India lost the first Test against Sri Lanka by 63 runs despite dominating the first three days of the match. Dinesh Chandimal turned the game on its head with an unbeaten 162, a brilliant, counterattacking knock., and Rangana Herath then spun India out with a spell of 7 for 48. However, Shiamak Unwalla feels that India were on the back foot even before the match begun thanks to some questionable team selection. READ: Rangana Herath spins out India with 7/48 as Sri Lanka win 1st Test at Galle by 63 runs
India were on the back foot before the first ball was bowled. Murali Vijay, one of their best Test batsmen over the last year or so, was ruled out with an injury. His replacement was KL Rahul,a man who had scored a century in his previous Test. This was a forced change, and India might not have been too perturbed had that been the only problem with the line-up; but unfortunately, there were other aspects of the team that weighed India down. The first of these was Rohit Sharma. Virat Kohli had declared before the Test that Rohit would bat at No. 3, a position that has been causing India some trouble since Cheteshwar Pujara’s loss of form. With Wriddhiman Saha batting at No. 6, India were already a frontline batsman short. Vijay’s loss only added to their woes, while Rohit’s failure further compounded the issue. READ: Dinesh Chandimal’s battling unbeaten 162 could be a career-defining innings
Moreover, India chose to go in with five bowlers; a move that backfired, especially in the second innings. It was also a question of choosing the right bowlers, something India did not do. With Harbhajan Singh looking glaringly inefficient, he was reduced to being a passenger, and Varun Aaron bled runs without ever looking particularly threatening. READ: Kumar Sangakkara’s final battle at Galle
Rohit failed in both innings, getting dismissed LBW by Angelo Mathews for 9 in the first innings and getting bowled by Rangana Herath for 4 in the second. What was most discouraging was the manner in which Rohit played; he was left hanging on the back foot against Mathews after having scratched around for 24 balls in the first innings. He looked all at sea against Herath in the second innings, and ended up making a good ball look great when he played down the wrong line and got bowled. Rohit’s Test career is yet to take off after a bright start, something that happened with him in ODIs as well. Rohit’s ODI career took seven years and innumerable comebacks to finally flourish, but he does not have that kind of luxury in Tests, especially with a lot of young players making waves in domestic cricket. Unless Rohit manages to establish himself by the end of the series he might not get too many more chances. But then again, given his track record nothing is impossible. READ: VVS Laxman’s tips for budding slip fielders
The second major blunder was playing five bowlers with Saha batting at No. 6. While he made a good 60 in the first innings, Saha was made to look like a novice by Herath in the second innings. Saha deserves an extended run in the side, and is certainly the best wicketkeeper in India, but with him at No. 6, India is taking a major risk, while simultaneously putting immense — and unnecessary — pressure on him with the bat. Furthermore, it did not make a lot of sense to play five bowlers, especially given that three of them were spinners. READ: India’s batsmen show positive signs, but need to learn how to fire collectively
Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra bowled 14 overs between them in the first innings, but neither were particularly needed, with Ravichandran Ashwin running through the Sri Lankan batting. The duo bowled 34 overs between them in the second innings, but while Mishra took three wickets, Harbhajan only managed one, while also being taken apart by Chandimal and co. Harbhajan went at 4.29 runs per over, and did not look like he was going to take a wicket. India could have played an extra batsman instead of either of them. READ: Virat Kohli’s lack of daddy hundreds a worry for India
The other decision was to play Varun Aaron ahead of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav. The problem with Aaron is that he bowls fast but with no direction, and usually goes for plenty. He is not a particularly successful wicket-taker either; he averages 54.68 at a strike rate of 66.8, and goes for 4.91 runs per over. Umesh might not have been too effective either, but one feels that Bhuvneshwar would have been able to tie the batsmen down if nothing else. READ: Shikhar Dhawan becomes 3rd Indian opener to score Test centuries in consecutive innings overseas
In the end, India made a few bad calls in terms of team composition, any of which could have made a difference. Vijay will most likely return in the second Test at Colombo, but India could consider either retaining Rahul or bringing in Pujara at the cost of Harbhajan, with Bhuvneshwar coming in to replace Aaron. Maybe then the scales will be tipped in India’s favour. READ: Ravichandran Ashwin continues renaissance with six-wicket haul against Sri Lanka in 1st Test at Galle
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek who loves cricket more than cricketers. His Twitter handle is @ShiamakUnwalla)
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