Mumbai: With India resuming at 300/5, the game was still very much in the balance at the start of the second day’s play in the second Test at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground on Monday. There was also doubt over Rishabh Pant’s fitness after fast bowler Lahiru Kumara had struck him on the wrist overnight.
Sri Lanka could sense the visitors were vulnerable, and a couple of early breakthroughs would help them cut through the lower order.
Dhruv Jurel and Pant, however, rose to the occasion admirably, successfully thwarting the home team’s spirited bid and taking India to a position of strength with a thrilling 112-run seventh-wicket partnership. Powered by Jurel’s flawless unbeaten 117 (9×4, 2×6) and Pant’s enterprising 63 (6×4, 2×6), India declared their first innings on 503/9 late in the post-tea session.
In the rain-interrupted final session, Sri Lanka made a disastrous start, losing opener Lahiru Udara (1) and nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya (2) inside three overs to end Day 2 on 8/2.
Pant held centre stage in the morning session for his courageous act of coming out to bat with an injured wrist, but in the final analysis Jurel made the difference by batting long.
In an innings where India conceded some soft wickets, Jurel dug in to ensure his team built on No.3 Devdutt Padikkal’s century for an imposing total.
Batting with controlled aggression, he hardly put a foot wrong throughout his long vigil at the crease, proving his credentials for the specialist batter’s position at No.6. Jurel had come in at No.7.
Apart from his solid batting in the morning, he impressively shepherded the tail. After Pant’s exit, he frustrated Sri Lanka by forging useful partnerships with Manav Suthar (39 runs for the 8th wicket) and Mohammed Siraj (37 for the 9th) to ensure India didn’t leave any runs out there.
The only time Jurel lost his composure was while searching for the single to complete his second Test century. He was stuck on 99 for more than three overs. That anxiety saw him go for a risky single after hitting Asitha Fernando straight to the mid-off fielder. A direct hit would have sent him packing. When the fielder missed, the celebration was one of relief and joy.
At the start of play, all focus was on whether Pant would be in a position to bat. It didn’t take long to know. Pacer Asitha Fernando ensured the keeper-batter walked out to face the last ball of the day’s second over after taking out debutant Saransh Jain with a sharp bouncer.
The Sri Lanka bowlers were looking to spot any visible signs of discomfort Pant was showing while batting with the left hand taped. Predictably, the pacers started firing bouncers at him.
It was box office stuff. If he was in pain, Pant did well to hide it. He played with better balance and was more composed.
When Lahiru Kumara bounced him in the 90th over, Pant answered with a statement shot. He got into perfect position, lined it up and hooked it onto the roof of the stadium.
It signalled the start of a thrilling partnership between the keeper-batters. India dominated the session, scoring 119 runs in an intense period of play.
Expectedly, Pant got further targeted by Fernando and Kumara. The stocky left-hander put his body on the line, taking two painful blows to his right shoulder in the first hour of play, but soldiered on.
The pair batted according to the situation but were a study in contrast. Pant lived on the edge gritting it out, while Jurel stuck to the conventional game, putting a high price on his wicket.
While the pacers gave Pant a torrid time, Jurel handled them with confidence. He started the day with a crisp four off Kumara, driving with the full face of the bat and straight through mid-on. Fernando had made life difficult for Pant with the short ball, but when he tried the tactics against Jurel, he pulled comfortably for four to bring up the 50 of the partnership in 10.2 overs.
The duo combined to take India to 419/6 at lunch, scoring at more than four runs an over. Jurel was 59 not out (107b, 5×4) and Pant 63 (88b, 6×4 2×6).
The ball was turning quite a bit for the spinners, but the Sri Lanka pair of Prabath Jayasuriya and Keshara Nuwantha couldn’t build pressure consistently to put India under pressure. Jurel kept picking the gaps and Pant unsettled the off-spinner, Nuwantha, who had a long spell from one end, with sweeps and reverse sweeps.
He smashed Jayasuriya for a four and six in the last over before lunch, but when he tried to go for a big hit first ball after the break against Nuwantha, he didn’t get to the pitch of the ball and holed out to long-off.
Though the partnership was broken, Jurel ensured India did not lose the momentum, leaving the hosts, who lost the first Test, under pressure.