3 min readUpdated: Aug 23, 2026 04:40 PM IST
Devdutt Padikkal continued his sublime form in the Sri Lanka series when he brought up another century in the first day of the 2nd Test on Sunday. He brought up his ton in 168 deliveries in an innings which had 10 fours. Padikkal, who was dropped twice by the Lankan fielders made them pay with another big score which steadied India’s innings.
In the 1st Test at Galle, Padikkal had slammed 167 in the first innings, followed by 44 in the second innings. In the warmup match ahead of the start of the series, he had scored 142 as well.
Earlier, skipper Shubman Gill, who was dismissed at the stroke of tea, and Padikkal added 120 runs for the third wicket alliance as India recovered well from the first session departure of KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Rishabh Pant (0 not out) joined Padikkal a few minutes before tea was taken.
Padikkal was a bit unsteady to begin with, and even got a reprieve when was on 1. Lanka skipper Dhananjaya de Silva grassed a rather easy chance off spinner Keshara Nuwantha at backward point and Padikkal was in no mood to look in the mouth of a gift horse.
The left-hander, who made a 167 in the first Test, displayed splendid touch after that early fumble, dispatching Sri Lankan bowlers around the park.
A scorching pull off pacer Lahiru Kumara that also fetched him his fifty in 90 balls was one of the standout shots in his innings.
Gill, on the other hand, was equally solid and a short-arm pull off left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya that raced to the fence was a treat to watch, until the right-hander lost his focus to edge Asitha Fernando to wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella.
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Earlier, India were put under some early pressure as Sri Lanka jettisoned Rahul and Jaiswal in the first session.
After opting to bat, India started solidly through Rahul (18) and Jaiswal (45), who added a trouble-free 37 runs for the first wicket.
Jaiswal was particularly impressive as he eschewed the cut shot, which has led to his peril often in the past, to a good extent.
The left-hander smashed Kumara for two boundaries in succession, before executing a wonderful cover drive off Jayasuriya.
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Rahul was as restrained as ever but showed a glimpse of his shot-making ability, lifting Jayasuriya for a six straight over the head of the bowler.
But the trouble came without any warning. Rahul went for a square cut off Kumara, but the laden feet shot only produced an edge to Dickwella.
Jaiswal looked primed for a bigger score but soon fell to Fernando.
(With agency inputs)
