We tried too hard after seeing Sri Lanka do well: Bhuvneshwar
Rangana Herath was the unexpected batting star for Sri Lanka on the fourth day of the rain-affected first Test against India at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens on Sunday, top-scoring in his team’s first-innings total of 294 with 67.
It was the 39-year-old Herath’s third Test half-century and he thwarted a spirited fightback by India’s bowlers and helped Sri Lanka take a 122-run first-innings lead before India rode on quick half-centuries from KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan to get to 171 for 1 in its second dig, a lead of 49.
In his typically modest manner, Herath attributed his success with the bat to the pitch changing its nature. “Compared to the first two days, today was much better to bat. We were able to take a lead because of that,” said Herath of the Eden track where fast bowlers from both teams have made the ball talk and spinners have had very little to do. “It is compared to the first two days a much better wicket. I wanted to play the shots. Stay positive.”
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who ended with 4 for 88, lauded Herath for his show with the bat but agreed that the fourth-day pitch, especially after the first hour, had become easier to bat on.
“He batted really well. We could have also got him out early, we could have stopped them under 60-70 runs. But he played really well. He played all the shots that he wanted. That’s how you can bat on this wicket,” said Bhuvneshwar.
“The wicket got better if you compare to those two days, and that is quite evident from the way our batsmen are batting,” he went on. “We tried our best, yes we bowled a few bad balls. We could have improved on that. Overall, though, we're not completely satisfied, the way we started and the wicket got better, I think we'd be happy with the way we got them out on that total.”
So far, spinners have only bowled 31 of the 182.4 overs played, and apart from Dilruwan Perera’s two wickets in the Indian first innings, all the wickets – 21 in total – have gone to pacers. From the Indian point of view, it was only the third instance of pacers picking up all 10 wickets in a Test innings at home. The last occasion came in Ahmedabad in 1983, when Kapil Dev picked up nine wickets and Balwinder Singh Sandhu one against Windies.
“It’s good for us that we are playing in India on such wickets,” said Bhuvneshwar. “But if you see everyone has tried that whatever conditions we get, we have to make the most out of that. We haven’t got such wickets often. So as pacers we were talking that since we have got this wicket we should make it count.
“We bowled a bit badly as well, because we were tired and there was too much humidity too. But we did as much as we could have done on this wicket, we bowled well enough. When we were watching the way the Sri Lankans were bowling, we were excited to bowl on that wicket. But that (pitch) totally changed. Yes, we tried too hard; we could have stopped a few runs. I think we could have been more patient.”
Speaking specifically about Mohammed Shami, who returned 4 for 100 and bowled beautifully but limped off at one point too, Bhuvneshwar allayed fears of an injury, adding, “Today he was a bit unlucky. He was beating them a lot but wasn’t lucky. He gave us a breakthrough in the morning and the way he bowled through the morning until lunch was amazing.”
Understandably, Herath, who has so far bowled five overs without success, wasn’t as pleased with the playing strip as Bhuvneshwar was. “As a spinner, I can’t say great wicket. I like to see some turn. There’s no turn on this wicket and little assistance (for spinners). When you are getting to the fourth innings there will be some turn and I am sure the spinners will have their chance,” he said.
Having said that the eased-out pitch had made batting easier on the fourth day, Bhuvneshwar did have words of praise for Rahul and Dhawan, who put together 166 for the first wicket. Dhawan fell for 94 towards the end of the day, while Rahul remained unbeaten on 73.
“It's unlucky the way he got out (edging Dasun Shanaka in the second innings). It was a tough wicket to bat on in the first innings. But in the second innings he put us in a good position,” said Bhuvneshwar of the opener’s 116-ball knock.
Herath, meanwhile, lauded Rahul, who had been dismissed for a first-ball duck in India’s first innings. “When we played India in Sri Lanka, he scored a superb hundred against us at the P Sara Oval. He is young but has matured a lot. An opening batsman has lot of responsibility and he has the ability to take that responsibility. He has a bright future,” said the veteran.
With the pitch easing out after offering a lot of spice to the pacers for three-and-some days, a draw appeared the likeliest result. “It depends on how we play in the first session, especially the first hour, and then we'll see how it goes,” was all Bhuvneshwar would say when asked for a prediction.
