The Indian team is preparing for a two-match Test series against Sri Lanka on their soil this month. The first match is scheduled for August 15 at the Galle International Stadium, and the second and final match will take place on August 23 at the Singlish Sports Club in Colombo. Before the series begins, the team participates in a three-day practice match against the Sri Lankan Cricket XI, which is being held at the NCC Ground in Colombo.
During the second day of this match, on August 8, Devdhadhat Padikkal demonstrated outstanding play, scoring 103 runs off 121 balls, including 14 fours. He completed his century by hitting a four off Ramesh Mendis. However, immediately after reaching one hundred runs, Padikkal was forced to leave the field as a retired player.
By scoring a hundred, Padikkal strengthened his claim for the number three position. Since Sai Sudarshan is unavailable for the Test series, it is now considered likely that Padikkal will play at number three in the Galle match. Nevertheless, India also has another option for the number three spot—Dhruv Jurel.
India's start to the first innings was unsuccessful: Yashasvi Jaiswal returned to the dressing room after just the second ball, without scoring a single run. He was dismissed by the fast bowler Vishwa Fernando. Following this, Kel Rule and Devdhadhat Padikkal formed a partnership of 96 runs for the second wicket. Rule scored 40 runs off 67 balls, using five fours and one six.
Kel Rule took the wicket of Kesara Nuwanta. After Rule's dismissal, Ravindra Jadeja and Padikkal formed a partnership of 72 runs for the third wicket. Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant disappointed, scoring only 2 runs before being dismissed by Ramesh Mendis. Mendis then also removed Dhruv Jurel (1 run).
It is worth noting that the Sri Lankan Cricket XI declared the first innings at 363/8. Ravindu Rasanta scored the most runs—71. Nishan Madushka (66 runs) and captain Sonal Dinusha (52 runs) also played half-centuries. Pawan Ratnayake (39 runs), Pasindu Suryabandara (35 runs), Ramesh Mendis (32 runs), and Ahan Vikramsinghe (31 runs) also made useful contributions. From India's side, spin bowlers Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, and Manav Sutar each took two wickets.
The Sri Lankan Cricket XI squad included: Nishan Madushka, Ravindu Rasanta, Pasindu Suryabandara, Pawan Ratnayake, Ahan Vikramsinghe, Sonal Dinusha (captain), Anjalee Bandara (wicketkeeper), Nipun Dhandhaya, Lahiru Kumar, Vishwa Fernando, Asanka Manoj, Isita Wijesundura, Ramesh Mendis, Kesara Nuwanta, and Dilum Sudiru.
The Indian team squad consisted of: Shubman Gill (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudarshan, Devdhadhat Padikkal, Kel Rule, Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Manav Sutar, Saransh Jain, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akib Nabi, and Gurnoor Baar.
