Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir (left) giving a pat on Saransh Jain's chest after the all-rounder completed his practice session at the SSC in Colombo. com in Colombo: Will he, won't he?
Questions surrounding Kuldeep Yadav reached a fever pitch when the chinaman stayed away from the second training session in a row. While the official word from the Indian camp was that he was being rested from the first session, KL Rahul, who was also absent on Friday, turned up for a hit on Saturday.
Kuldeep staying confined to the hotel room further raised eyebrows, as this is highly unusual, especially for an away fixture and particularly when he has bowled only 25 overs in the Galle Test. For a bowler who hardly missed training even when benched for all the Tests in England last summer, his absence in Colombo turned attention to Saransh Jain.
The 33-year-old got a good workout on both days, and his routine on the eve of the match has only thickened the subplot. Moments after reaching the ground, he went straight to the pitch to visualise before moving to the practice surface.
Giving him company was Team India's spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule, and the duo spent some time talking and doing spot bowling before it was Saransh's turn to put the pads on. The left-hander switched nets and faced different combinations of net bowlers and throwdown specialists, watched by both head coach Gautam Gambhir and men's senior selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar.
The moment his batting session ended, Gambhir had a long chat with Saransh and even gave him a pat on the chest before the off-spinner left for the dressing room. India's Saransh Jain during a practice session ahead of the second Test cricket match between India and Sri Lanka, in Colombo.
(PTI) Not just the cues from India's final net session, but Sri Lanka's addition of left-handers also points more strongly towards Saransh. Home captain Dhananjaya de Silva confirmed that Kamil Mishara, a left-hander, will take the opener's slot, and there is also the option of Sahan Arachchige, another southpaw, for the middle order.
Gambhir kept his playing XI cards close to his chest at the pre-match press conference but asserted that the focus will be on assembling a bowling attack which gives them 20 wickets. Whether it will feature Saransh or Kuldeep wasn't revealed, but "all options" are open.
We know how good a bowler Kuldeep is. And more importantly, sometimes, it's up to the captain as well, where he feels that if his two other spinners can get him wickets, looking at the conditions, what pace he wants a certain spinner to bowGautam Gambhir" We will try and pick the best bowling attack which will get us 20 wickets.
