After ensuring a huge victory in Nagpur, the Indians will move to the capital to battle the Sri Lankans in the 3rd chapter of the story. The men in blue crushed the Lankans and registered their joint biggest win in their Test history, as Virat Kohli added another feather to his cap.
The upcoming Delhi Test will be a robust challenge for the visitors with the team lacking in every department.
The Indians will go into the match as the clear favourites with all guns firing. The incredible depth in the Indian batting line-up is a nightmare for all the bowlers and especially when most of them are in form. Skipper Virat Kohli hammered his 5th double ton in Nagpur portraying the destructive mood the batsman is in. The Test match was marked by three other centuries which came from Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma. these performances highlight the immense talent and strength of the group which the visitors need to match to get something out of the Delhi Test.
The Indians will also have the upper hand in the bowling department owing to the outstanding form of their bowlers. The returning Ishant Sharma bagged a five-wicket haul straightaway while Ravichandran Ashwin was the pick of the Indian bowlers with eight wickets.
Ashwin coming back to his lethal best will be an added advantage for the team, and he can surely weave magic in Delhi. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been in terrific touch with the ball, and his ability to swing the ball will trouble the Sri Lankans to the core.
The drastic form of the Sri Lankan batting line up will again be the biggest concern for the team. With no batsman striking the ball confidently, the bunch looks like a massively shaky one. Considering the sublime form of the hosts, Dinesh Chandimal and his men has to figure out a solution to raise the bar at the Feroz Shah Kotla.
The constant failures of the top order could make way for Asela Gunaratne who is back into the Sri Lankan squad after dislocating his finger early this year. Suranga Lakmal will be the trump card for the visitors as far as their bowling is concerned.
However, the team has already suffered a huge blow ahead of the match, as Rangana Herath got ruled out of the Delhi Test. Herath accounted for a gutsy all-rounder which the team will definitely miss and will be a big negative for the lads when they step down in Delhi. Jeffrey Vandersay has been added to the squad as a replacement and Chandimal will bank on him for some leg break entertainment.
To round it up, the Delhi Test is most likely to go in favour of the Indians considering the ruthless form of the team. The Sri Lankans have been outclassed in all-departments so far and needs a massive rejuvenation which is unlikely to happen this soon.
Also Read: (IND vs SL 2017: Thisara Perera Replaces Upul Tharanga as Sri Lanka’s Limited-Overs Captain)
(SA vs IND 2017: BCCI to Announce Test Squad After Delhi Test Match)