Mohali: India captain Rohit Sharma has won the toss and elected to bat first against Sri Lanka at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium on Friday. Apart from Virat Kohli’s 100th Test, it is also Sharma’s first match as the captain in the longest format of the game.
After winning the toss, Sharma said India are going with three spinners and two seamers.
“Similar Indian conditions, so it’s important for us to put runs on the board and take it from there. It is a huge honour to be captaining India and be part of the list. It is something I never dreamt of. It has been quite buzzing. We know it is a special occasion. Not many people go on to play 100 Tests, and Virat has been looking forward to this game.”
Sri Lanka skipper Dimuth Karunaratne said his team is going into their 300th Test with three pacers and two spinners. “We wanted to bat first as well. We are playing three seamers, but it is a good wicket to bat on. We have played 300 Tests but we never won in India. We have a good team, with the senior and junior combinations and we are prepared.”
Playing XIs:
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jayant Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah (vice-captain) and Mohammed Shami.
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne (captain), Lahiru Thirimanne, Pathum Nissanka, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Niroshan Dickwella (wicket-keeper), Lahiru Kumara, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Embuldeniya and Vishwa Fernando.
Ms Kalinga