SSC Colombo Test comes to a predictable end
It was obvious from the start, with the Sri Lankan batsmen piling on runs that the Colombo Test, being played at the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC), will result in nothing less than a draw. India is the only beneficiary after extracting some positives from this Test. First, it showed depth in their batting line-up. Even the tenth pair, in form of Ishant Sharma and Pragyan Ojha showed resistance for almost 27 overs. Secondly, their bowlers, who have been awful in this series, produced some brilliant spells on the final day. The final Test will start from 3rd August at the Colombo’s P Sara Stadium.
At the start of the final day, Indian bowlers kept their dismal form going but gained confidence with the passage of time. Initially, the bowlers bowled short as they were punished by the visitors for boundaries. But, as the day progressed, Indian bowlers gained confidence and started troubling batsmen. Mithun started exploiting movement offered by the pitch as he dismissed Dilshan. Though Sri Lanka kept on scoring runs, they found themselves uncomfortable against spinners, who targeted the footmarks to unsettle the batsmen. Harbhajan’s persistence paid off when he dismissed Paranavitana, who scored a century in the first innings. On the other end, Sehwag removed Jayawardene as hosts found it increasingly difficult to cope with Indian spin. Sri Lankan batsmen found themselves tested by Indian bowlers before Sangakkara and Dhoni decided to end the game.
Dhoni was clearly impressed by the performance of his bowlers. Talking to reporters after the match, he said, “I am happy with the kind of effort they are putting in to their bowling. In the last two Tests, we have bowled first, and there was nothing in it for them. Quite placid tracks. Even when you are bowling in the second innings, the wicket slows down a bit, so the batsmen are going to be in little discomfort”. He further added, “And if you are bowling first and the wicket is one of these sorts, it gets really difficult for a fast bowler to either contain batsmen or get wickets. But still they were up there when it came to pace”.
Earlier, Ishant and Ojha, who batted for their longest innings in terms of overs, allowed http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758, it is worrisome that their bowling attack, which is missing some big names, took so long to get rid of the tail-enders. Despite that, they bowled well compared to their Indian counterparts. Sri Lanka started the third day in a perfect manner as Mendis and Randiv removed the top three batsmen in a short period of time. Even Tendulkar, who scored a double century, was dropped at 29.
Dhoni criticised the SSC wicket as it failed to produce results and favoured the batsmen only. He also showed his concerns regarding the bench strength of the Indian team especially considering their hectic itinerary. He said, “Overall, if we can have a bigger bench strength, which means if we can have a spectrum of around eight fast bowlers to pick from, it will be really great because we are not a side which plays three Tests a year”. He added, “We play a lot of Tests, ODIs and with IPL also coming in, we need fast bowlers who are fit, which means you [need to] have eight to 10 fast bowlers whom you can rotate around and still play with your best bowling attack".
The third and final Test will be starting in Colombo shortly. It will be the last chance for Dhoni and his team to get something out of this series. Otherwise this series is sealed in the name of hosts, courtesy of their 10-wicket victory in the Galle Test.
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