Bengaluru: Indians have historically been good players of spin, but over the last few years, the turning ball has turned out to be their Achilles Heel.
What started off as a small blip, has now become a major talking point and a target for every opposition to exploit.
And Galle, a venue that is known to offer bounce and turn for the spinners, also the setting for the first Test between India and Sri Lanka starting Saturday, will be the cynosure with respect to the visitors’ vulnerabilities.
While Shubman Gill’s men did fine-tune their skills in the three-day warm-up game against Sri Lanka Cricket XI, the senior side possesses lethal spinning options in Prabath Jayasuriya and Ramesh Mendis.
Talking purely numbers, Jayasuriya and Mendis have picked 145 wickets in 23 Tests at the Galle International Cricket Stadium. Former Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews stressed that India will need to assess the conditions, surface and also be proactive while dealing with spin.
“No matter how technically good you are, on spinning wickets, it is going to be difficult. It is about understanding the surface first and then being proactive and reacting accordingly. The batters knowing their options on how to score runs is going to be crucial. Whoever plays aggressive, positive cricket will come out good,” Mathews said in an interaction arranged by Sony Sports Network.
Further talking about the surfaces, the 39-year-old felt the series will be decided on who plays spin better. Mathews, who has scored 4370 runs, averaging 44.59 in those conditions, shared a blueprint for batting on turning tracks.
“The wickets in Sri Lanka, with the kind of weather and humidity, deteriorate as the Test goes on. So, it will be a battle of spin for batters. The key will be scoring runs and it is up to the individuals (how they do it). If you are determined to sweep, then you will have to commit and sweep well. Same goes with using your feet. There is no hard and fast rule saying only sweep works here. If you are good with your feet, you can score runs.”
While Mathews felt that India would miss the retired R Ashwin and the injured Washington Sundar, the all-rounder said that they still have enough sting in their attack to cause serious damage.
“He (Ashwin) is a stalwart. They are definitely going to miss him. But you can’t play forever. They will miss (Washington) Sundar who is injured. But India have (Ravindra) Jadeja and Kuldeep (Yadav), they are world-class spinners. It will be a good contest but I can’t think of a team winning 2-0.”
Mathews also pointed out that Mohammed Siraj will be key as reverse swing will potentially play a role with the crosswinds affecting the ball trajectory.
“Reverse swing plays quite a big role in Galle. I don’t really know who India will play (Prasidh Krishna / Gurnoor Brar). But Siraj will be crucial. He also has some fantastic skills, runs in hard. He gives it everything, every single ball. No matter who plays with him, I am pretty sure they will also handle the conditions well.”