"Cheating karta hai tu!" - Fans hail Bumrah, Shami as India quicks torment Sri Lanka in Bengaluru
As expected, India have dominated Day 1 of the pink-ball Test against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru. Right from winning the toss, everything that could possibly go right for the hosts has gone their way and they will be delighted to have complete control of the game after just a day's play.
On a rank turner, the hosts did well to post a total of 252, thanks to a sensational 92 from Shreyas Iyer and a fine counter-attack from Rishabh Pant. In reply, the Indian pacers Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah wreaked havoc as Sri Lanka ended the day reeling at 86/6, trailing by a massive 166 runs.
Fans on Twitter hailed Team India for another dominant performance at home. They were especially thrilled to see the pacers dominate on a pitch that was supposed to aid the spinners more. Here are some of the reactions after the end of the day's play:
Bumrah takes the first 2 wickets like I’m the king in Asia now, Shami comes brother please this is my turf
This is exhibition of fast bowling - first, Bumrah and now, Shami - golden period.
Bumrah & Shami bowling under lights. Ball seaming. Jam packed stadium going wild.
THIS IS REAL TEST CRICKET. https://t.co/pQOVg6sA53
Rohit got scared of the test going to Day 3 and gave Bumrah the ball.
You can tell how great a bowler Bumrah is by just watching his seam positions. Impeccably stable seam, sharply angled via a perfect wrist position, for both inswing and outswing. Doing all this with great control of line and length. Amazing.
I genuinely feel sad for Sri Lanka all day they thought spinners will be dangerous on this wicket and now losing their wickets through pace. 😭
This is not done yaar!! #INDvsSL https://t.co/11JLANer5E
*Meanwhile @daniel86cricket #INDvsSL https://t.co/AlL3yIElca
Spinner ke pitch pe bhi pacers wickets khaa rhe😂
#INDvsSL https://t.co/AWltqBIAFk
Great first day for India. Outcome of Test more or less clear. Brilliant 92 and superb fast bowing by Bumrah and Shami were the highlights
Bumrah showing that this pitch still has something for the off spinners.
Axar, Ash, Jaddu were mocking Shami and Bumrah. Now who's laughing
India pile on more misery over beleaguered visitors
Sri Lanka will be disappointed with the number of runs that they conceded, given that there was excessive help for the spinners from the pitch. The hosts were clever enough to feast on the poor deliveries and were patient enough to leave the good ones.
Iyer once again proved why he is an asset in red-ball cricket and made his claim for a permanent Test spot stronger after a fantastic performance with the bat. He wasn't shying away from taking on the spinners and that disrupted their line and length.
It looked like the Indian spinners would be all over the visitors like a rash. However, it was the pace and swing of Bumrah and Shami that did the damage under lights. Bumrah's three wickets and Shami's two meant that Sri Lanka were in deep trouble.
Axar Patel also chipped in with a wicket and the hosts were in the driver's seat to seal a 2-0 series win. Sri Lanka will need to bat really well to ensure that the game goes beyond Day 3.