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India vs Sri Lanka, 2nd Test, Day 1 — As it happened...
After the first Test ended in a nerve-racking draw at the Eden Gardens, the two teams will target nothing less than a win to go 1-0 up in the three-match series.
 "India vs Sri Lanka, 2nd Test, Day 1 — As it happened...")
Photo: PTI After a nerve-racking finish to the first Test, India and Sri Lanka are ready to lock horns for the second match of the series at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur, and Zee News Sports brings you all the live updates, score and other news that makes headlines through the opening day. So stay tuned!
4:40 p.m. STUMPS! India 11/1, 194 runs behind Sri Lanka. Pujara (2*) and Vijay (2*) will resume for India tomorrow.
4:34 p.m. Last over of the day coming up. IND 9/1 in 7 overs.
4:18 p.m. India lose Rahul early! The openers edgy form continues as plays-on Gamage to be dismissed for 7. That's exactly what India didn't want and Sri Lanka hoped. IND 7/1 in 4 overs.
4:15 p.m. Murali Vijay, making a comeback, would not have liked to be in this tricky period where the focus is only survival, not runs. He is yet to open his account having faced 10 balls so far. KL Rahul, though, has begun confidently scoring 7 off 8 balls. India 7/0 in 3 overs.
3:50 p.m. All Out! Ashwin takes the final wicket and his fourth to pack up Sri Lanka for 205. India will have a minimum of eight overs to negotiate before stumps today. Ashwin's figures read 4/67, Jadeja 3/56 and Ishant 3/37. Chandimal top-scored for Sri Lanka with his 57. Karunaratne made 51.
3:49 p.m. Just as we spoke, Sri Lanka's ninth wicket falls in the form of Lakmal (17) who edges Ishant to wicketkeeper Saha. Still 11 overs left. 205/9
3:45 p.m. Sri Lanka's 200 has come up, with some precious runs being added by tailender Suranga Lakmal (17*) and Rangana Herath (4*). 205/8
3:22 p.m. Ashwin gets his third as well, with the help of DRS! Chandimal (57) adjudged LBW sweeping. Sri Lanka falling apart, now 184/8.
3:16 p.m. Jadeja into the act again and dismisses Dilruwan Perera (15) LBW, who was earlier saved by DRS but this time found plumb in front. SL 184/7. Jaddu's figures now read 18-4-43-3.
2:55 p.m. Sri Lanka lose sixth wicket! Shanaka (2) has been bowled by Ashwin. This innings might fold up today itself with still 25 overs left in the day. SL 165/6, Chandimal batting on 53.
2:42 p.m. Dickwell (24) departs! Couldn't rein-in his aggression and danced down to Jadeja who pulled the length of his delivery back, resulting in a skier that was safely pouched by Ishant. SL 160/5 in 61 overs.
2:15 p.m. TEA TIME in the second India-Sri Lanka Test, and the Lankans are 151/4 (Chandimal 47*, Dickwella 18*). Ishant the most successful Indian bowler with figures of 2/33 and a wicket each for spin twins Ashwin and Jadeja.
2 p.m. Chandimal has looked the most confident of Sri Lankan batsmen, more than Karunaratne. He and Dickwell would want to head into tea, which is 10 minutes away, unseparated. SL 132/4 in 55 overs.
1:45 p.m. Ishant Sharma returns and removes the well-set Karunaratne (51) LBW. The Lankan went for a review but the on-field umpire's call stayed. SL 122/4 in 51 overs.
1:22 p.m. The Lankan scoring rate has picked up and has brought up two landmarks - 3000 Test runs for Chandimal and a Test fifty for Karunaratne. Sri Lanka 112/3
1:10 p.m. A boundary in each of the last three overs bowled by Jadeja (2) and Umesh (1). Karunaratne hit two of those and is now closing in on a gritty fifty. SL 98/3 in 44 overs.
12:55 p.m. Umesh Yadav replaced Ashwin in the attack. 22 runs have come in the last 10 overs from this partnership between Chandimal (12*) and Karunaratne (35*). SL 82/3 in 39 overs.
12:40 p.m. Chandimal announced his arrival with a SIX off Ashwin off the ninth ball he faced. Clearly, Sri Lanka don't want the spinners to dictate post lunch but have lost a wicket in an attempt to do so. So they gotta take measured risks. 72/3 in 34 overs.
12:25 p.m. Jadeja strikes! Catches Mathews (10) plumb in front but the former SL captain decided to review it but it shows pitching in line, no bat involved and ball hitting the stumps. SL 60/3 in 30.1 overs.
12:20 p.m. Mathews and Karunaratne begin on a bright note after lunch. Three fours in the first two overs bowled by Jadeja and Ashwin. 60/2 in 29 overs.
11:35 a.m. LUNCH! Sri Lanka are 47/2 in 27 overs. Ishant and Ashwin took a wicket each for India who have won the first couple of hours of the match, especially that wicket of Thirimanne by Ashwin almost at the stroke of lunch.
At Lunch on Day 1 of the 2nd Test, Sri Lanka are 47/2. Follow the game here - https://t.co/wUkt7m6A9C #INDvSL pic.twitter.com/QIf50WLarV
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 24, 2017
11:32 a.m. Drama! Jadeja got Karunaratne out stumped, but video replays showed Jadeja overstepping, and it was declared a 'no-ball. Karunaratne gets a life batting on 21. SL 47/2 in 26 overs.
11:25 a.m. WICKET ALERT! Just what SL didn't want. Ashwin has castled Thirimanne (9 off 58) who was choked for runs and played an awful stroke out of frustration. SL 45/2 in 25 overs. This is the first wicket of the series for an Indian spinner.
11:10 a.m. The scoring rate has dropped to a crawl at 1.78 with the Lankans adamant not to to lose another wicket before lunch, which is 20 minutes away. 38/1 in 21 overs.
10:58 a.m. Three bowlers have been used by India in the first hour and a half of play. 18 overs in total, of which Ishant has bowled seven on the trot and Ashwin, replacing Umesh at the other end, is ready to bowl his fourth. SL 33/1, Karunaratne 14*, Thirimanne 4*.
10:40 a.m. A lot of school kids have come in to watch Test cricket, which is always a great initiative to promote the purest format of the game. SL 33/1 in 14 overs.
School kids have come out in numbers to support their stars on Day 1 of the Nagpur Test #INDvSL pic.twitter.com/etAYNxQrd4
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 24, 2017
10:24 a.m. Ishant and Umesh have bowled five overs each now and the first change must be around the corner. Meanwhile, SL scorecard reads 31/1 in 10 overs.
10:10 a.m. Thirimanne (0*) has joined Karunaratne (10) . The Indian pacers, Ishant and Umesh, have settled into a nice rhythm, making the SL openers earn every single run. 23/1 in 7 overs
9:59 a.m. Ishant strikes! SL 20/1 in 4.5 overs. Brilliant diving catch by Pujara in the slips to get rid of Samarawickrama (13) as Ishant induced an outside edge off some appreciable seam movement. Umpires checked for legalities of the delivery and the catch, and video replays satisfied all checks.
9:49 a.m. Both the Lankan openers have made themselves comfortable with boundaries and are looking good. SL 13/0 in 3 overs.
9:38 a.m. Samarawickrama gets Sri Lanka going with a boundary in the first over of the match bowled by Ishant Sharma, who last played a Test for India in March this year. SL 5/0
9:18 a.m. The start of a match, whatever the format, is always exciting, but sadly not many takers for this one at an almost empty VCA Stadium in Jamtha.
Beautiful but empty stadium in Nagpur for the start of the test. pic.twitter.com/4HwRtuF7MB
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) November 24, 2017
PLAYING XIs
INDIA: KL Rahul, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma
SRI LANKA: S Samarawickrama, D Karunaratne, L Thirimanne, A Mathews, D Chandimal (c), N Dickwella (wk), D Shanaka, D Perera, R Herath, S Lakmal, L Gamage
TOSS & TEAM News!
Sri Lanka win the toss and Dinesh Chandimal says they will bat first and are have the same eleven as the last Test.
India go in with three changes, including a forced one:
1. Mohammed Shami has a bit of a niggle and has been replaced by Ishant
2. Rohit Sharma has been given game time in place of Bhuvneshwar who is on marriage leave.
3. Murali Vijay comes in for Shikhar Dhawan, who is on leave to attend his sister's marriage.
Interesting that India have gone away from the five bowlers route. Want Rohit Sharma to get game time. That means 6 batsmen could be the way in South Africa
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) November 24, 2017
Sri Lanka wins the toss and opts to bat first in the 2nd Test at Nagpur #Paytm #INDvSL pic.twitter.com/SIOPJYjGVQ
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 24, 2017
8:52 a.m. First look of the wicket, that is being talked about as lively with a bit of green grass on it.
Tak a look at the pitch on Day 1 of the Nagpur Test. Win the toss and ? pic.twitter.com/BojzmlJBVd
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 24, 2017
8:45 a.m. Hello and welcome to our continued coverage of Sri Lanka's tour of India that has now reached the second Test in Jamtha, Nagpur. And while we wait for first updates heading to toss time, which is 9 a.m., dig into the match preview telling you all about the team plans and the possible playing XIs.
PREVIEW
Denied by the weather Gods in the opening Test, a supremely confident India are set to make some strategic changes to ensure that their dominance over Sri Lanka continues in the second match of the series starting here on Friday.
Having gained a psychological edge by blowing the Sri Lankan top and middle order during the final session of the drawn first Test, the teams will once again have a green track to play on at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium in Jamtha.
The hint of grass on the pitch is in keeping with the team's preparation for the grueling South African tour that starts next month.
A decent cover of green on the match strip is a marked departure from what has been a traditionally low and slow batting belter over the years. However, until the first ball is bowled, it will be difficult to ascertain the kind of bounce that will be on offer.
"It seems to be a good pitch. It will be helpful for the fast bowlers at least on the first two days," said India skipper Virat Kohli.
For India, the challenge will be to produce an improved performance in trying conditions even though it is expected that the challenge to score runs on this track will be a wee bit less than what it was at the Eden Gardens under overcast conditions.
Kohli has shown how to take the bull by its horn with his magnificent ton in pressure situation and his men will be itching to do the same against Suranga Lakmal and company.
India's most technically equipped opener Murali Vijay will be making a comeback into the playing XI as Shikhar Dhawan has taken a break for personal reasons.
Experts felt that Vijay's compact technique was missing during the first two days as Dhawan is known to be a bit edgy early on. The Delhi left-hander did score 94 in the second innings but it was when batting had become easier during the fourth afternoon.
Vijay's ability, and clarity on where his off-stump is, makes him a valuable asset in the longest format as he has the patience to leave a lot of deliveries.
Another certainty in the playing XI is Ishant Sharma - the most capped player in the current Test squad with 77 matches in whites.
With Bhuvneshwar Kumar getting married, the lanky speedster is expected to get two shots to keep the other pace bowling contenders in the playing XI for South Africa tour on tenterhooks.
Ishant put in the hard yards in the domestic circuit with 20 wickets from four Ranji Trophy games. He has bowled 116 overs in all, which has been a commendable effort as he was leading the side in all those games.
But it will be interesting to see if India persist with two spinners - especially Ravindra Jadeja, who made very little contribution with the ball and had a lukewarm match as a batsman.
If it's a case of variation in spin bowling, chinaman Kuldeep Yadav is an option but in case there is good carry, rookie Vijay Shankar could be handed his maiden Test cap.
Shankar's bowling is not menacing. He is at best a military medium pacer with a speed of nearly 120 kmph and 27 wickets in 32 first-class games. But it is his batting average of 49.16 with five hundreds and 10 fifties that makes him a contender.
With Hardik Pandya missing from the set-up, Shankar has a chance of fitting into the jigsaw puzzle, bringing the required stability that comes with a No. 6 batsman.
A total of 118 runs (with a century) and six wickets from three Ranji Trophy games will not warrant an India call-up unless someone is summoned for a specific role.
While KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara and skipper Kohli will come into the game brimming with confidence, Ajinkya Rahane will be looking to quickly hit the straps after his twin failure in Kolkata.
Sri Lanka, on their part, will be happy that they have not lost the first Test after initially dominating the home team for the better part of first four days.
There is a high chance that pacer Lahiru Gamage will lose his place in the playing XI after an indifferent performance on a seamer-friendly Eden Gardens track, where he went for 156 runs in two innings with only a wicket to show for his efforts.
If Sri Lanka continue to play three pacers, then left-arm pacer Vishwa Fernando could be an option, and in case they want to go with an extra slow bower, then chinaman Lakshan Sandakhan is waiting in the wings.
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