The Indian cricket team kicked off their ICC World Test Championship series against the Sri Lankan cricket team in style with a convincing win at the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali. It was Virat Kohli’s 100th Test match, and Ravindra Jadeja’s heroics ensured that the Indian team won the match by an innings and 222 runs.
New captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and decided to bat first in Mohali. The decision worked in India’s favor as half-centuries from Hanuma Vihari, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Rishabh Pant along with an unbeaten 175* from Ravindra Jadeja helped the Indian team post 574/8 on the board before declaring the innings.
Many fans were unhappy with the Indian team’s decision to declare the innings when Jadeja was just 25 runs away from his double century. However, Rohit Sharma disclosed after the match that it was Jadeja’s own call to declare the innings.
“The highlight of the game was Jadeja. There was a question whether to declare or not, it was the team’s decision and Jadeja’s decision to put them in and shows how selfless he is,” said Rohit Sharma.
Ravindra Jadeja took a five-wicket haul later in the match
After Team India declared their innings at 574/8, Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin spun a web around the Sri Lankan batters and dismissed them inside 200 in both innings. Jadeja took five wickets in the first innings, while Ashwin supported him with a two-wicket haul.
In the second innings of the Sri Lankan cricket team, both Jadeja and Ashwin bagged four wickets each as the Indian team defeated the table-toppers Sri Lanka in the ICC World Test Championship.
The second and final match of this WTC series will start from March 12 onwards in Bengaluru. It will be a day/night Test, meaning the teams will play with a pink ball under the floodlights at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
