IND VS SL 1ST TEST

Right then, that is all we have from this Test match. India have dominated this Test match and they will be hoping to put another strong performance in the second Test which will be a day-night affair. That Test will start at 2.00 pm IST (8.30 am GMT) on Saturday, March 12 at Bengaluru. As you know our coverage will start well in advance. So do join us for the same. Till then, goodbye and cheers!

Ravindra Jadeja is the Player of the Match. He says that Mohali is his lucky ground and whenever he comes to Mohali, he gets positive vibes. On being asked about his batting, he states that he wanted to build a partnership with Pant, but he was standing at the other end and enjoying his batting. Informs that he does not know anything about stats but he is happy to score runs and pick up wickets, which gives him some confidence. States that he has done nothing different, he just backed his instincts, he looks to keep things simple. Concludes by saying that he has never played with the pink ball before, but he will practice before the game and he is sure he will be comfortable with the ball.

Rohit Sharma, the skipper of India, says that it was a great performance and they have ticked all the boxes and he is happy with the performance. He mentions that he did not think that it will be a hree days Test match because the pitch was good to bat on but credits his bowlers for applying pressure and they were great.  He states that these are good signs for Indian cricket and it was a landmark Test match for Virat. He mentions that they first wanted to win this Test match and it is heartening to see all big performances. He adds that they wanted to give Jayant some overs and give him some confidence as he is the third spinner in the team. He says that it has been a great performance by Jadeja and he mentions that the pink-ball Test match will be a big challenge and looking forward to it. He mentions that it will be a challenge as it is their only second pink-ball Test match at home and says that he is looking forward to how the pitch behaves there and then take it from there.

Dimuth Karunaratne, the skipper of Sri Lanka, says that the batters need to put their hands up, it was easy to bat on this track, but they had to get a big score. Mentions that they thought the pitch was going to be up and down and cracks would open and that's why they played three seamers, but they should have still bowled better and restricted India. Informs that they were either very defensive or they were aggressive, but they need to rotate the strike and bat better. Concludes that, the batters will have to step up and score big, and they will come back stronger in the next game.

Stay tuned for the presentation.

Ravichandran Ashwin is down for a chat. On being asked about Jadeja's batting, he says that Jadeja has come a really long way in the last four-five years, and he thinks that Jadeja's batting has gone one notch higher! States that Jadeja and he realized that Jayant has not bowled a lot and he being the third spinner he had to get a few overs in the middle. Informs that he wanted to bat well, and since he had four weeks off he did change a few things in his batting and he was trying to apply those in this match, but he was staying positive. Adds that the surface was a good one, Jadeja and he were trying hard to get wickets, but it was tough to get the batsmen out when they were very defensive and says that they cannot keep Bumrah and Shami out of it, they bowled well and put pressure!

Sri Lanka have a lot to ponder about, right from their tactics to go with only one frontline spinner on this track and their execution of skills in the middle. They were laid low by the injury to Lahiru Kumara on the first day of the Test itself and eventually gave away 574 runs with the ball. It was always going to be tough after that but being a subcontinent team Lankans were expected to play spin better and show some application. However, they were quite poor with the bat in both the innings and Nissanka in the first innings and Dickwella in the second innings were only the two batters who showed some resilience out there. They need their senior batters like Angelo Mathews and skipper, Dimuth Karunaratne to step up otherwise another tough Test awaits them in a couple of days' time.

A classical Indian Test victory at home. India piling on a big score in the first innings and then putting the opposition team under pressure with spin playing the major role. The game was probably over in the first session of Day 3 when India picked up seven wickets to demolish any hopes Sri Lanka had coming into Day 3. Then, the caravan continued and with six more wickets in the final session, India bowled out Sri Lanka twice in this Test match with ease. Ashwin and Jadeja were brilliant with the ball as usual but there were important contributions by the seamers and that makes this bowling performance even sweeter. The foundation was laid by the batting unit earlier in the game with Jadeja notching up his career-best score and almost all other batters making decent contributions. Overall, India have done what everyone expects them to do in home conditions and they will be looking to continue their dominance in the second Test match.

India have demolished Sri Lanka by a huge margin of an innings and 222 runs in this first Test match and Rohit Sharma begins his Test captaincy journey with a commanding victory. India were always expected to win this Test match but the sheer dominance and the fact that they clinched this inside three days is quite an achievement. If you have seen at least some part of this game in the last two days, you will know that Sir Jadeja has been a standout performer in this Test match. He has taken 9 wickets in this Test match and scored a mammoth 175 with the bat. Overall, India have outplayed Sri Lanka in all facets of the game and Sri Lanka need to be much better in the second Test if they want to challenge India in that Test match.

OUT! CAUGHT! Ravichandran Ashwin finishes things off! He grabs his fourth wicket! A fuller ball, around middle. Lahiru Kumara stays in his crease and tries to go over long off, but the ball goes off the outer half of the bat towards mid off. Mohammed Shami runs forward and takes an easy catch. India win by an innings and 222 runs.

Outside off, blocked out.

In the air...but safe! A loopy ball, fuller in length. Lahiru Kumara leans and lifts it towards mid on, but the ball falls just short of Jasprit Bumrah there!

Down the leg side, full ball. Niroshan Dickwella sweeps it towards fine leg for a single.

Slower through the air, full and around middle. Niroshan Dickwella defends it out.

Loopy ball, full, around off. Niroshan Dickwella defends it out.

FOUR! Lahiru Kumara gets off the mark in style! Tad shorter, around middle. Lahiru Kumara lifts it over mid on for a boundary!

Tosses it up, around off. Lahiru Kumara defends it out again.