Humiliating Defeat For Sri Lanka In First Test, India Takes Unassailable Lead

Hosts India beat Sri Lanka comprehensively by an innings and 222 runs with a brilliant bowling performance led by Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin bagging four wickets each in the second innings in the first Test.

With the victory India took an unassailable 1-0 lead in the two Test series. The first Test was played at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Punjab’s Mohali. In the post tea session with Sri Lanka at 120/4, Indian spinners continued their brilliant form taking wickets.

Ashiwn dismissed Charith Asalanka in the third ball post tea to claim his 435^th Test wicket and going past Kapil Dev to become India’s most successful Test bowler behind only Anil Kumble who has 619 wickets to his credit. He also stood at the ninth position on the all-time highest wicket takers in Test cricket.

Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews was also dismissed five balls later by Jadeja, having scored 28 runs. The free fall continued with Suranga Lakmal dismissed two balls later. He took two wickets in one over to take his tally in the innings to three wickets and match tally to eight leaving Sri Lanka toiling at 121/7.

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Wicket-keeper batter Niroshan Dickwella and Lasith Embuldeniya tried to strike a partnership but Jadeja broke the partnership picking up his fourth wicket of the innings dismissing Embuldeniya for 2. Dickwella was fast losing partners at the other end forcing him to play hard hitting shots. Mohammed Shami then dismissed Vishwa Fernando for a duck leaving the Lankans at 170/9.

Dickwella was able to score his half-century becoming the only Sri Lankan to do so in the second innings but Ashwin cut that short by dismissing Lahiru Kumara for 4 taking his fourth wicket and bowling out Sri Lanka for 178 and winning by an innings and 222 runs.

Sri Lanka were bundled for 174 handing India a massive lead of 400 runs and allowing the hosts enforced a follow-on. Asked to follow-on, Sri Lankans were again hit hard by a good spin performance from India and in the end, were bowled out for 178.

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