India Bowlers Struggle Against Sri Lanka in Practice Match

Colombo: India’s bowling unit endured a frustrating opening day in the three-day practice match against the Sri Lanka Cricket XI, raising concerns ahead of the upcoming two-Test series. After losing the toss, India were asked to bowl and failed to make an early breakthrough as the Sri Lankan openers dominated both pace and spin.

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Sri Lanka’s opening pair of Nishan Fernando and Ravindu Rasantha got off to an aggressive start, scoring freely against the Indian attack. The duo stitched together a commanding 110-run partnership in just 20.4 overs, putting India’s bowlers under sustained pressure.

Fernando played an attacking knock, smashing 66 runs off 65 balls, including 11 boundaries and a six, while Rasantha provided solid support at the other end. The pair scored at more than five runs per over, an unusually aggressive approach for a red-ball game.

India finally found a breakthrough, but not through a wicket-taking delivery. Fernando was dismissed via a fortunate run-out after confusion between the two batters while attempting a quick single. A series of misfields and throws eventually resulted in the batter being run out, giving India its first wicket of the innings.

The Indian bowling attack struggled throughout the opening session despite captain KL Rahul rotating both seamers and spinners.

Mohammed Siraj conceded 14 runs in five overs, while Prasidh Krishna gave away 27 runs in his five-over spell. Ravindra Jadeja also failed to make an impact during his opening spell, and Gurnoor Brar proved to be the most expensive among the bowlers.

With the two-match Test series set to begin soon, India’s inability to trouble the Sri Lankan batters in the practice fixture will be a concern for the team management as they look to fine-tune their preparations.

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