JOIN USUnder siege for most parts of the opening Test match, the Sri Lankans have had very little moments to cheer about. They are already staring at a mighty task, two wickets down with just five runs on the board and another 187 runs needed to make India bat again.
While it seems all but doomed to a side that has just lost the home Test series 1-2 to Pakistan, a young spinner has slowly started emerging from there. Tharindu Kaushal, a 22-year-old budding off-spinner, grabbed his second five-wicket haul, although it came at the cost 134 runs.
Speaking to the media in Sinhalese on Thursday, the shy off-spinner who is playing in just his fourth Test, said it was a challenge bowling to top-class batsmen. “It was a challenge to bowl to good batsmen like (Shikhar) Dhawan and (Virat) Kohli. You have to get used to bowling at batsmen of that calibre to improve. If you get afraid of them its not good for me as a bowler.
“In international cricket the batsmen won’t allow me to settle down. They try to score runs off me by taking singles and rotating the strike. They try to unsettle me. I must get used to it very quickly.”
Kaushal also said bowling with senior spinner Rangana Herath helped him gain confidence. “Ranga gave me a lot of support. He kept constantly talking to me what I should do, its easy to bowl with him around. When I go out of line he quickly reminds me where I am going wrong and corrects me. He told me to be patient and the wickets will come when you keep on doing the right things.”