“An individually very satisfying hundred” was how K.L. Rahul summed up his performance on day one of the second Test here. This century also came on the back of adversity like his first in Sydney earlier this year.
“Both have been very difficult hundreds, in difficult conditions and challenging for me,” he said.
“I didn’t get runs in the first Test and to come here and play like the way I did is very satisfying. But honestly I felt I should have done a lot better. I feel I should have been there and got more runs. But it is a big learning [curve] for me and I will go back and work on a few things and hopefully not repeat the mistakes.”
On partnerships with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he said: “Even in Sydney [Kohli] was there when I reached my hundred. He brings in a lot of energy and a lot of positivity. With Rohit, it is a lot calmer. He likes to take his time. You look at him, you feel like he is batting with so much ease and so much time.”
Dropped catch ruedRuing the dropped catch of Rahul when on 11 by Jehan Mubarak, Sri Lanka paceman Dhammika Prasad said that it had disadvantaged the team. India was on 20 for two at that stage. “Had we taken that catch, the first session would have been different,” said Prasad. “We might have been able to take even more wickets. That did cost us a bit.
“In the latter part of the day, the wicket was a bit slow and it was better for the batsman. Given the way it behaved today, I think it will turn a bit over the next two days. It will be a spinner-friendly track. We have to get the last four wickets very quickly; for less than 350. If we give them more runs it will make things difficult for us,” he said.
