Former Sri Lankan all-rounder Farveez Maharoof believes the national team must prioritise consistency in Test cricket.
Maharoof said that Sri Lanka needs to improve its standing after placing seventh, fifth, and sixth in the previous three World Test Championship cycles.
Meanwhile, India have reached two WTC Championship finals in the past, losing against Australia and New Zealand respectively.
“I think they got to be more consistent. I think the word I’ve always used against Sri Lanka, I mean, with Sri Lanka is consistency. Whether it’s individually, or whether it’s, you know, as a whole. The biggest disappointment for me was how they faced such soft dismissals in that Antigua Test (against West Indies in July which SL lost by an innings margin). In Tests, the name Test itself speaks volumes, It is a test for any batter on any surface.” Farveez Maharoof said.
“I would like to see more fight, more grit and more consistency from the top order. Sri Lanka will miss the likes of Angelo Matthews for example, but there is enough talent coming through. The likes of Kamindu Mendis is probably going to bat at four, and Dhananjaya is the skipper,” he added.
“This is their best chance to beat India at home because not on many occasions has Sri Lanka beaten India, be it at home or away. He can go into record books as a captain by beating India, as they are also heading into the series with a lot of questions, after losing to South Africa at home,” he concluded.
The upcoming fixtures form part of the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle. Shubman Gill’s Indian side enters the series fifth in the standings with a 48.150 PCT (four wins, four losses in nine matches), while Sri Lanka sits sixth with one win, one draw, and two losses.
India are scheduled to face New Zealand and Australia in their remaining matches before the WTC final.
India Test Squad for Sri Lanka series:
KL Rahul (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi.