Young opening batsman Lokesh Rahul was just two runs shy of his second century as he helped India reach to a comfortable 206 for three at tea on the opening day of the second cricket Test against Sri Lanka here today.
Rahul (98 of 174 balls) put on 164 runs for the third wicket with skipper Virat Kohli (78 of 107 balls; 8x4; 1x6) and steadied India's first innings after two early blows in the morning session at P Sara Oval.
At the tea break, 23-year-old Rahul had put on 30 unbeaten runs for the fourth wicket with Rohit Sharma (17 batting). Rahul had so far hit 12 fours and a six.
Post the lunch break, Kohli and Rahul carried on their 85-run partnership in a bid to build the Indian innings further. The skipper scored his 11th Test fifty off 63 balls immediately after the lunch break and in doing so also brought up the 100-mark for India in the 28th over.
While he had looked fluent until that mark, he suddenly looked very edgy for a brief period of play thereafter. Kohli scored only two runs in 32 minutes during this passage of play, and it was left to Rahul to keep the scorecard ticking.
The youngster from Karnataka did not disappoint and reached his first Test fifty off 94 balls. Their 100-run partnership had earlier come in the 29th over.
At the other end, captain Kohli broke the shackles with two consecutive boundaries off Dushmantha Chameera (0/51) and was looking good for more. But just then, against the run of play, he fell to a stupendous, one-handed, diving catch to the right by Angelo Mathews off the bowling of Rangana Herath (1/54) in the 44th over.
As Kohli walked off dejected, Rohit Sharma walked in and negotiated the 8.3 overs remaining before tea.
Rohit started off nervously, pushing and prodding the ball, but hit a six and a four off Herath in the penultimate over before tea to ease at the break.
At the other end, Dhammika Prasad (2/43) made Rahul to wait for his hundred.
