india-vs-sri-lanka-2017

Updated: Jul 26, 2017 17:57 IST

Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara scored big centuries to put India in a strong position on Day 1 of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka. Dhawan scored 126 runs in the second session alone, leaving India in a commanding position going into the second day of the Test. Virat Kohli had won the toss and chose to bat. Hardik Pandya was handed his Test debut. Get full cricket score of India vs Sri Lanka here. (LIVE SCORECARD | LIVE STREAMING)

17:51 hrs IST: That’s all from our side, thank you so much for joining us today. Do join us tomorrow for our coverage of Day 2!

17:42 hrs IST: The longer India bat, the better it will be for their spinners. As of now, the track still has something to offer for the batsmen but the pitch will undoubtedly deteriorate as the days go by.

17:32 hrs IST: On the flip side, it was a poor day for Sri Lanka. Bowlers didn’t do enough to get wickets at regular intervals. But Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara were ruthless.

17:30 hrs IST: And that’s stumps. What a day it’s been for India, who scored their highest ever total on the first day of an away Test match.

17:24 hrs IST: India are 393/3, which is their highest first day score in a Test match away from home.

17:20 hrs IST: FOUR! Pujara gets one away towards the sweeper cover area.

17:19 hrs IST: 100 run partnership comes up between Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara.

17:14 hrs IST: After 86 overs, India are 383/3.

17:10 hrs IST: FOUR! Pradeep strays onto the pads and it’s 4 leg byes. Well, they all count.

17:08 hrs IST: FOUR! Short and wide from Pradeep and Pujara punishes him.

17:06 hrs IST: India looking to bat out the remaining overs and not take unnecessary risks. They are now 372/3 after 84 overs.

16:59 hrs IST: Herath surprisingly gives himself the new ball. But its a good over. India are 364/3 after 82 overs.

16:56 hrs IST: And the over is a predictably quiet one. India are 363/3 after 81 overs.

16:53 hrs IST: Naturally, it’s Nuwan Pradeep who’s given the new ball first up.

16:52 hrs IST: With 80 overs gone, India are 361/3. New ball has been taken.

16:49 hrs IST: Anything around 500 would have the hosts in all sorts of trouble. Expect India to declare soon after lunch tomorrow.

16:46 hrs IST: Dilruwan Perera still wicket-less. India are 355/3 after 78 overs.

16:39 hrs IST: India seem to determined to play the day out now. They are 348/3 after 76 overs.

16:33 hrs IST: And with 74 overs played, India are 345/3.

16:25 hrs IST: FOUR! Pujara with a beautiful cover drive and it races to the boundary.

16:17 hrs IST: FOUR! Rahane dances down the wicket, takes the aerial route and gets a boundary. India are 335/3 after 72 overs.

16:10 hrs IST: Scoring has slowed down considerably, not that it matters much at this point. India are 327/3 after 70 overs.

16:01 hrs IST: After 68 overs, India are 322/3.

15:57 hrs IST: HUNDRED FOR PUJARA! He’s played a quietly brilliant innings here.

15:51 hrs IST: AND ANOTHER! This time Pujara goes straight down the field. India are 313/3 after 66 overs.

15:50 hrs IST: FOUR! Pujara gives Herath the charge and creams him through the off side for a boundary.

15:44 hrs IST: With 64 overs gone, India are 301/3.

15:37 hrs IST: And the 300 is up for India. Despite the scoring rate slowing down in the final session, they should easily get past 350 if these two stick around for the remainder of the day.

15:35 hrs IST: Rahane plays out another Rangana Herath maiden over. India are 298/3 after 62 overs.

15:27 hrs IST: The departure of Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli has slowed down the scoring. Herath bowls another maiden over and India are 294/3 after 60 overs.

15:19 hrs IST: FOUR! Rahane gets his first boundary of the day. India are 292/3 after 58 overs.

15:14 hrs IST: That was a disappointing end for Kohli as he became Nuwan Pradeep’s third victim of the match. IND 286/3

15:10 hrs IST: A bouncer flew past Virat Kohli’s bat, but the Sri Lankan players believe that they was some contact. The review worked and that’s the end of Kohli! IND 286/3

15:08 hrs IST: A gentle nudge by Virat Kohli and the Indian skipper gets two runs. IND 286/2

15:05 hrs IST: A quiet start to the third session with just one run coming off that Rangana Herath over. IND 283/2

15:01 hrs IST: The batsmen are coming out for the final session of the day. IND 282/2

14:46 hrs IST: In the second session, Shikhar Dhawan scored 126 runs on his own. That is phenomenal striking from the southpaw.

14:42 hrs IST: And that’s tea. India end the second session at 282/2 with 55 overs played. Shikhar Dhawan’s dominating innings has set India up very well going into the third session.

14:37 hrs IST: WICKET! Oh dear, Shikar Dhawan holes out at 190. But what an innings it has been from him, even if he fell short of that well-deserved 200 by 10 runs.

14:35 hrs IST: FOUR! Shikhar Dhawan sweeps to bring up his highest score in Test cricket. India are 280/1 after 54 overs.

14:25 hrs IST: India are 268/1 after 52 overs.

14:22 hrs IST: FOUR! Shikhar Dhawan is literally having a laugh at this point. This one is again cut late through the off side.

14:20 hrs IST: FOUR! Oh dear, this just keeps getting worse for Sri Lanka. Shikhar Dhawan now unleashes a standing paddle sweep to get to his second highest individual score in Test cricket.

14:17 hrs IST: TWO FOURS! Dhawan makes a bit of room and slashes this one through the off side. He then pulls him to the deep mid-wicket area for another four. India are 255/1 after 50 overs.

14:10 hrs IST: With 48 overs gone, India are 241/1.

14:08 hrs IST: TWO FOURS! Shikhar Dhawan now paddle sweeps Herath for yet another boundary. He then smacks him straight down the ground. Sri Lanka look clueless right now.

14:04 hrs IST: FOUR! ShikharDhawan now cuts Gunathilaka for a boundary. This is relentless batting. He then takes a single to bring up his 150!

14:03 hrs IST: Pujara, in stark contrast to Shikhar Dhawan, is looking to play it slow at the moment. India are 222/1 after 46 overs.

13:58 hrs IST: FOUR! Short and somewhat wide and Shikhar Dhawan doesn’t spare the bad ball. Pulled to the on-side boundary.

13:56 hrs IST: Herath bowls only his 8th over of the game and concedes just one run. India are 212/1 after 44 overs.

13:51 hrs IST: TWO FOURS! Dhawan sweeps Dilruwan for a boundary then hits another to backward square leg. Makes you wonder why Herath hasn’t brought himself on, given the struggles of the other bowlers.

13:50 hrs IST: With 42 overs gone, India are 202/1.

13:43 hrs IST: 200 up for India. This is some seriously impressive batting on display here.

13:39 hrs IST: AND AGAIN! Dhawan is enjoying batting against Kumara, who keeps serving up some loose balls. India are 199/1 after 40 overs.

13:38 hrs IST: FOUR AGAIN! Dhawan flicks a loose full-toss through the leg side.

13:36 hrs IST: FOUR! Dhawan once again slams one through the off side.

13:30 hrs IST: Expensive over from Lahiru Kumara, who got hit for two boundaries and followed it up with consecutive wides. India are 184/1 after 38 overs.

13:26 hrs IST: FIFTY FOR PUJARA! He too brings it up with a boundary. This is his first half century against Sri Lanka. He then follows it up with another beautiful drive through the on side.

13:22 hrs IST: FOUR! Yes it’s Dhawan again, playing a beautiful late cut down to the third man region.

13:21 hrs IST: Pujara’s in no rush to get to his fifty, and is happy to let Dhawan do the hitting. India are 166/1 after 36 overs.

13:12 hrs IST: CENTURY FOR DHAWAN! Brings it up in style as well with a boundary. This is his 5th century in Test cricket and 2nd against Sri Lanka. Coincidentally, that first ton against Sri Lanka also came at Galle.

13:11 hrs IST: With 34 overs gone, India are 154/1.

13:08 hrs IST: FOUR! My word, Dhawan is scoring very freely at this point. Beautifully cuts Pradeep to inch closer to his hundred.

13:05 hrs IST: FOUR AGAIN! This time it’s a late cut through the off side.

13:04 hrs IST: FOUR! Dhawan with a lovely sweep through the on side.

13:03 hrs IST: Rare maiden over courtesy of Nuwan Pradeep. India are 136/1 after 32 overs.

12:57 hrs IST: FOUR! Dhawan is not letting up here; he hits yet another boundary through the off side.

12:54 hrs IST: India are 131/1 after 30 overs.

12:53 hrs IST: Update on Asela Gunaratne: he’s been rushed to Colombo for an operation on his left thumb and will not play the remainder of this game. Here’s wishing him a speedy recovery.

12:51 hrs IST: FOUR! Pradeep’s short ball doesn’t trouble Dhawan, who pulls it for yet another boundary.

12:48 hrs IST: TWO FOURS! Dhawan dances down the track and drives Herath through the off side. Next ball he plays him straight down the ground.

12:45 hrs IST: And it’s a good over to start with. India are 117/1 after 28 overs.

12:40 hrs IST: Nuwan Pradeep will bowl the first over in the afternoon session.

12:01 hrs IST: India are 115/1 after 27 overs. And lunch has been called. India will be very pleased with how they’ve played in the first session. Sri Lanka pulled things back a bit towards the end as far as stemming the flow of runs is concerned but will look for more wickets after lunch. Play resumes at 12:40 hrs IST.

11:53 hrs IST: TWO FOURS! First Dhawan charges down and hits Herath for a very straight boundary. Next he sweeps him after the skipper went a little wide. India are 107/1 with 25 overs played.

11:51 hrs IST: India are now dealing in ones and twos; spin is proving harder to take on. They are 97/1 after 24 overs.

11:45 hrs IST: Fifty for Shikhar Dhawan! This is his 4th half-century in Test cricket. India are 92/1 after 22 overs.

11:39 hrs IST: Sri Lanka’s ploy to employ spin from both ends is working for now. India are 85/1 after 20 overs.

11:36 hrs IST: Rangana Herath’s first over goes for just one run. India are 83/1 after 19 overs.

11:31 hrs IST: Dhawan takes a single to keep the strike. India are 82/1 after 18 overs.

11:29 hrs IST: FOUR! Dhawan gets on top of an attempted bouncer by Kumara.

11:28 hrs IST: And the 50-run partnership between Pujara and Dhawan comes up, off just 60 balls too. They have looked to score at a brisk pace all morning.

11:24 hrs IST: FOUR! Pujara pulls a long hop from Perera. India are 75/1 after 17 overs.

11:17 hrs IST: With 15 overs gone, India are 65/1.

11:09 hrs IST: Things go from bad to worse for Kumara. First he bowls a beamer. The next ball he finds Dhawan’s edge but the catch is dropped by Asela Gunaratne. To make matters even worse, Gunaratne seems to have injured his wrist in the process and is now going off the field for treatment.

11:08 hrs IST: AND ANOTHER FOUR! Fuller this time but the line is too much on the leg side. Dhawan easily flicks it to the boundary.

11:06 hrs IST: FOUR! Kumara bangs it in short but it’s too wide and Dhawan duly pulls one to the fine leg boundary.

10:57 hrs IST: FOUR! Pujara with a lovely shot through the deep mid-wicket region. India are 47/2 after 12 overs.

10:50 hrs IST: With 10 overs played, India are 41/1.

10:41 hrs IST: FOUR! Cheteshwar Pujara, new to the crease, gets his first boundary with an edge to third man. India are 31/1 after 8 overs.

10:38 hrs IST: WICKET! Good length ball from Pradeep outside off stump. Mukund gets an edge and Dickwella duly collects. India are 27/1 after 7.3 overs.

10:34 hrs IST: FOUR! Dhawan is not messing around here. He hits Dilruwan Perera’s first delivery through the on side for a boundary. Pressure is on him straight away.

10:30 hrs IST: FOUR! Mukund with a lovely shot through the cover region. No protection out there so it duly rolls to the boundary. India are 23/0 after 6 overs.

10:26 hrs IST: Both Dhawan and Mukund are looking steady so far. India are 16/0 after 5 overs.

10:19 hrs IST: FOUR! Mukund now plays a lovely shot to the deep square leg boundary.

10: 16 hrs IST: India are 11/0 after 3 overs.

10:15 hrs IST: FOUR! Shikhar Dhawan hits one straight down the ground and it goes to the boundary. First four of the day.

10:05 hrs IST: And after some good running in the first over, India are 4/0.

10:00 hrs IST: And the teams are now out on the field. Abhinav Mukund and Shikhar Dhawan will open for India. Nuwan Pradeep will open the bowling for Sri Lanka.

09:52 hrs IST: That being said, here’s a stat that Indian cricket fans will love: India have only lost one Test in their last five versus Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka (W3 D1). In fact, they’ve won their last two encounters in Sri Lanka.

09:47 hrs IST: Whilst India arguably go into this match as favourites, it’s worth noting that Sri Lanka do have a solid record against India in Galle. The hosts have beaten India three times in four previous meetings in Test cricket at this venue.

09:35 hrs IST: Sri Lanka playing XI: Dimuth Karunaratne, Upul Tharanga, Kusal Mendis, Danushka Gunathilaka, Angelo Mathews, Asela Gunaratne, Niroshan Dickwella(w), Dilruwan Perera, Rangana Herath(c), Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep

09:35 hrs IST: India playing XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Abhinav Mukund, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Wriddhiman Saha(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami.

09:32 hrs IST: Toss news: India have won the toss and will bat. Hardik Pandya is set to make his Test debut.

09:28 hrs IST: With the toss imminent, here’s a small fact about Sri Lanka skipper Rangana Herath - he needs seven wickets to become only the second bowler to take 100 Test wickets at Galle International Stadium. The first bowler to do so? Muttiah Muralitharan, of course.

09:21 hrs IST: Speaking of team news, Ravichandran Ashwin is set to make his 50th Test appearance in this match.

09:12 hrs IST: Hardik Pandya has been handed his Test cap from Virat Kohli. Team news isn’t official yet, but it seems like the all-rounder is set to make his Test debut today.

09:00 hrs IST: Good morning and welcome to live coverage of India’s tour of Sri Lanka. We are now 30 minutes away from the toss and an hour away from the start of Day 1 of the first Test.

Sri Lanka will be looking to bounce back after their defeat against Zimbabwe in the ODI series earlier this month. Virat Kohli and Co were defeated by Sri Lanka at the same venue in 2015 and they will surely be looking to win this time around.

It will also be a new innings for Ravi Shastri, who replaced Anil Kumble as the Indian cricket team head coach. The former Indian all-rounder was the Team Director during the 2015 series and he will be hoping to start his stint as head coach with a comfortable series victory.

India have enjoyed a great run of form in Test matches over the last year with series wins over against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia. Combining the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons, India have lost only one out of 23 Tests (against Australia at Pune) since that defeat in Galle.

Thanks to their consistent performances, India are currently the top ranked Test side in the world and they will look to continue their domination with a series victory against the eighth-placed Sri Lanka.