Siraj not hurt: Gill offers bizarre explanation for scrappy Colombo Test show

Captain Shubman Gill has backed his team-mates and their efforts despite missing the chance to complete the Test series 2-0 in Sri Lanka. Gill defended Mohammed Siraj’s work with the ball, dismissing rumors that the senior fast bowler was dealing with injuries during the series, particularly in the second Test, which ended in a draw on Thursday, August 27.

This was followed by Gill’s comments India failed to take the last four Sri Lankan wickets on day 5 of the second test. Asked to continue, Sri Lanka started the final day with just four wickets in hand. However, 25-year-old Sonal Dinusha kept the Indian bowlers at bay throughout the day, hitting an unbeaten 133 to ensure Sri Lanka held India to a draw. The home team declared at 429 for 9 after batting 154 overs in their second innings, prompting the two captains to shake hands an hour before the scheduled end of play.

Siraj was far from at his best, lacking the rhythm and pace he usually provides, even on the last day of a Test series. The fast bowler bowled 15 overs and conceded just 26 runs but lacked the bite needed to get the job done for India. Siraj suffered a rib injury when he started on Day 4, but Gill said there were no fitness issues despite his pace dropping on the final day.

“There are no injury concerns for him. I felt his pace was a bit off in this series but he played after a few months. It takes time to come back,” Gill said while talking to reporters.

India won the Test series 1-0 but their chances of reaching the World Test Championship finalI got a huge blow. India remained fifth behind Bangladesh with five wins from 11 matches in the ongoing WTC cycle.

THE FOLLOWING IS NOT THE OPPOSITE: GILL

The match was firmly in India’s control as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 290 after scoring 503 in their first innings. Fearing a weather interruption, India opted to push for a resumption on Day 4 in the morning despite bowling out 89.4 overs in the first innings. India had Sri Lanka on 218 for 6 but Sonal Dinusha continued to hurt the visitors, this time scoring an unbeaten 133 to deny India victory.

“The follow-on didn’t turn, it was the best decision we made given the weather,” said Gill, defending the challenge on Day 4.

Dinusha finished the series with 420 runs, including three hundreds and a fifty, and played one of the best knocks in the fourth innings of a Test. He swept the Indian spinners at will and used his feet effectively to disrupt their rhythm. Manav Suthar, Ravindra Jadeja and debutant Saransh Jain were unable to stay penetrative on a pitch that did not collapse as expected on the last day.

Gill defended his bowlers, saying he would not fault their effort and instead pointed to the pitch not offering them enough assistance, especially on the final day.

“Things don’t always go according to plan, so it’s a lot of learning for me as captain. I give 10 out of 10 for everyone’s effort and intent. It’s not easy to start in these conditions for three days. We gave it our best,” he said.

“A lot of positives for us, learning from the opposition. The way they came back was tremendous to see. I don’t think we could have done things differently. They played brilliantly in this game,” he added, giving Sonal plenty of credit.

It was India’s first overseas Test series win under Gill and coach Gautam Gambhir. However, it was a bittersweet end to the series as India were held to a draw despite dominating the match for four days.

In fact, this was the first draw at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Test cricket in 11 years, with the venue producing eight straight results during that period.

– The end

Issued by:

Akshay Ramesh

Published on:

27 Aug 2026 19:20 IST