Sri Lanka hang on for draw after brutal Shami, Bhuvneshwar bursts
At half-past four, with seven wickets down and India's tail up, the light deteriorated enough to help Sri Lanka draw an absolutely riveting Test
At half-past four, with seven wickets down and India's tail up, the light deteriorated enough to help Sri Lanka draw an absolutely riveting Test
Even as the rest of the line-up scrapped against some top-class Sri Lankan bowling, Virat Kohli batted on unfazed, as though he was making just another of his many hundreds
The overhead conditions aside, India asked for a green top in Kolkata to prepare for a series of upcoming away tours, and their quicks were up to the challenge
The Sri Lanka coach said the side's process of improving began soon after their 3-0 series loss to India at home earlier this year
Kohli's second-innings hundred was his ninth in 2017. He has six more internationals this year to set a new record
Both openers capitalised on vastly improved batting conditions, both overhead and underfoot, to lead India's recovery on the fourth day in Kolkata
After being adjudged lbw Dilruwan turned around and began walking back towards the dressing room, only to turn around and ask for a review, and the decision was overturned after replays suggested the ball had hit him outside the line of off stump
Rangana Herath mixed some cracking shots square of the wicket with a good sprinkling of plays and misses in a unique innings that was frustrating for India and very, very handy for Sri Lanka
Bhuvneshwar and Shami continued their impressive run at Eden Gardens as India's fast bowlers stole the spotlight from their spin twins
Half-centuries from Angelo Mathews and Lahiru Thirimanne - in tough batting conditions - frustrated India after they were bowled out for 172 on the third day in Kolkata
There was not too much wrong with what India's bowlers did, but Sri Lanka finished with the clear edge as the sun came out and holes emerged in the field - repeatedly - on day three
'Fifties won't take us anywhere, we will need hundreds on this pitch, says Sri Lanka batsman
Dasun Shanaka took two wickets as India were reduced to 74 for 5 in bowling-friendly conditions before a period of persistent rain forced officials to call off play more than two hours before the scheduled close
India's No. 3 painstakingly got the better of Sri Lanka in very testing conditions by carefully choosing which balls to hit and playing straight
Only 11.5 overs of cricket was possible in the first two sessions of the Kolkata Test, but they were 11.5 difficult overs for India, asked to bat on a damp green pitch under overcast skies
Shikhar Dhawan's aggressive style works very well for a team looking for to force a result in good batting conditions, but surely they have two more solid options than him on seaming tracks
In the other camp, Sri Lanka bowling coach Ratnayake praised Lakmal, saying his spell was among the best he has seen "in a long time", but was also wary that batting would be equally difficult for his team on this surface
The Indian team management is understood to have asked the BCCI to prepare pitches that would serve as preparation for the South Africa tour
The Sri Lanka captain said that using five bowlers - to aid in taking 20 wickets in the match - and staying energetic in the field through the Test was important against Pakistan and will remain so in India
The India captain explains the need to independently assess each individual in the team for workload management and allotting time off
With fully-fit openers Shikhar Dhawan, M Vijay and KL Rahul in the squad, the question of which combination is likely to feature in the playing XI looms ahead of the first Test
But for that to happen, their batting needs serious improvement considering at least one of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja will be back after spending three months being "rested" or "rotated"