August 29, 2015
Brief Scorecard: India 292 for 8 (Pujara 135*, Mishra 59, Prasad 4-83) v Sri Lanka
Cheteshwar Pujara acknowledges the applause after making hundred, Sri Lanka v India, 3rd Test, SSC, Colombo, 2nd day, August 29, 2015
August 29, 2015
Brief Scorecard: India 292 for 8 (Pujara 135*, Mishra 59, Prasad 4-83) v Sri Lanka
Cheteshwar Pujara acknowledges the applause after making hundred, Sri Lanka v India, 3rd Test, SSC, Colombo, 2nd day, August 29, 2015
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA – India's comeback man Cheteshwar Pujara stood firm and recorded his seventh Test century as India lost seven wickets with the score at 220 at tea on the second day of the third and final Test against Sri Lanka at the SSC ground in Colombo on Saturday.
Stuart Binny was dismissed for a first-ball duck off the bowling of pacer Dhammika Prasad to leave India struggling at the start of the post-lunch session. Debutant wicketkeeper Naman Ojha, brought in to replace the injured Wriddhiman Saha, hung around for a while before a loose shot off Tharindu Kaushal's bowling saw him depart for 21 with the score 173 for six. Ravichandran Ashwin departed soon after.
Amit Mishra gave Pujara some company out in the middle, the partnership between the two lasting 40 runs and almost 12 overs thus far.
Resuming on the rain-hit first day score of 50 for two, the visitors lost captain Virat Kohli (18) early but Pujara (55 not out) and Rohit Sharma (26) added 55 for the fourth wicket to prop up the Indian innings in the deciding match of the series, tied at 1-1.
Rohit, who has recently been preferred to Pujara in the Test team, fell in the last over before the break, edging Prasad to Upul Tharanga at first slip. After a rain-hit opening day when just 15 overs of play was possible, Sri Lanka came back strongly with Prasad troubling the batsmen on numerous occasions.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Amit Mishra shared a 104-run eighth-wicket stand, Sri Lanka v India, 3rd Test, SSC, Colombo, 2nd day, August 29, 2015
India's scoring opportunities soon dried up and captain Angelo Mathews benefited from the build-up of pressure when Kohli edged behind to give debutant wicketkeeper Kusal Perera, who had dropped the batsman on Friday, his first Test catch.
Pujara, playing his first Test since the Boxing Day match against Australia in December, and Kohli added 50 for their third-wicket stand. The right-handed Pujara looked solid in defence but failed to rotate the strike and only found his scoring touch when Mathews introduced off-spinner Tharindu Kaushal into the attack.
Pujara hit Kaushal for three consecutive boundaries and then completed his fifty with a pull shot for a single to mid-wicket.
India looked set to go to the break for just the loss of Kohli in the morning session but Prasad's inspired spell garnered another breakthrough when he found Rohit's edge with the interval looming.
Courtesy: HT
