Going into the final day of the Colombo Test, all India had to do was pick up the remaining four Sri Lankan wickets and try to chase any required runs. However, things did not go to plan for Shubman Gill’s men as Sonal Dinusha helped the Sri Lankan lower order put on a firm resistance to frustrate the Indian batters.

Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar acknowledged that the off-spinner might have been a bit nervous, but also said India’s inability to dismiss Sri Lanka’s tail is a concern.

“The debutant off-spinner looked an honest trier with little variety to trouble batters at this level. Sure, he could have been nervous considering that he was making his debut, yet there was no deception through the air and an over-reliance on the pitch for assistance,” Gavaskar wrote in his Mid-Day column.

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“If they couldn’t dismiss the lower order batting on a pitch where there was some turn, it does make Indian cricket fans a bit nervous. There was a sameness to the bowling. On a pitch that got slower as the match progressed, the fast bowlers struggled to get the ball up towards the batters’ shoulders. Here perhaps the extra pace and height of Gurnoor Brar may well have come in handy,” he added.

Kuldeep Yadav, who played the first Test, was out due to illness for the second game. The former opener opined that Kuldeep Yadav, a left-arm wrist spinner, could have troubled the Sri Lankan lower order, and that Jasprit Bumrah’s yorkers too might have been pretty brutal.

“Kuldeep Yadav’s absence also did not help, as a good wrist spinner can get the lower-order batters out in a jiffy most of the time,” said Gavaskar

“A fast bowler with a good yorker is also terrific to have in the side when the opposition batters are looking good. So Bumrah was badly missed, especially when the batters thwarted India on the final day of the second Test.”