Galle [Sri Lanka], August 19 (ANI): Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva felt India's ability to turn the starts provided by KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal into big scores put the hosts under pressure in the first Test, which India won by 165 runs at the Galle International Stadium on Wednesday.
India, after winning the toss and opting to bat, posted 464 in their first innings. Rahul, who opened the innings, made a patient 82, while Padikkal, who came in at No 3, produced a commanding 167 to give the visitors a substantial first-innings advantage.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Dhananjaya said Sri Lanka found it difficult to recover after India built a big total.
"It was good to bat on the first three days. Obviously, the fourth innings won't be easy; everyone knows that, in Galle. But I thought that the starts that Rahul and Padikkal got, they made them big and put the pressure on us from there," the Sri Lankan skipper said at the post-match presentation.
Sri Lanka were bowled out for 284 in their first innings, despite a century from Sonal Dinusha and an 80 from Niroshan Dickwella. India then managed 193 in their second innings, setting the hosts a challenging target of 372.
The hosts began their fourth-innings chase positively but slipped to 84/4 before Dhananjaya and Dinusha combined to keep Sri Lanka's hopes alive. The pair added 95 runs before Jadeja dismissed the Sri Lankan captain for 59.
Dhananjaya's innings lasted 151 balls and included seven fours, while Dinusha followed his first-innings century with a fighting 84. However, India's spinners took control as the pitch deteriorated.
Manav Suthar emerged as the match-winner for India, taking six wickets for 55 runs in the second innings. He claimed three wickets in the 76th over to reduce Sri Lanka to 199/9 before returning in the following over to dismiss Keshara Nuwantha and complete his maiden 10-wicket haul in Test cricket.
Sri Lanka were eventually dismissed for 206, handing India a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.
Reflecting on his team's effort, Dhananjaya said, "I thought from the second day onwards, we were in the game mostly, and I thought the boys fought hard even in the fourth innings here. It's not easy, but yeah, I thought it's a good game."
Asked whether the toss had played a role, he said, "Maybe, yeah, because they won the toss and got the runs on the board. And, when we're batting, we just lost early wickets, and we were down and under from there."
India's victory gives them the advantage heading into the second and final Test of the series, which starts August 23 in Colombo.
Sri Lanka: 284 and 206: Sonal Dinusha 84, Dhananjaya de Silva 59, Manav Suthar 6/55 vs India; 464 and 193: (Rishabh Pant 66, Devdutt Padikkal 44, Asitha Fernando 4/31). (ANI)
"Starts that Rahul, Padikkal got, put pressure on us": Dhananjaya after defeat in Galle Test
