Rishabh Pant put the Sri Lankan attack to the sword with a record-breaking half-century while Shreyas Iyer yet again conjured up a measured fifty to let India grab complete control of the second Test here on Sunday.
Pant’s 31-ball 50 and Iyer’s 67 after useful contributions from top-order batters meant that India set Sri Lanka a mammoth 447-run target after declaring their second innings at 303 for nine. The struggling visitors would need no less than a miraculous show to save the match after ending the second day at 28 for one.
Skipper Dimuth Karunaratne (10) and Kusal Mendis (16) will resume Sri Lankan chase on Monday morning. With plenty of time at their disposal after bundling out Sri Lanka for 109 in the first session of the day for a 143-run first-innings lead, India batters gained more experience of playing with the pink ball on a wicket that assisted spinners.
