Rain halts play as India lead Sri Lanka by 178 in Galle Test

India built a 178-run first-innings lead over Sri Lanka on day three of the opening Test in Galle, before rain brought an early end to play on Monday.

Sri Lanka were dismissed for 284 in response to India’s first-innings score of 462, anchored by Devdutt Padikkal’s 167 and a 51 from Dhruv Jurel.

Sri Lanka had slipped to 90 for 5 at one point, with Manav Suthar striking early, before Sonal Dinusha’s maiden Test century and Niroshan Dickwella’s gritty 80 powered a 146-run partnership.

Ravindra Jadeja and Suthar each finished with three wickets as India’s spinners eventually closed out the Sri Lankan innings.

Dark clouds, strong winds and threatening rain over Galle International Stadium prompted umpires to end day three’s play early.

Day four is set to begin at 9:45 am IST, with two days left in the opening Test of the two-match series.

India’s first innings total of 462 was built on Devdutt Padikkal’s 167, with useful contributions from KL Rahul and a 51 from Dhruv Jurel lower down the order.

Sri Lanka’s recovery ultimately fell short as India’s spin attack, led by Ravindra Jadeja and Manav Suthar with three wickets each, wrapped up the innings for 284.

The Galle Test is the opening fixture of a two-match series, with two days of play remaining and India holding a substantial first-innings advantage heading into day four.

Devdutt Padikkal’s 167 continued a rich vein of form for the young batter, who had already scored twin centuries in India’s warm-up match against Sri Lanka XI earlier this month.

India’s spin-heavy attack, featuring Jadeja, Suthar and Kuldeep Yadav, is expected to play a central role again once play resumes, with the Galle surface traditionally offering increasing turn as a Test progresses.

Sri Lanka were reduced to 90 for 5 in their first innings before Dinusha and Dickwella’s 146-run partnership steadied the innings and dragged the hosts closer to India’s total.

Photo by Price Zero, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0