India's Test captain Shubman Gill has hinted at sticking with Prasidh Krishna as Mohammed Siraj's pace-bowling partner for the first Test of the series against Sri Lanka at Galle International Stadium starting on August 15. Gill says that it is a 'tough call' between Krishna and Gurnoor Brar who is yet to make his Test debut. He almost confirmed that Jasprit Bumrah's injury replacement, Auqib Nabi is not in like to make his Test debut in Galle.
"Gurnoor Brar is excellent with the old ball as he can extract bounce at a good pace. But Prasidh Krishna is bowling well of late as we have seen in the warm-up match. So it's a tough call," Gill told the reporters in Galle.
"Jasprit Bumrah is not here but it's an opportunity for someone to step up. It's all about understanding the pace of the game," he added.
Krishna & Brar’s recent form
Krishna managed just one wicket in the three-day practice game against Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) XI in Colombo. On the other hand, Brar bagged three in the practice game. Krishna opened the bowling alongside Siraj in the one-off Test against Afghanistan where Bumrah was rested. Krishna bagged three wickets in the first innings in Chandigarh.
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Gill backs Padikkal, Jurel
Gill also indicated that Devdutt Padikkal is likely to bat at no.3 in the absence of an unfit Sai Sudharsan. Also, Dhruv Jurel may retain his place in the middle order with Sarfaraz Khan on the bench. He backed Jurel to overcome the rough patch.
Gill on Test series’ preparation and WTC final goal
In addition, Gill has called for seven to 10 days of preparation before every Test series to adapt. He is looking forward to the Sri Lanka Test series with his eyes set on the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 final. He says that India need to win five to six out of their remaining Tests in the current cycle to make it to their third WTC final.
India’s squad for Test series against Sri Lanka
Shubman Gill (c), KL Rahul (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sai Sudharsan*, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi.