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When Yashasvi Jaiswal walks out to bat, there's rarely a dull moment. The Mumbai left-hander has made a habit of chasing the new ball with unrelenting gusto, often on the back foot. But perhaps that very same approach was the reason why he was back in the pavilion after five minutes' batting on Day 4 of the Galle International Stadium encounter.

India needed to declare their innings after posting a dominant 178-run lead and a crucial morning session of batting under the threat of rain.

Instead, Yashasvi Jaiswal followed his usual pattern and was back in the pavilion inside three balls, leaving his side to trail by 0/1 and fueling fresh controversy about his poor scoring rate in the last few matches.

A Flash of Impulse in Galle for Yashasvi Jaiswal

After India's bowlers had Sri Lankan debutants all out for 284 on Day 3, Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul walked out to bat on Tuesday morning with the task of accelerating the innings. Right-arm pacer Asitha Fernando was the first to bowl and he immediately drew Jaiswal forward with two good-length deliveries outside off stump.

The third ball was a wide outside the striker's leg that drifted away late. Unable to resist the temptress, Yashasvi Jaiswal played a bold cut shot with his back to the wicket. He would be well-advised to leave this particular ball alone, as the aggressive poke resulted in the edge, and the ball fell neatly into the gloves of substitute keeper Dickwella.

As he walked back to the pavilion, Jaiswal perhaps felt that he was back to square one in international cricket. He had batted in only one of his first 14 Test matches without scoring a run. But that appears to have changed, as the left-hander has been involved in six ducks in his past 16 Test matches, scoring a century and two fifties in between.

In each of the three Tests that India and Sri Lanka have played against each other since the 2024–25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy began, Yashasvi Jaiswal has failed to score a run in the series, except last year's home series against the West Indies. He was last seen walking back to the pavilion after being lbw by left-arm quick Vishwa Fernando in Colombo in the warm-up match before this Test.

Devdutt Padikkal came in to bat on KL Rahul, keeping the strike alive after Yashasvi Jaiswal's departure. The in-form opener will have to keep his attacking instincts in check when facing the new ball if he is to build consistent partnerships at the top of the order.