Top News

As India’s red-ball team gears up for the inaugural match in the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka, the excitement and anticipation among cricket fans has reached a fever pitch. The players are set to take on the scenic Nondescripts Cricket Club in Colombo for a three-day warm-up match that begins on Friday, August 7. This will serve as an important preparatory exercise ahead of the two-Test series that has been scheduled to commence on August 15 in Galle.

Before the toss, the talk of the town had centred around Indian captain Shubman Gill, who suffered an injury to his right finger during the team’s practice session on Thursday. To allow him to recover, he was kept out of the first day’s play, with vice-captain KL Rahul being named as his replacement for Day 1. Gill is expected to return to action from the second day onwards.

Sri Lanka XI Opt to Bat as Pace Takes Centre Stage

Under the grey clouds in Colombo, the Sri Lanka XI captain Sonal Dinusha won the toss and decided to bat first to test his opening against India’s seamers.

The first two Indian bowlers, Mohammed Siraj and Prashid Krishna, started their spells with some solid balls targeting the edge, but Sri Lanka XI did not panic and scored 23 runs in the first six overs. As it is a warm-up match, both teams have decided to field and bat their full strength instead of the top eleven players. India’s management is planning to give workload to all their bowlers, including spinners Jadeja, Kuldeep, and Manav Suthar and seamers Auqib Nabi and Gurnoor Brar.

The Road to Galle and Colombo

This three-day encounter is the curtain-raiser for the two-match Test series on challenging tracks, which will test the subcontinental credentials of both teams.

1st Test: 15th August, Galle International Stadium (10:00 AM local time)

2nd Test: 23rd August, R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo (10:00 AM local time)

Squad announcements are in the offing, and so are crucial tussles in the top order and the lower middle order as Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, and Saransh Jain look to stake their claim in the playing XI for the upcoming Tests.

Complete Squads of India and Sri Lanka

India: Shubman Gill (c)*, KL Rahul (vc), Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prasidh Krishna, Devdutt Padikkal, Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Auqib Nabi, Saransh Jain, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar.

(Available from Day 2)

Sri Lanka XI: Sonal Dinusha (c), Nishan Madushka (wk), Nipun Dhananjaya, Ravindu Rasantha, Pavan Rathnayake, Ahan Wickramasinghe, Ramesh Mendis, Dilum Sudeera, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Isitha Wijesundera, Asanka Manoj, Anjala Bandara, Keshara Nuwantha.

Where to Tune In

Cricket fans can watch every match of this three-day practice contest on television and online. They are as under:

TV: Sony Sports Ten 1 (English), Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi) and Sony Sports Ten 4 (Tamil)

Live Streaming: SonyLIV App and Website.

India vs Sri Lanka
India vs Sri Lanka warm-up match
KL Rahul captain
India Test team
India vs Sri Lanka Test series
India vs Sri Lanka live streaming
India Test squad
Shubman Gill latest news
KL Rahul latest news