India vs Sri Lanka, 2017: 5 Indian players to watch out for

Virat Kohli and his Indian cricket team are set to host their southern neighbours, Sri Lanka, for a three-match Test series that starts on Thursday, November 16. The hosts go into the contest as the overwhelming favourites to take it home 3-0.

Not only is India the Number 1 ranked Test team in the world, but has also whitewashed Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka just a couple of months back. It will truly take a miracle for the visitors to pull off a victory in even one of the three matches.

Here are the Indian players to watch out for in the series: 

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#5 Lokesh Rahul

If there was one stint that would be categorized as a successful season for a batsman but would still leave him frustrated, it would be KL Rahul's performance in Tests in 2017.

After the one-off match against Bangladesh in Hyderabad in February this year, Rahul amassed as many as 8 half-centuries in his next 9 Test innings. He even matched the record for the highest number of consecutive half-centuries and now shares it with big names like Everton Weekes, Andy Flower, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kumar Sangakkara and Chris Roger. He is the first Indian to be a part of this list.

However, the fact that he has scored seven consecutive 50s on the trot also points towards one glaring truth: he hasn't been able to convert any of them into a century. This is a conundrum that must've turned into a pebble in his shoe. The 25-year-old will be pumped to better this record against Sri Lanka by getting a magical three-figure score to his name.

The right-handed batsman was also victim to a rather harsh snub from the ODI format of the game after returning from Sri Lanka. He will be yearning to prove himself right from the first Test at Eden Gardens this Thursday.

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