KOTLA TEST

Smog complaints by Lanka overshadow Kohli show at Kotla

CRICKET-IND-SRI Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal plays a shot as Indian wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha looks on during the second day of the third Test match between India and Sri Lanka | AFP

The second day of the third Test match between India and Sri Lanka was full of drama wherein the infamous Delhi smog overshadowed the glorious double hundred by Virat Kohli as Sri Lankan players wore masks on field while complaining of pollution.

Lankan skipper Dinesh Chandimal at 25 and veteran Angelo Mathews on 57 held the fort for the visitors as play ended with the visitors at 131/3 in 44.3 overs in response to India's first innings declaration at 536/7 in 127.5 overs.

The Indians were fired up as they got down to field and the wicket of opener Dimuth Karunarathna was scalped on the very first ball of the Lankan first innings. Mohammed Shami's short delivery had the opener getting caught behind the wicket by Wriddhiman Saha. Lanka were 14-2 soon courtesy Ishant Sharma who trapped Dhananjaya De Silva leg before the wicket.

Dilruwan Perera who opened in place of injured Sadeera Samarawickrama scored a valiant 42 before he fell leg before to left arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja.

The on field umpires did not heed pleas of the Lankan team and management to call off play as they complained of breathlessness and nausea due to air pollution levels touching a high of 206 around 1 pm. Visibility too dropped and floodlights were turned on.

Play was interrupted thrice due to complaints of smog by the Lankan fielders. Kohli declared the innings when Wriddhiman Saha (on 38) and Ravindra Jadeja (20) were at the crease at the time. The drama took place in the post-lunch session.

After play resumed, post the first interruption which lasted 17 minutes, medium pacer Lahiru Gamage dropped to his knees indicating difficulty due to smog which had Kohli throwing his bat in disgust on the ground as Gamage left the field. The Indian skipper was soon back in the dressing room after scoring 240―his highest Test score thus far, trapped leg before by Lakshan Sandakan. His previous highest was 235 against England in Mumbai in 2016.

The first session was all about run machine Kohli who continued his prolific run in the series to score his sixth double hundred. Kohli and Rohit Sharma added 135 runs for the fifth wicket before Sharma fell on the last ball before lunch to chinaman bowler Lakshan Sandakan for 65.

The Indian skipper continued his march into cricket history books. Kohli's 200 came in 349 minutes, from 238 balls and included 20 hits to the boundary. All his six double hundreds have come in last 17 months. Kohli is currently the only test skipper with the highest number of Test hundreds to his name. West Indies's Brian Lara is second to score 5 test double hundreds as skipper with the great Don Bradman, Michael Clarke from Australia and Graeme Smith of South Africa having scored four double hundreds as skippers.

He is also only the second Indian batsman to score double hundreds in consecutive Test innings for India. The first being southpaw Vinod Kambli in 1993 (224 vs England, 227 vs Zimbabwe). Kohli had scored 213 against Sri Lanka in the previous Test match in Nagpur in this series.

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