IND vs SL 2nd Test: Shubman Gill sweats it out against left-arm spinners during net session

Shubman Gill (Pic: File Pic)

Team India is set to lock horns with Sri Lanka in the second Test match. The game is scheduled to be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground (SSC) in Colombo from August 23.

Ahead of the match, being mindful of his performances against left-arm spinners, Team India's skipper Shubman Gill was seen spending a considerable amount of time tuning his game against the variation. He faced Manav Suthar, Ravindra Jadeja, along with local bowlers.

In the first Test match at Galle, the right-handed batsman lost his wicket against left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya twice. In the first innings, Gill registered 16 runs and managed to score eight runs in his team's second essay.

So far, Gill has fallen 11 times to left-arm spinners in Test cricket in 42 matches. But it has to be said that the Punjab-born cricketer has a better record against off-spinners and leg-spinners with a combined average of 61, and holds a career average of 48 against tweakers of all types.

Additionally, it will be interesting to see if Team India's think tank provides an opportunity to Mumbai's prolific run-scorer Sarfaraz Khan. He received a call-up to the Indian team as Sai Sudharsan was not able to fully recover from his injury. It would be a dreamy comeback for Sarfaraz, considering his rich vein of form in domestic cricket.

The ongoing Test series is one of the important series for Team India in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The win in the second Test match against Sri Lanka will be crucial for Team India to keep hopes alive for the WTC final.

IND vs SL 2nd Test: Full squads

India: Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi, Sarfaraz Khan.

Sri Lanka: Dinesh Chandimal (WK), Dhananjaya de Silva (C), Niroshan Dickwella (WK), Vishwa Fernando, Prabath Jayasuriya, Ramesh Mendis, Lahiru Udara, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Kamindu Mendis, Milan Rathnayake, Nishan Madushka, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Sonal Dinusha, Dilshan Madushanka, Keshara Nuwantha.

(With PTI Inputs)