Tempers flared on Day 1 of the second Test at Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo, as India’s opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sri Lanka pacer Asitha Fernando engaged in physical altercation. The unfortunate incident took place after Fernando dismissed Jaiswal bowled on the last ball of the 17th over.
Fernando celebrated in an animated manner and had a few words to stay to Jaiswal. The opener was walking back to the dressing room but he returned to have a word with Fernando which led to a heated altercation. There was body contact between the two as Jaiswal and Fernando came head to head. Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva intervened and asked Jaiswal to walk back to the dressing room.
Jaiswal and Fernando may face sanctions from the match referee Andy Pycroft for the heated exchange.
The opener departed after scoring 45 runs from 53 balls including nine fours. He had hit Fernando for three fours in the same over. Once again, Jaiswal was cramped for room and he ended up getting out bowled via an inside edge. After a good start, the 24-year-old missed a chance to score his 14th Test fifty and go on to get a big score. After Jaiswal's wicket, India were 66/2.
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Earlier in the first session, KL Rahul was dismissed cheaply by Lahiru Kumar. The opener scored 18 runs from 33 balls, including two fours and a six.
At the end of first session, India were 88/2 from 25 overs with Devdutt Padikkal and Shubman Gill in the middle. Padikkal was batting on 13 off 35 balls. Gill faced 29 balls to score 11 runs.
Gill makes one change
Skipper Gill won the tosss and opted to bat first. He made one change to the lineup, replacing Kuldeep Yadav with debutant Saransh Jain. Gill said that Kuldeep was unavailable for selection due to an infection. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) put out a statement, saying that the left-arm wrist spinner is yet to recover from a viral illness. However, he can play as a concussion substitute if the need arises.