Gambhir impressed by rise in young players ahead of Sri Lanka Test

COLOMBO: India's head coach Gautam Gambhir expressed satisfaction with the rise of younger players ahead of the upcoming second Test against Sri Lanka. India is currently leading the two-match series 1-0, and a win in Colombo would help keep hopes of reaching the World Test Championship final alive. One of the standout performers in India's recent victory in Galle was young batsman Devdutt Padikkal, who scored two half-centuries.

Spinner Manav Suthar, debuting for India in this series, took a match-winning tally of 10 wickets. Gambhir noted that seeing these younger players step up and perform well is "extremely satisfying," but emphasized that there is still much work to be done. He added that the team is in a "transition phase in Tests" and that there is no reason to be concerned, as they have been performing reasonably well in recent years.

Gambhir also argued for more three-match series, as two-match contests offer little opportunity for a team to recover from an early setback. Sri Lankan captain Dhananjaya de Silva hinted that top-order batter Kamil Mishara would likely make his Test debut in Colombo, as the left-handed batsman has been a prolific run-scorer in recent first-class matches.

Both teams are evenly matched, and de Silva expects a strong performance from Sri Lanka in the upcoming Test.