SL v IND, 2nd Test, Day 4: CT Player of the day – Ravindra Jadeja

With the track turning square, who wouldn’t have expected the Indian spinners to wrap up the Test and put the series to bed. It was precisely that type of Day 4 performance from the Indian team, who have more or less dominated the fourth days of the Test matches in recent times, in particular, the Tests in Asia. The hosts Sri Lanka began day four on 209/2, with Kusal Mendis back in the hut and new batsman Malinda Pushpakumara on the other end of the pitch.

The in-form batsman Karunaratne was key for Sri Lanka’s chance to take away a draw from the match, with the Indian bowlers looking pretty ordinary on Day 3, albeit Day 4 pitches turn sumptuously. Karunaratne was eight runs short of his century, with India looking to close out the Test on Day 4.

As early as the second over on Day 4 at Colombo, the ball was turning viciously for Ravindra Jadeja. The initial signs were one of dismay for the Sri Lankan batsmen, who had little clue how to deal with the turn the left-arm spinner was able to extract.

The right-handed Pushpakumara was unable to read the turn and bounce that Jadeja was extracting from the Day 4 pitch, with the ball going past his outside edge often in the early overs of the day. Virat Kohli went all aggressive as there was only one way the match could go. India couldn’t capitalize on the chances they got at the start of the day.

While Pushpakumara was facing the music at one end, Karunaratne was focused and reached the milestone with a boundary off the bowling off Mohammed Shami. Ashwin too joined the party soon enough where he too like his spin-twin made the ball crack and turn square. The right-handed batsman was in the middle of a battle, with Ashwin and Jadeja pulling in every trick they had up their sleeves. It was the offie who captured the batsman after the ball sneaked past his attempted switch-hit.

Jadeja’s timely wicket

While Ashwin captured the struggling Pushpakumara, Jadeja picked up the wicket of Sri Lankan skipper Dinesh Chandimal who pushed the ball too hard and it went straight to Rahane at first slip. The spin-twin began dictating terms once again and life for the batsmen was getting tougher.

Angelo Mathews wasn’t willing to give up without a fight and began to attack Jadeja with a boundary and a sixer just before the 80th over. Once they had the new ball, the hardness helped them get better bounce and purchase from the surface.

Kohli tried both the spinners as well as the pacers but the duo looked very comfortable in the middle and went to lunch without losing another wicket; the score read 302/4. They also pumped confidence in the Sri Lankan dressing room, but the task was daunting for the hosts.

Just when the hosts looked comfortable, Jadeja struck with a ball that just bounced and spun awkwardly, took an edge and was caught by Rahane at slip to finally end Karunaratne’s resistance and with that, the wall of defence was finally shattered. He walked back to the dressing room with a well-constructed knock of 141.

Just a matter of time!

Sri Lanka were five down, and more importantly, the set batsman was out. It was just a matter of time before the Indian bowlers wrapped up the Test and the series. Jadeja, struck again with the wicket of Mathews to leave the Sri Lankan hopes hanging in thin air. In the very next over, the left-armer struck again with a ball that turned past the willow of the incoming batsman Dilruwan Perera. Niroshan Dickwella and Dhananjaya de Silva’s partnership lasted short before Jadeja punched the air for the 5th time in the innings with the wicket of de Silva for 17 runs.

This wicket marked the 9th five-wicket haul for the left-armer and the first ever five-wicket haul in the Island nation. Hardik Pandya captured the wicket of Dickwela before Ashwin closed out the innings at 386, and Team India won the Test by an innings and 53 runs. Jadeja ended the second innings with a spell of 5/152 and for that, he is CricTracker’s Player of the Day.