Determined to overcome his recent struggles, Shubman Gill turned his attention directly toward conquering left-arm orthodox bowling during India’s practice ahead of the second Test against Sri Lanka. The skipper’s targeted net session at the Sinhalese Sports Club was a direct response to his dual failures against Prabath Jayasuriya in Galle, where he managed scores of just 16 and 8. Even though India marched away with a comfortable 165-run win, Gill's personal performance highlighted a persistent vulnerability in his batting approach.
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Gill fine-tunes his spin game for Colombo Test
The numbers reveal why this specific tweak in strategy has become a priority. Across his 42 Test matches, Gill has been removed by left-arm spinners 11 times, primarily due to difficulty lining up the ball's natural drift and turn. To iron out these technical flaws, the captain enlisted a heavy rotation of left-arm spinners—including Ravindra Jadeja, Manav Suthar, and local net bowlers—spending an extended period refining his movement and shot selection.
Interestingly, left-arm orthodox bowling remains the sole anomaly in an otherwise dominant game against spin. Gill boasts an impressive combined average of roughly 61 against both off-spinners and wrist-spinners, maintaining a solid overall career mark near 48 against spin as a whole. Resolving this single tactical blind spot could prove crucial as he looks to lead from the front in Colombo.
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Saransh Jain toils hard in the nets, Kuldeep Yadav's load off
Taking a lighter load ahead of the Colombo Test, wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav was present at Friday’s practice session but completely bypassed any batting or bowling duties. The decision to rest his arm follows a quiet opening Test in Galle, where he picked up just a single wicket—courtesy of a sharp catch from Shubman Gill at cover—while conceding 103 runs over 25 overs.
In contrast, off-spinner Saransh Jain was given an extended run in the nets, bowling directly to Rishabh Pant and Gill. While Jain managed to beat Pant's bat on a few deliveries, his heavy workload appears to be routine practice rather than a sign that he will replace Kuldeep in the final XI.
Meanwhile, top-order key player KL Rahul was absent from the day's training entirely, whereas middle-order batter Dhruv Jurel arrived later in the day for a brief batting stint. Both players enter the match with strong momentum, having notched crucial second-innings fifties that set up India's massive 165-run win in the series opener.