With magnificent performances from centurion Devdutt Padikkal and a ten-wicket haul from Manav Suthar, Team India secured a massive 165-run win in their 600th Test, beating Sri Lanka at Galle on Wednesday. Ever since India’s international debut in 1932, India’s journey in the Test arena has been nothing short of inspirational.
Indian cricket, right from the era of CK Nayadu to Kapil Dev to Sachin Tendulkar to Virat Kohli, has shaped the way the longer format has moved ahead While not the most dominant team on the planet historically.
With magnificent performances from centurion Devdutt Padikkal and a ten-wicket haul from Manav Suthar, Team India secured a massive 165-run win in their 600th Test.
India’s most successful Test captain is Virat, with 40 wins in 68 Tests since he first took over the reins in 2014 during the tour of Australia in the absence of an injured MS Dhoni. He led India to a historic series win in Australia in 2018-19 and a total of seven Test wins in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) conditions, the most by an Asian captain. Knocks from Devdutt Padikkal (167 in 230 balls, with 15 fours and a six), KL Rahul (82 in 175 balls, with 10 fours and a six) and Dhruv Jurel (51 in 68 balls, with four boundaries and a six) helped them reach 462. Prabath Jayasuriya (4/109) and Keshara Nuwantha (3/175) were among the top bowlers in the first innings. Prasidh Krishna (2/16 in 10 overs) bowled an exceptional spell of pace, while Mohammed Siraj and Ravindra Jadeja also took a wicket each. India are 1-0 up in the two-match Test series.
Coming to the match, India won the toss and elected to bat first. From being a spin-dominant team with stars like Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, and Srinivas Venkataraghavan at the forefront from the 1960s to the 1970s to Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja bossing world cricket with a healthy mix of pace and spin, India has evolved massively as a Test nation in bowling. the quality of pace bowlers and their speed are also a sight to behold, with Bumrah, Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Bhuvneshwar Kumar being just a few who have struck fear in their opponents’ minds with their skillset, pace and overall aura While the spin culture still thrives. In the 21st century, three captains, Sourav Ganguly, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, transformed India’s Test fortunes in their own ways. Be it backing young talent, teaching the team to win overseas, reaching the number one ranking under Dhoni, or developing a culture focused on fitness and fast bowling while producing consistent run machines, India has become one of the major powers in Test cricket’s modern era.
