The second and final Test between India and Sri Lanka ended in a draw in Colombo, a result that significantly dented Shubman Gill-led side’s World Test Championship (WTC) final hopes.
Batting first in the second Test, India declared at 503/9 before bowling the hosts out for 290 to secure a 213-run first-innings lead.
The tourists enforced the follow-on, but Sri Lanka showed remarkable resilience in their second innings. They reached 429/9 on the back of Sonal Dinusha’s unbeaten 133, taking a lead of 216 runs, before both captains agreed to call off the match.
Despite the gritty draw pulled off by Sri Lanka in Colombo, India clinched the Test series 1-0 due to their clinical 195-run victory in the first Test at Galle.
Speaking during the post-match presentation, India skipper Gill emphasized that after fielding for nearly 250 overs across three consecutive days, the team gave its absolute maximum effort and credited the Sri Lankan batters for their skill.
“Honestly, nothing. I mean, we fielded for about 250 overs, three days consecutively, and we did everything we can. They played brilliantly. I think the batters played really well, and they had a lot of skill and a little bit of luck going their way. So I don't think we could have done anything differently,” Gill said.
Counting on the positive, Gill highly praised the impact of Devdutt Padikkal, KL Rahul, Prasidh Krishna, and Manav Suthar during the two-Test series.
“A lot of positives for us, even learning from the opposition. I think the position that they were under, under immense pressure, and the way they came back was tremendous to see. It sort of tells us, and we were talking in lunch and at tea time, that I don't think that we could have done (anything) differently. But in the series, a lot of positives for us. Padikkal was brilliant, KL was really good, Manav bowled brilliantly, and Prasidh in both the innings, bent their back, both the fast bowlers. So I think we did everything we can,” he added.
Gill expressed strong optimism regarding the emergence of fresh talents like Suthar, Padikkal, and Dhruv Jurel, highlighting the depth and future readiness of the Indian Test setup.
“Very excited. I think really exciting times for us. Very important for us to be consistent on and off the field, with our preparation and the way that we perform and how we go about our things. And I think so far there have been a lot of positives for us,” he stated.
The captain commended Suthar for his consistent control and clean release off his wrist and fingers, describing the left-arm spinner as pleasing bowler to watch.
“[On what has impressed him about Suthar] Everything, how consistent he is and how well the ball - how well he releases the ball and how the ball goes off from his wrist, from his fingers. He's a very pleasing bowler to see and I think he's going to be someone who's going to be very, very crucial for us in the upcoming years,” he remarked.
Shubman Gill also opened up about India's WTC final chances after a drawn Test match in Colombo.
“Yes, we are going to New Zealand in November, so that's a good series for us, and then we've got a good home series coming. So hopefully if we have a good New Zealand series, as long as we have a chance, we always keep believing, and hopefully we'll make it to the finals,” he said.
Gill defended the choice to enforce the follow-on because weather doubts made a full fifth day uncertain. He noted that decisions look different in hindsight, but the team made the best choice available at the time.
“Like I said, I think they played brilliantly this game. In hindsight, you can think, okay, if enforcing the follow-on was a right decision? But keeping the weather and everything in mind we weren't sure if there's going to be a full day of game on day five. But you can only talk about these things in hindsight, when you're in that moment you try to take the best decision as you can, and some of the things then go our way, but that's totally fine. This is a game of cricket, and I think in the end the Test cricket won today,” he concluded.
