When he so chooses, Rishabh Pant can stonewall like the best in the business. But when the mood seizes him, he can also fuse adventurism with the orthodox, a heady mix that manifested itself at the Galle International Stadium on Tuesday.
The wicketkeeper-batter unleashed an electric 66, at almost a run a ball, to deflect much of the limelight away from the bowlers and thrust India into the driver’s seat in the first Test against Sri Lanka. Pant’s blazing effort headlined India’s modest 193 all out on the fourth day, giving them an overall lead of 371 and asking Sri Lanka to mount their second highest successful chase in Test history. The hosts stuttered and stumbled to 84 for four when bad light halted play, needing a further 288 for the unlikeliest of victories.
India’s Manav Suthar celebrates the wicket of Sri Lanka’s Lahiru Udara in Galle on Tuesday
Holding fort were skipper Dhananjaya de Silva and first-innings centurion Sonal Dinusha, with Niroshan Dickwella as the only specialist batter to follow.
SL were dealt an unkind cut when former skipper Dinesh Chandimal was ruled out with concussion sustained while diving to save a boundary. His replacement, debutant Pasindu Sooriyabandara, fell first ball, dismissed leg before on review by Manav Suthar, who looked the most dangerous spinner on view even as pacers Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna struck crucial blows with the scalps of Nishan Madushka and Kamindu Mendis respectively.
India started the day poorly by losing Yashasvi Jaiswal in the first over, but KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal calmed the nerves with an attacking stand of 65 for the second wicket. But after this alliance, the innings crashed and burned.
That Pant’s dismissal catalysed an end-of-innings collapse of five for 19 magnifies the import of his knock. His second half-century in three innings was solid when he deigned and exciting when he wished; when he brought up his fifty with a six off Lahiru Kumara, he became the fastest (4918 balls) to 100 sixes in Test history. That he shaded Adam Gilchrist’s mark by a staggering 1,660 deliveries is further indication of the destructive force he channelled so beautifully.
Brief scores
India 462 & 193 (R Pant 66, D Padikkal 44, KL Rahul 35; A Fernando 4-31, P Jayasuriya 3-43, L Kumara 2-28) vs Sri Lanka 284 & 84-4 (D de Silva 31*, S Dinusha 25*; M Suthar 2-30)