Lahiru Gamage breaches past Cheteshwar Pujara’s defence

If one Indian batsman is known for his watertight technique and rock-solid defence it is their No.3 Cheteshwar Pujara. In the first Test of the Sri Lanka series, the pitch and conditions replicated those in England with live grass and overcast conditions. The ball was moving around and life was difficult for the batsmen. With rain playing a major part only 32.5 overs of play was possible on the first two days.

The Indian team lost 5 wickets but Pujara who had walked out to bat on the second ball of the innings stood his ground and with authority. He had faced over 100 balls and scored over 63% of the team’s runs. But on day three Sri Lankan pacer Lahiru Gamage produced a beauty. The ball was moving into the right-hander in the air and cut really sharp after pitching.

Pujara attempted to drive it but the movement was too good for him and it breached past his defence to shatter the timber. The look of dismay on his face and that on the face of skipper Virat Kohli in the dressing room was an account of how good the delivery was. Gamage who had been wayward in the initial part of the innings letting the Indian batters off the hook pulled things back well to scalp the prized wicket.

This was not the first time the 29-year-old has been dismissed in this manner. In the past as well he has had problems with the gap between his bat and pads that has allowed the incoming deliveries to find enough space and go on to hit the stumps.

But before being beaten by that peach he had scored a half century, the only fifty-plus score in the Indian innings. He scored 52 runs from 117 balls and his knock included as many as ten boundaries. The lower order also pitched in with contributions.

The twenties from wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami who defied the Lankan bowlers enough to take the team past the 150-run mark helped India conclude the innings with 172 which looks like a good score considering how the ball has been behaving at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Here’s the picture of the dismissal