Each one played their role – Sairaj Bahutule on how spinners turned the tide for India

A late twist in Day 4’s play saw India get back in the driver’s seat after Sri Lanka pushed hard despite being on the backfoot. Manav Suthar dropped a late show to turn the tide in India’s favour despite the hosts’ resolute show after being forced to follow-on.

India’s spin bowling coach, Sairaj Bahutule opened up on how good the Indian spinners were, especially after Suthar and Saransh Jain could carve the late tempest that left Sri Lanka frazzled. Bahutule expressed delight on how everyone took their assignment seriously and delivered as expected.

Explaining the day’s situation in the presser at the end of day’s play, Bahutule said, “That's the beauty of Test cricket. Every session is different than the next one. And after that first innings, we understood the pace of the pitch, and we decided that, you know, sometimes we're going to be a bit slower, sometimes we're going to be a bit quicker in the air, and also understanding what the approach of the opposition is.”

He further added, “We gave about 45 to 49 runs, which they tried to accelerate, and that is the time we were trying to be a bit defensive, and that is what the plan was, you know, with Shubman and Gautam talking in the dressing room in terms of how we can hold on to the situation, and I think same instructions were given to the spinners.”

Reflecting on the role assigned to the spinners and how they carried it, Bahutule said, “Each one played their role. Saransh was, you know, slightly defensive, bowling a bit quicker than he normally does. Manav Suthar again, a role had to be played, and Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja), the way he is, he holds on to the situation. So, I think our plan was to hold on to the situation and see how they don't get away with, you know, more runs in the coming session, in the third session especially. And that's what happened, and luckily, we picked up those wickets, and that has sort of tilted (the game) in our favour.”