India vs Sri Lanka, 2nd Test Day 2 Stats Review: Rishabh Pant shatters a flurry of records with breathtaking knock

The first two days of the ongoing second Test between India and Sri Lanka saw the hosts dominating both with the bat and the ball.  Not once but twice, India have managed to score over 250 on a tough Bengaluru pitch with all demons on it. In both the innings, the top-scorers were the middle-order pair of Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant, with Pant clearly playing the aggressor role.

Sri Lanka, who were already in deep trouble, began the day at 86/6, trailing by 166 runs. They couldn’t show any sort of a fight, being bowled out within six overs. All it took was two short balls from Jasprit Bumrah and two carrom balls from R Ashwin to wipe the tail. India batters come to bat again, having a comfortable lead with ample time left in the game. Similar to the first innings, the top order provided the initial surge before the Pant-Iyer show. Rohit Sharma and Hanuma Vihari played decent knocks of 46 and 35 respectively.

Following the departure of Hanuma Vihari, former captain Kohli was once again out at low score. But soon Rishabh Pant created history. The southpaw shattered a 40-year-old record and scored the fastest ever fifty by an Indian, in just 28 balls. Shreyas Iyer, on the other end, played a relatively calm knock of 67 in 87 balls. Sri Lanka did take wickets at regular intervals but the partnerships kept on building as India declared at 303/9.

On the second day itself, India have set the Lankans a massive target of 447, which is higher than any successful chase in Test cricket. India have bowled seven overs before stumps and took one wicket, as Jasprit Bumrah dismisses Lahiru Thirimanne for a duck. Sri Lanka were 28/1 at stumps on Day 2 and need 417 more run to win.

Here’s a look at the stats from the Day 2 of India vs Sri Lanka Day-Night Test match:

14 – Total wickets by R Ashwin in day-night Tests, which is now the highest by an Indian bowler. He overtook Axar Patel, who took 12 wickets with the pink ball.

 1 – Jasprit Bumrah took his first five-wicket haul in Tests at home. His first seven five-fors of Test career came outside home.

28 – Balls taken by Rishabh Pant to reach fifty, which is now the fastest fifty by an Indian in Test cricket. He overtook a 40-year old record of Kapil Dev, who scored a 30-ball fifty against Pakistan in 1982.

28 – Pant’s 28-ball fifty is also the fastest by a wicketkeeper in Tests. Previously the fastest fifty by a wicketkeeper jointly belonged to MS Dhoni and Ian Smith, both in 34 balls.

1 – Rishabh Pant became the first player to score 30+ runs at a strike-rate of 150 or above in both innings of a Test match.

24 – Runs conceded by Jasprit Bumrah in the first innings, which is the fourth-lowest for an Indian pacer taking a five-for in a home Test innings. The three Indian pacers above him are Javagal Srinath (21 runs v SA in 1996), Ishant Sharma (22 runs v BAN in 2019) and Madan Lal (23 runs v ENG in 1981).

1 – Shreyas Iyer became the first Indian to score fifty or above in both the innings of a pink-ball Test. Overall he became the second Indian with multiple fifty-plus scores in day-nighters, after Virat Kohli.

4.43 – India’s run-rate in this Test match, which is their fourth-highest in a Test match where they scored 500+ runs.

2017 – For the first time since August 2017, Virat Kohli’s Test average has dropped down below 50.

Written By – Kaustubh Gudipati