian juggernaut will continue to roll on. |
| 102.1 : D Perera to Kohli, 1 run. |
| 102.2 : D Perera to Sharma, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 102.3 : D Perera to Sharma, Nice looking shot from Rohit. Outside off, short off a length, Rohit cuts it to backward point for a couple of runs. Tidy work from the fielder there. |
| 102.4 : D Perera to R Sharma, Pitched it up, Sharma drives it through mid on for no run. |
| 102.5 : D Perera to Sharma, Back of a length ball, Sharma quickly on his back foot and punches it to pick up a run. |
| 102.6 : D Perera to Kohli, No run. |
| 103.1 : L Gamage to Sharma, Length ball outside off, left alone by Rohit. |
| 103.2 : L Gamage to Sharma, Length ball around off, defended off the front foot. |
| 103.3 : L Gamage to Sharma, This one is clipped through mid-wicket for a single. |
| 103.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, Length delivery outside off, Kohli leans forward and taps it with an open bat face to point. |
| 103.5 : L Gamage to V Kohli, Kohli is having a bit of trouble around his off stump. Length delivery around off, seaming in off the deck. Kohli is caught inside the crease and tries to block it but gets an inside edge to his back pad. He was lucky that it didn't roll back to the stumps. |
| 103.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, He had absolutely smashed it but good fielding there! Back of a length and width on offer, Kohli slaps it towards point where Perera makes a good half-stop. He rings his hand in pain after that. |
| 104.1 : D Perera to Kohli, First false shot from Kohli against a spinner. Drifting towards the pads, Kohli clears his front leg and looks to whip it through mid-wicket but gets it off the inner half towards fine leg. A couple taken. |
| 104.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Plays this one with soft hands to mid-wicket. |
| 104.3 : D Perera to V Kohli, Tossed up outside off, Kohli drives it brilliantly towards sweeper cover where the fielder rushes to his right and saves a couple for his side. |
| 104.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Flighted delivery outside off, Kohli works it to mid-wicket. |
| 104.5 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman has played it towards mid-wicket. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 104.6 : D Perera to Sharma, On the pads, nudged around the corner for a run. |
| Drinks time. India have continued to score at a good click and are looking ominous at the moment. Virat Kohli is nearing his double century, which will be his back-to-back in Tests. He has entertained the crowd thoroughly and Sharma has provided him good support. The second new ball is being hit all around the park. Sri Lanka look clueless at the moment. Something spectacular, perhaps a brilliant piece of bowling and fielding might create an opening for them. However, have to say that the hosts |
| 105.1 : L Gamage to Sharma, On a length in the corridor of uncertainty, Rohit plants his front foot across and lets it go. |
| 105.2 : L Gamage to Sharma, Another delivery in the same channel, Sharma remains circumspect in approach and allows it to sail through to the keeper. |
| 105.3 : L Gamage to Sharma, back of a length this time, Sharma hangs off his back foot and defends this. |
| 105.4 : L Gamage to Sharma, Back of length ball, outside off, Sharma looks to cut it but it keeps low. Dickwella collects it on the bounce. |
| 105.5 : L Gamage to Sharma, Length ball, around off, Places it to point for nothing. |
| Gamage comes in running but suddenly withdraws. Maybe he missed his run up. |
| 105.6 : L Gamage to R Sharma, Outside off, edges it to gully. No run taken. |
| The physio comes on the field. |
| 106.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Tossed up on leg stump, Virat turns it to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 106.2 : D Perera to Sharma, Drifting away from Rohit Sharma. He waits for it and dabs it behind point to rotate strike. |
| Oh ho! Just when Virat Kohli is on the verge of another double ton, a LBW review has been taken against him. Seems close to the naked eye. Is there an inside edge? |
| 106.3 : D Perera to Kohli, Not Out! Indeed, there is an inside edge. The crowd roars in delight! Slow through the air around off, Kohli strides forward to block it but gets wrapped on the pads. Sri Lanka appeal in unison but umpire Joel Wilson shakes his head. Chandimal has a thought about it and after having a look at his bowler and keeper, he challenges the decision. Time for the Snickometer. Well, there is a thick inside edge and the rest doesn't matter. |
| 106.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Floated outside off, driven hard to sweeper cover for a couple. |
| 106.5 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman works it down the leg side. |
| 106.6 : D Perera to Kohli, Loopy ball on middle and leg, Kohli nudges it to fine leg for a run and will retain strike. He moves to 198. |
| SURANGA LAKMAL gets the ball for another spell. Will he get the much needed break-through? |
| 107.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Back of length, Plays it to point, good save from the fielder there. Prevents a certain run. |
| 107.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Around off again, Kohli flicks it to mid-wicket region for a single. Looked like there was a double on offer but Kohli was satisfied with a single. Moves to 199 now. |
| 107.3 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. |
| 107.4 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Blocked of the front foot. |
| 107.5 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Sharma cuts this one to back ward point to give Kohli the strike. |
| 107.6 : S Lakmal to Kohli, There it is! That's his 6th double hundred and he gets all of them in the last seventeen months. Virat Kohli you beauty! |
| 108.1 : D Perera to Sharma, Tossed up delivery, knocked down to long on for a single. |
| 108.2 : D Perera to Kohli, Floated delivery, eased back to the bowler. |
| 108.3 : D Perera to Kohli, FOUR! Poor delivery and duly punished! A fraction short and spinning down the leg side, Kohli goes deep in the crease and nudges it through fine leg to find the fence. |
| 108.4 : D Perera to Kohli, On middle and leg, clipped to square leg to rotate strike. |
| 108.5 : D Perera to Sharma, Outside leg stump, Sharma opts to pad it away. |
| 108.6 : D Perera to Sharma, Quicker and flatter on the stumps, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 109.1 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Short of a length delivery around off, Kohli stays back and taps it to short cover. |
| 0.0 : Another delay. The Sri Lankan players gather around and are discussing something as Kohli has a drink. After that, he is eating an energy bar. |
| 109.2 : S Lakmal to Kohli, Similar length delivery on middle and leg, Kohli moves inside the line and tucks it to fine leg to rotate strike. |
| 109.3 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Short of a length delivery outside off, Sharma pokes at it and gets beaten. |
| 109.4 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Similar delivery outside off, tapped with an open bat face to the point region. |
| 109.5 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Fullish delivery attacking the stumps, Rohit opts to stay back and pushes it to mid on. |
| 109.6 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Full length delivery around off, Sharma puts his head down and defends it calmly. |
| 110.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Floated on middle and leg, Kohli flicks it to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 110.2 : D Perera to Sharma, Pitches it outside leg stump, Rohit is happy to pad it away. |
| 110.3 : D Perera to Sharma, Rohit takes a couple of steps down the track to counter this one but the ball spins away to ping him on the pads. |
| 110.4 : D Perera to Sharma, Sharma plays the tossed up delivery with the spin to mid-wicket. |
| 110.5 : D Perera to Sharma, Shortish in length, Sharma tucks it to short mid-wicket. |
| 110.6 : D Perera to Sharma, Fullish delivery around the pads, Sharma sweeps it hard to deep backward square leg for a single. |
| 111.1 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Length ball from Lakmal, Sharma hangs on his back foot and jabs it to the ground. |
| 111.2 : S Lakmal to Sharma, Slice from Sharma. The ball moves quickly to the fielder at backward point and he does well to keep it to one. This ball is wide outside off, and Sharma lashes onto it in a flash. |
| 111.3 : S Lakmal to Kohli,Back foot punch from Kohli. |
| 111.4 : S Lakmal to Kohli, No run. |
| 111.5 : S Lakmal to Kohli, The batsman shows the full face of the bat and defends the ball off the back foot. |
| 111.6 : S Lakmal to V Kohli, A short delivery, pulled away from above his head to the mid-wicket region for a single. |
| 112.1 : D Perera to Kohli, On middle and leg, nudged to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 112.2 : D Perera to Sharma, Tossed up on a fullish length on the pads, swept away to fine leg for a single. |
| 112.3 : D Perera to Kohli, Kohli clips this one with the spin to mid-wicket. |
| 112.4 : D Perera to Kohli, Leans forward to this one and eases it to deep mid-wicket for a single. That brings up the 100-run stand between the duo. Consecutive century stands for them. |
| 112.5 : D Perera to Sharma, Loopy delivery, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 112.6 : D Perera to Sharma, SIX! Clean as a whistle! Tossed up delivery on off, Sharma gets his dancing shoes on and tonks it down the ground for a maximum. Hits the sightscreen, that was straight as an arrow. |
| LAKSHAN SANDAKAN gets his chance to try and spin a web to this Indian batting. |
| 113.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Short ball, pulled away to mid-wicket for a single. |
| 113.2 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Uppish delivery, driven to mid on for a run. |
| 113.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Similar shot this time from Kohli, drives it to mid on to rotate strike. |
| 113.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Fuller in length, Kohli flicks it to mid-wicket for another run. |
| 113.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Full in length, wide outside off, this ball keeps low and Sharma decides not to play it. |
| 113.6 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Defended off the back foot by the batsman. |
| 114.1 : D Perera to Kohli, Down the leg side, Kohli goes for the sweep but wears it on the pads. |
| 114.2 : D Perera to Kohli, On middle and leg, turning away. Kohli stays back and taps it to mid-wicket. |
| 114.3 : D Perera to Kohli, FOUR! That could have been converted into a catch! Around the pads, Kohli tries to tickle it but gets only some bat to it. The ball flies towards Mathews at leg gully. He fails to react in time and the ball goes past has right side and through to the fence. Sri Lanka need to be alert on the field. You can't afford to let Kohli away. |
| Some news comes in for Sadeera Samarawickrama. He was hit on the helmet yesterday and is he is still under medical supervision. He won't take the field today. He might return tomorrow if he recovers. |
| 114.4 : D Perera to Kohli, The batsman has played it towards mid-wicket. |
| 114.5 : D Perera to Kohli, Played with the spin to fine leg for a couple of runs. |
| 114.6 : D Perera to Kohli, Tossed up delivery, Virat leans forward and plays it with soft hands to mid-wicket for a single. |
| 115.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Yorked him up. Unusual from a spinner. Kohli does well to put his bat down quickly. |
| 115.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, FOUR! Should have done better after getting to the ball and saving it at first attempt. Dilruwan the culprit. Tossed it up, Kohli uses his wrist and flicks it to mid-wicket. Dilruwan dives to save the boundary, he pulls the ball back but it goes to the boundary anyways. He will be disappointed as he is usually a good fielder. |
| 115.3 : L Sandakan to Kohli, full length, driven to covers for a single. |
| 115.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, Outside leg, Sharma sweeps this to fine leg for a single. |
| 115.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Wide down the leg side, the batsman leaves it alone. |
| 115.6 : L Sandakan to V Kohli, Tossed up, Kohli drives it to mid on for a single. |
| Another change in bowling. Sri Lanka's most economical spin bowler in this game, Dhananjaya de Silva comes into the attack. |
| 116.1 : de Silva to Sharma, Loopy delivery, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 116.2 : de Silva to Sharma, Going away with the arm, Rohit places it deftly past the keeper towards third man for a couple of runs. |
| 116.3 : de Silva to Sharma, Camps back to the flatter delivery and answers it with a straight bat. |
| 116.4 : de Silva to Sharma, Fullish delivery around off, defended solidly off the front foot. |
| 116.5 : de Silva to Sharma, Rohit is nimble on his feet and works it with the spin to deep mid-wicket for a single. |
| 116.6 : de Silva to Kohli, Slow through the air, eased to the mid-wicket fielder. |
| 117.1 : L Sandakan to Sharma, FOUR! Well played! Wide outside off and Rohit won't miss out on such loose deliveries. Short delivery, Sharma camps back and guides it deftly to the third man fence. |
| 117.2 : L Sandakan to Sharma, The batsman rocks onto the back foot and punches the ball. |
| 117.3 : L Sandakan to R Sharma, Tossed up, Sharma drives it through covers for a couple of runs. |
| 117.4 : L Sandakan to Sharma, FOUR! He does this on a regular basis with a lot of success. Wide again outside off, Sharma opens the face of his bat like he has done so often during the course of play. Big gap between the fielder at deep point and third man and the ball races to the fence. A boundary results. |
| Rohit Sharma is ruled out caught behind. He decides to review it, quite an immediate reaction from him. However, seems there is edge, certainly the body language of the Sri Lankan players suggest so. Let's find out... |
| 117.5 : L Sandakan to Sharma, OUT! Rohit is gone on what turns out to be the last ball of the session. That was a waste of a review. Short and wide outside off, Sharma tries to cut it but seems to have got an outside edge and Dickwella takes a sharp catch behind the stumps. The Lankans go up in a confident appeal and the umpire rules it out. Sharma opts to challenge the decision immediately. The Snickometer shows there is a faint spike. The ball actually brushed the bottom part of the bat before |
| Session Highlights - 27.5 overs, 129 runs, 1 wicket. A flawless session for India apart from Rohit Sharma's dismissal on the last delivery before lunch. Sandakan has bowled well and he deserved his third wicket. Before that, it was a tremendous display of strokeplay from the duo of Kohli and Sharma. The former started where he left from yesterday and has gone on to score a back-to-back double ton, also his 6th in Test cricket scoring them in a span of 17 months. |
| The visitors are struggling to say the least. Runs are leaking from both ends and they haven't been able to find an answer to stem the run-flow. It looks all gloomy for the tourists. They need to do something spectacular to get back into the contest. The Indian skipper has his maiden triple century in sight. Can the Sri Lankans stop him? Join us for the second session in a while. |
| ... DAY 2, SESSION 2 ... |
| Welcome back! We were delighted with some graceful and beautiful strokes before the break. The man behind it all, VIRAT KOHLI is still unbeaten on 225. He will resume his knock as RAVICHANDRAN ASHWIN joins him in the middle. LAKSHAN SANDAKAN will complete the over by bowling the last delivery. Here we go... |
| 117.6 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Ashwin clips it towards mid on. |
| The players on the field have masks on their faces. Delhi in recent times has been notorious for having a high pollution level and hence the protection perhaps. Strangely though, some players aren't covering their mouths and noses and are seen having the mask hanging on their necks. LAHIRU GAMAGE, meanwhile, runs in to bowl this over. |
| 118.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, On a length outside off, Kohli punches it through covers for a single. |
| 118.2 : L Gamage to Ashwin, Ashwin is off the mark with a flick. Gets it through backward square leg for a run. |
| 118.3 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! That's a shot of the man batting on over a double hundred runs under his belt. Gamage hurls this on a length angling into the batsman. Kohli stands tall and flicks it through mid-wicket. The timing was such that no fielder stood a chance of cutting that off. |
| 118.4 : L Gamage to Kohli, This ball is pushed towards covers. |
| 118.5 : L Gamage to Kohli, Why would you play at that? Length delivery outside off, Kohli looks to flay it through the off side away from the body but misses the ball. He doesn't need to go fishing at those. |
| 118.6 : L Gamage to Kohli, The batsman has played it to the point region. One run added to the total. |
| The umpires have got together in the middle. They seem to point skywards as they have a chat. Must be something to do with the climate as it still is very hazy out there. |
| 119.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, The batsman shows the full face of the bat and defends the ball off the back foot. |
| 119.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli eases this through mid on for a single. Moves to 232 now. |
| 119.3 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Ashwin gets ahead and blocks it watchfully. |
| Another strange thing. While some of the Sri Lankan players are seen wearing the face masks, the Indian batters don't have that on. Doesn't pollution affect the Indians? |
| 119.4 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, The batsman failed to make contact and was hit low on the pads. |
| 119.5 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Flicked away towards square leg. |
| 119.6 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Ashwin drives this through covers and picks up a brace. |
| 120.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, FOUR! What a shot! Absolute authority displayed there. Gets Kohli to a new Test best score - 236. This one's on a length outside off, Virat walks down to convert it into a half colley. Drives it powerfully through the gap between mid off and covers for a boundary. The ball flashed away before anybody could move. Also brings up 1000 Test runs for Kohli in 2017, second Indian after Pujara to do so. |
| 120.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Now Kohli guides it past gully with an angled bat for a run. |
| 120.3 : L Gamage to Ashwin, Length delivery outside off, Ashwin feels for it but misses. The ball wasn't far away from the edge of the bat. |
| 120.4 : L Gamage to Ashwin, The batsman has defended it by getting right behind the line of the delivery. |
| 120.5 : L Gamage to Ashwin, Outside off, left alone. |
| 120.6 : L Gamage to Ashwin, Ashwin guides this one towards gully. |
| 121.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Around middle and leg, clipped away through mid-wicket to jog to the other end. |
| 121.2 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Floated around off, Ashwin lunges forward and blocks it with a straight bat. |
| 121.3 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Sandakan serves it on a fuller length outside off, Ashwin guides it through point for one. |
| 121.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Flicked away through mid-wicket for a single. |
| 121.5 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. |
| Murali Kartik observes a reason for Sandakan being very inconsistent. He says that the chinaman's leading arm doesn't have a consistent pattern of rolling over. Hence the landing isn't always on target. This makes the bowler be erratic. |
| 121.6 : L Sandakan to Ashwin, Ashwin keeps it out off the front foot. |
| Another chat. This time Nigel Llong, Dinesh Chandimal and Niroshan Dickwella are the men in focus. The air quality in the Indian capital isn't at a decent level and this has the players concerned, perhaps. |
| 122.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Kohli stands back and presents a straight bat in stonewalling that. |
| 122.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, A low full toss outside off, Kohli belts it through covers and ambles to the other end. |
| 122.3 : L Gamage to Ashwin, Now Ashwin tries playing at a ball which he could have well left alone. Length ball outside off, Ashwin looks to slash it but misses. |
| Lahiru Gamage's gingerly movements denote that he seems sick. He's down on his hunches, even as the physio is seen rushing out quickly. This will raise the levels of the talks about playing amidst the polluted environment. The on-air commentators also inform us that such a scenario hasn't happened in the sport as yet - that of play getting abandoned or held up due to polluted environment. |
| Now even the Sri Lankan team physio is seen having a word with the umpires. Chandimal doesn't look pleased to be playing in such conditions. But the umpires show no signs of halting play. Now they are taking the Indian batters into the conversation as well. Kohli, being the local lad, is seen explaining something to Chandimal as well. As these images are flashing, the commentators on air talk about there being no express rule stating the plan of action in case of pollution as there is in case of |
| More than the runs on the board it is about the players' health. THE THIRD UMPIRE HAS CONFIRMED THAT THE SITUATION IS BEING MONITORED, informs Russel Arnold on air. Now even the match referee, David Boon, is involved in some discussions with a doctor and Anil Chaudhary, the third umpire. Post that the referee is seen communicating something over the microphone to the on-field umpires. |
| As the umpires are seen having an animated chat with Dinesh Chandimal, who seems furious because the players aren't taken off the field, a huge cheers engulfs the Kotla. This is because Virat Kohli is seen taking off his helmet and lying on his back. |
| Now the noise around the ground rises as the play is all set to get underway. Willingly or unwillingly, the Lankan players take their respective positions on the field. Gamage will run in with the ball. |
| 122.4 : L Gamage to R Ashwin, OUT! What an anticlimax! As seen often in the game, a break affects the concentration of the batsman and in this case, Ashwin is the one paying the price for that. Gamage lands it on a length outside off, Ashwin plays it from the crease but away from the body. He looks to pick up an easy run with a glide and that signs his fate. Ends up getting a thick outside edge that is snaffled up by Perera at gully. Sri Lanka barely celebrate even as Ashwin walks away with a de |
| WRIDDHIMAN SAHA walks out to bat at the fall of the sixth Indian wicket. |
| 122.5 : L Gamage to Saha, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 122.6 : L Gamage to Saha, Outside off, left alone. |
| It's all happening now! Sandakan gets some hand on the ball as the ball hits the stumps at the non-striker's end owing to the powerful drive from Kohli. The Lankans appeal for a run out against Saha. The umpire refers it upstairs. Saha looks to be safe. |
| 123.1 : Sandakan to Kohli, The huge cheers on the ground accompanies the decision flashed on the big screen - NOT OUT! Sandakan comes round the wicket and floats it around off. Kohli charges down and belts it straight back. The power in that stroke is such that the ball deflects off the bowler's hand, hits the stumps at his end and rolls towards long on. The Lankans put in an appeal even as the batters take one. |
| 123.2 : L Sandakan to Saha, Defended off the front foot by the batsman presenting the full face of the bat. |
| 123.3 : L Sandakan to Saha, Saha has punched the ball off the back foot. They pick up a single. He gets off the mark now. |
| 123.4 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Blocked with a straight bat off the back foot. |
| 123.5 : L Sandakan to Kohli, This is tucked towards fine leg for a single. |
| 123.6 : L Sandakan to Saha, Saha keeps it out from the crease. |
| 124.1 : L Gamage to Kohli, Now Kohli! Almost loses his wicket here. Gamage lands it on a length around off, Kohli looks to work it to the on side. The ball, though, stops a bit on the surface and ends up taking the leading edge of the bat. Lands just in front of covers. |
| 124.2 : L Gamage to Kohli, Virat drives this through the cover region for a single. |
| 124.3 : L Gamage to Saha, Bowled outside off, shouldered arms to by Wriddhi. |
| The artificial lights in the ground are seen taking their effect now. Meanwhile, Gamage again looks to be in some discomfort and is down on his knees. This makes the visiting physio rush out to the centre. Very unwise for play to continue in such conditions at the cost of the health of the players. Gamage is off the field and SURANGA LAKMAL will complete the over now. |
| 124.4 : S Lakmal to Saha, Lakmal begins with a length delivery outside off, Saha finds the point fielder with the push. |
| 124.5 : S Lakmal to Saha, Fuller outside off, left alone. |
| 124.6 : S Lakmal to Saha, Bouncer in line of the stumps, Saha ducks and lets it go to the keeper. |
| 125.1 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Kohli punches it towards covers. |
| 125.2 : L Sandakan to Kohli, Loopy delivery on the stumps, driven powerfully back to where it came from. Lakshan gets his hand out and stops it partially but no run results. |
| Is that it for Kohli? At least the on-field umpire thinks so. The Indian skipper has been ruled out LBW. He has a chat with his partner and signals a 'T' for the review. Should be gone unless an inside edge saves him. |
| 125.3 : Sandakan to Kohli, OUT! That's it for the Indian skipper then - departs for 243! India lose Kohli as well as the sole review that they had before this. Sandakan comes round the wicket and floats it around off. The ball spins in sharply. Kohli goes back to flick it but is surprised by the spin that beats him and strikes him on the back leg in front of the stumps. On appealing, Nigel Llong upholds it. Kohli wears a surprised look on his face as he widens his eyes post that decision. Has a |
| RAVINDRA JADEJA walks out to the middle next. What's in his mind? Will he have some fun out there? Hard to guess anything from his body language. |
| 125.4 : L Sandakan to Jadeja, Flatter around off, Jadeja keeps it down hurriedly from the crease. |
| 125.5 : L Sandakan to Jadeja, FOUR! Jadeja's intentions are out there on the advertisement hoarding! He will go for his shots. Sandakan bowls a half-tracker around off, Jadeja goes back and pulls it aerially over mid-wicket for a one-bounce boundary. |
| 125.6 : L Sandakan to Jadeja, Pushed back towards the bowler. |
| 126.1 : S Lakmal to Saha, Saha drives it through point and gets a brace for that. |
| 126.2 : S Lakmal to Saha, Bouncer in line of the stumps, ducked under by Saha. |
| 126.3 : S Lakmal to Saha, Saha shows a straight bat as he blocks it from the crease. |
| 126.4 : S Lakmal to Saha, Outside off, left alone. |
| 126.5 : S Lakmal to Saha, Another bouncer by Lakmal, Saha has nothing to do with that. |
| Oh dear! Now even Suranga Lakmal is seen walking off the field. The Sri Lankan team manager is seen walking to the middle to have a talk with the umpires. Seeing this, even Ravi Shastri dashes out to the middle, before the situation is taken under control by the umpires by sending both of them off the field. DILRUWAN PERERA will bowl the last ball of the over. |
| 126.6 : D Perera to Saha, Saha drives it through mid on for a single. |
| 127.1 : L Sandakan to W Saha, Flatter and shorter on the stumps, pulled away towards mid-wicket. |
| 127.2 : L Sandakan to Saha, Saha lunges forward and blocks it. |
| 127.3 : L Sandakan to Saha, Served outside off, Saha goes back and punches it through cover and crosses over to the other end. |
| 127.4 : L Sandakan to Jadeja, Jadeja punches this to long on for one run. |
| 127.5 : L Sandakan to Saha, FOUR! Saha makes merry and collects runs, not in the manner he would have liked though. Sandakan drops it short outside off, Saha goes back and looks to cut. Gets a bottom edge past slip and the ball runs away to the third man fence. |
| Dinesh Chandimal isn't happy there. Not sure what's the reason. The on-air commentators observe that there are ONLY 10 PLAYERS ON THE GROUND! Yes, you read that right. Apparently, no one walked in as a replacement for Lakmal. Samarawickrama is out already, Gamage and Lakmal walked out a while back. Harsha Bhogle jokes on air that among the Lankans, only Russel Arnold looks fit and will have to take the field now. |
| Well! This is the most absurd of declarations I have ever seen! Kohli has had enough of this halt in play and he DECLARES WITH INDIA 536/7! If facial expressions are anything to go by, this isn't one of the most pleasant declarations either. 'If the Sri Lankans aren't willing to bowl, let us have a go at them with the cherry' seemed to be his signal from the dressing room. Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan team physio and fielding coach had quickly changed to whites to take field as substitutes for them |
| What has the story been about so far? All about one man - Virat Kohli. He looked in absolute control from ball one and eventually fell to the spin of Sandakan. As much as it should be owed to the bowler, the talks will also revolve around how the incessant breaks affected his momentum. |
| Kohli's 283-run partnership with Vijay set the tone for the tall Indian first innings score. Who knows, it could have been even taller if not for the declaration. Rahane missed out on getting among the runs yet again while Rohit Sharma stroked his way to an entertaining half century. |
| For the Sri Lankans, the wrist spinner Sandakan was the pick of the bowlers. He picked up a 4-fer, not before being taken to all parts of the ground by the Indians. Their bowling will have another storyline to it though - that of the seamers walking away due to health concerns amidst the hazy conditions on the ground. Whatever be the case, this doesn't give the tourists respite from being out there. If they didn't want to have 11 on the field, 2 will have to walk out to face a barrage of fast bo |
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