Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar didn't mince his words, lashing out at Sri Lanka for their antics just minutes before the close of play on Day 2 of the second Test against India in Colombo. Prabath Jayasuriya and Kamil Mishara repeatedly showed dissent toward the on-field umpires after the officials continued to play despite the fading light. It all culminated with Jayasuriya being dismissed by Manav Suthar.
Jayasuriya then flung his gloves inside the dressing room, and the hosts ended at Day 2 with 8/2, still trailing by 495 runs. The cameras picked up the entire Sri Lankan camp, miffed, inside the dressing room. However, Manjrekar called out the hosts for losing the plot and failing to grasp the bigger picture.
However, the former Indian batter was also full of praise for Suthar, for trapping Jayasuriya right in front to give the visitors the honours on the second day.
Deep Dive
What did Sanjay Manjrekar criticize about Sri Lanka's behavior during the Test match?
Why was there controversy over the umpires' decision during the second Test between India and Sri Lanka?
How did the Indian team exert pressure on umpires during the second Test?
“I see that as being slightly unprofessional. I know you want to nudge the umpire, saying it's bad light, but you can't take your eye off the ball. I thought the bad-light situation and their angst with the umpire consumed their minds, and they weren't focusing on the ball because the light was never that bad. We know the light is never so bad that you can't see the ball. It's just that there is a certain amount of darkness that is considered bad light, and it's offered to the batter,” Manjrekar said on the Sony Sports Network.
{{/usCountry}}“I see that as being slightly unprofessional. I know you want to nudge the umpire, saying it's bad light, but you can't take your eye off the ball. I thought the bad-light situation and their angst with the umpire consumed their minds, and they weren't focusing on the ball because the light was never that bad. We know the light is never so bad that you can't see the ball. It's just that there is a certain amount of darkness that is considered bad light, and it's offered to the batter,” Manjrekar said on the Sony Sports Network.
{{/usCountry}}“Then maybe Sri Lanka had a point that it was bad light enough, but that doesn't condone the mistake that they made now. You can't blame a night watcher for getting out. That was a great delivery from Suthar, in a nice variation and a superb delivery from process at the finish as well,” he added.
Smart play
In the final session, rain seemed to play spoilsport as the umpires called the players off and the covers came off. However, the Indian camp seemingly created pressure on the officials as the visitors refused to leave the camp.
As fate would have it, the rain relented soon, and the play was underway soon enough with Prasidh Krishna and Suthar prizing out two wickets after India declared their innings at 503/9.
“So credit goes to India for making that happen. Unfortunate for Sri Lanka, we'll have a look at Prabath. India will take that. India also played a very good part when the covers were being put on," said Manjrekar.
"They stood on the field. Putting pressure on the umpire, saying that we believe play could start and all these little things. They're heavyweights now in world cricket. If the Indian team just stood there believing that a game could start, and we felt the light was good enough. That puts a certain amount of pressure on the umpires,” he added.
Earlier, Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel slammed centuries to help India post in excess of 500 runs. Asitha Fernando was the leading wicket-taker for Sri Lanka for his haul of four wickets.