Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar shared his view on the Sri Lankan players’ approach, calling it unprofessional and criticising the batter’s lapse in concentration.

“I see that as being slightly unprofessional. I know you want to nudge the umpire, saying it’s bad light, but you can’t take your eye off the ball. I thought the bad-light situation and their angst with the umpire consumed their minds, and they weren’t focusing on the ball because the light was never that bad. We know the light is never so bad that you can’t see the ball. It’s just that there is a certain amount of darkness that is considered bad light, and it’s offered to the batter. Then maybe Sri Lanka had a point that it was bad light enough, but that doesn’t condone the mistake that they made now. You can’t blame a night watchman for getting out. That was a great delivery from Suthar, a nice variation and a superb delivery,” Manjrekar said on Sony Sports Network.

Post the dismissal, Jayasuriya was seen furious, gesturing angrily from the dressing room as seen on TV visuals. Earlier, play was stopped after two balls in Sri Lanka’s innings due to heavy clouds and drizzle. The Indian team stood on the ground while the groundsman brought covers, and they left the field two minutes later when it started to rain heavily. Play resumed 20 minutes later, with Sri Lanka facing 14 more balls and losing two wickets.

Manjrekar lauded India for their tactics. “So credit goes to India for making that happen. Unfortunately for Sri Lanka, we’ll have a look at Prabath. India will take that. India also played a very good part when the covers were being put on. They stood on the field, putting pressure on the umpire, saying that we believe play could start and all these little things. They’re heavyweights now in world cricket. If the Indian team just stood there believing that a game could start, and we felt the light was good enough, that puts a certain amount of pressure on the umpires,” said Manjrekar.