India might have landed in Sri Lanka just Tuesday, but they have already managed to fit in two three-hour-long practice sessions ahead of their only tour match, a three-day affair against SLC XI starting on Friday at the Nondescript Cricket Club (NCC).
The NCC is one of three tightly clustered grounds surrounding Maitland Place, with the Colombo Cricket Club (CCC) opposite and the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) sharing a border. Sri Lanka Cricket HQ is just a brief walk away. Safe to say there is almost always something cricket-related afoot in the area, but for any passersby on Thursday, there would have been no discernible sign that one of cricket’s juggernauts was fine-tuning their approach nearby.
One reason for that was strict protocol in place for entry at the club, with even media personnel vetted heavily before accessing the ground, which was marshalled by armed security. But aside from that imposing welcome, everything accompanying it was rather serene. The NCC has everything you want from a quaint cricketing venue, with palm trees decorating the boundary fringes alongside colonial pavilions.
True, the NCC does not possess the sweeping grandstands of the Premadasa or the iconic scenic backdrop of the fort in Galle – where the first Test will take place – but during India’s initial training sessions, it offered a glimpse of their preparedness.
It was a scorching afternoon, but after around an hour into the session, a light cloud cover provided relief to the players toiling in the nets. Unsurprisingly, with Galle the first port of call, the focus on Thursday was squarely on spin. With World Test Championship points at stake, India are certainly not taking this series lightly, and the dry, responsive patches on the local practice wickets served as an adequate dress rehearsal for the turn expected in the first Test starting on August 15. India are currently fifth on the WTC table, just one place ahead of their opponents.
Having spent a year away from the longest format, Ravindra Jadeja enters this tour needing to rapidly rebuild his Test-bowling mileage. On Thursday, he had a 30-minute stint alongside Kuldeep Yadav, as the pair took turns bowling to KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal, among others. Captain Shubman Gill also made an appearance, allaying any fears from the knock to his thumb the previous day.
Even after Jadeja stepped aside, Kuldeep kept going in likely preparation for the heavy workload that might be expected of him during the series. He was also seen having small chats with batters, perhaps discussing the behaviour of the ball and the surface.
Alongside the pair also getting their reps in were the other two spinners in the squad, Manav Suthar and Saransh Jain. Jain, in particular, will have a role to play against Sri Lanka’s left-hand batters. The 33-year-old earned his maiden Test call-up following several years with Madhya Pradesh and an impressive India A tour of Sri Lanka. As the only specialist offspinner in the squad, Jain was utilised to bowl at India’s left-hand batters.
About 90 minutes in, the sound of seam bowlers slamming the ball into the deck was replaced entirely by a tripling down on combatting spin. After Jadeja and Kuldeep finished their stints, the travelling contingent of net bowlers took over, while the nearby seated schoolboy cricketers – ever at the ready – were drafted in to offer their spin-bowling services.
Recognising the need for even more volume and variety to stretch India’s top order, head coach Gautam Gambhir and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak at one point decided to abandon one of the traditional strips altogether. To replicate the chaotic, volatile nature of a historical day-four pitch at Galle, they used a tape measure and marked out 22 yards over uncurated turf – replete with uneven tufts of grass, natural cracks, and loose soil.
A handful of schoolboy spinners were immediately marshalled to this makeshift strip, and the teenagers were instructed to simply let rip. The result was immediate. One delivery from a lanky schoolboy offspinner gripped the grass and jumped violently off a length, another passed across to the batter’s grill, while the next would keep low, skidding under the bat.
India’s frontline batters took turns stepping onto this exposed patch, forcing themselves entirely out of their comfort zones, and preparing for the worst Galle could offer.
SLC squad to face India
Nishan Madushka, Ravindu Rashantha, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Pavan Rathnayake, Ahan Wickramasinghe, Sonal Dinusha (capt), Anjala Bandara (wk), Nipun Dananjaya, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando, Asanka Manoj, Isitha Wijesundara, Ramesh Mendis, Kesara Nuwantha, Dilum Sudeera