Sri Lankan Test captain Dhananjaya de Silva has warned the Indian team, led by Shubman Gill, stating that the hosts have the upper hand comparatively because of their veteran spinner Prabath Jayasuriya’s presence in their line-up.
“Stats-wise, we have the upper hand. Prabath has played more matches than any other guy in the two teams, especially in Galle. He has had the upper hand over many touring batting lineups over the years. Plus-one to Sri Lanka, I would say,” he said.
De Silva also emphasised that the Indian veteran batter KL Rahul would pose a big threat to their side, adding that Rahul had put up good numbers when they last toured Sri Lanka way back in 2017.
“I would say experience-wise, KL Rahul would be the biggest threat for us. He has done well all around the world, and he has played a few matches in Sri Lanka as well. Last time (in 2017), I think he played in our conditions and knows it pretty well,” Dhananjaya de Silva added.
Additionally, De Silva has reckoned that the Indian ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah’s absence would be a major setback for the visitors. However, he doesn’t want to take India on a lighter note when these two sides clash against each other.
“Even if India are missing some of their key players, I’m not going to take them lightly. They have several match-winners in their team. He (Bumrah) will be a big loss for India. But we’ve done our homework for them, and we’re well prepared for them,” he concluded.
India’s updated squad for the Test series against Sri Lanka: Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi, Sarfaraz Khan
