Series Context and Toss Decision

India began the second and final Test against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on Sunday with a 1-0 series lead, having won the opening match in Galle by 165 runs. Captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bat first, a decision he explained by noting the pitch's characteristics.

"It looks like a much harder, much better surface compared to Galle," Gill said, as reported by Lokmat Times. He expected the surface to remain good for batting during the first two or three days before slowing down and bringing spinners into play.