IND vs SL 1st Test: How much torture is too much for Sri Lanka?
March 7 and 8 were supposed to be the moving days of the Test where, typically, we would be building up to a decent finish. But here we are, reviewing a Test that had a premature ending within three days. All that is left now is to make sense of Sri Lanka's torturous 125 overs with the bat in which they were bowled out twice.
Going by the scheduling of the Test, the broadcasters kept Sri Lanka's lack of fight in mind and expected the match to finish early. Sunday, when you typically get the most eyeballs, happened to be Day 3 of the Test, while in normal course of action Sundays are reserved for Day 4 and 5.
Following superb batting displays from Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja in India's first innings, it seemed like a decent enough pitch where the hosts would need to pull up their sleeves and bowl decently to win the contest.
This was the reason India declared their first innings, with Jadeja short of his double century by only 25 runs, ensuring there was enough time on hand to bowl out Sri Lanka and push for a win. Little did they know that it would take less than four sessions to bundle out the Lankans not once but twice. Right now, the world of captaincy would seem so much easier for Rohit Sharma.
For Sri Lanka, the number of losses, the margin of losses and the ignonimity of losses against India has only piled up in recent years.
Sri Lanka are yet to win a Test in India. Out of the 21 Tests they have played in India, they have lost 12, with 10 being innings defeats. The remaining nine have ended in a draw.
It has gotten progressively worse, as in the last six Test matches played between the two sides, India have won four, with all of those victories coming with an innings to spare. The remaining two Tests were drawn. This is as big a statement as anyone can make in Test cricket. Sri Lanka's last victory against India in the longest format was seven years ago at the Galle International Stadium. Team India's supremacy over the Lankans in ODIs and T20Is in recent times has been equivalent to Tests, if not more.
In 1990's and 2000's, Sri Lanka used to be a nemisis for India. The most devastating of defeats for India in crucial matches came at the hands of the Lankans. The losses in the 1996 World Cup semi-finals and the 2007 World Cup knockout punch in the group stage are a case in point.
Sri Lanka always used to have a potent bowling attack, firstly in Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan, followed up by Rangana Herath and Lasith Malinga. The batting also had formidable touches with players including Aravinda De Silva, Sanath Jayasuria, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Marvan Atapattu, Roshan Mahanama and Thilan Samaraweera. Alongside a battery of all-rounders like Tilakaratne Dilshan, Farveez Maharoof, Kumar Dharmasena, and Upal Chandana, to name a few, they were a force to be reckoned with.
All that dominance, glory, caliber and longevity of players, seems like a thing of the past now.
The Sri Lankan board has been plagued by mismanagement, indiscipline and rampant corruption to the extent that the International Cricket Council (ICC) has had to ban certain players and officials for match-fixing and corrupt practices. Players and the board have been at loggerheads over contract, payment and transparency issues for a while now.
The coaching staff has seen no consistency, with the team currently having to do with an interim head coach since the departure of Micky Arthur in November last year.
In the last 10 years, Sri Lanka have had five Test captains since the retirement of Jayawardene. Mathews, who was tipped to be the rightful successor, has been dealing with fitness issues and inconsistent form ever since.
There is no shortage of skill in the island nation but consistency in leadership, coaching staff and players, along with a strong cricket board, is required to bring back the glory days of Lankan cricket.
At the moment, there is a deep wedge between Sri Lanka and other top cricketing nations. The Lankans are currently placed seventh in the Test rankings, eighth in the ODI rankings, and 10th in the T20I rankings.
India, meanwhile, clearly seem to have everything going for them against Sri Lanka. And victories like those in Mohali add to their confidence and crucial World Test Championship (WTC) points.
The pink-ball Test should provide a different set of challenges for India but they seem to have all bases covered to deliver another merciless performance. It is tough to see the Lankans harboring thoughts of winning the Test, but it will be worth a watch if they do put up a decent fight and avoid torture like they had to endure in the first match.