Tea report: Sri Lanka end Shikhar Dhawan's vigil

Sri Lanka wrested back a fair slice of momentum during the afternoon session of the first Test, taking four wickets - including centurions Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane for zero - as India took tea on 304/6 with a lead of 121.
Two wickets in three deliveries from spinner Tharindu Kaushal had changed the complexion of play in Galle and gave Sri Lanka some desired lift after 64.3 overs without a breakthrough, and when Dhawan casually chopped onto his stumps 17 minutes before tea, the hosts had reason to feel chuffed.A second wicket for Pradeep on the verge of the interval lifted their spirits further.
Until that moment of indiscretion, Dhawan had batted with poise and admirable presence of mind for a fine 134 from 271 deliveries, playing the lead in a stand of 227 - India's third best on Sri Lankan soil - that erased the deficit and set the stage for India to pile on the lead. Usually a stroke-maker capable of scoring briskly, Dhawan took over as chief accumulator while shunning his repertoire of expansive shots and instead relying on flicks and drives to march to his fourth Test hundred. Before today, the longest time at the crease Dhawan had spent was 211 balls, back in Auckland in early 2014. Prior to that, he had never faced more than 195 balls in an innings, and only twice had he exceeded 145.
Imperious and unfettered by pace, spin or the conditions until he was bowled by Pradeep, the left-hander had secured his fourth Test century in the morning session and built on that unfettered after lunch with his skipper. Kohli's 103 was his 11th century - and fourth in six innings as Test captain - and the determination with which he snapped an international century drought was pleasing, though he will rue a silly sweep shot against Kaushal, who had bowled 101 deliveries without a wicket. Enter Rahane, who lasted five balls before he failed to get bat on a flighted delivery from Kaushal and was rapped on the pads in front of the stumps.
India's lead at the time was 72. A couple of full tosses from Kaushal helped settle Saha in between some deliveries that spun past the bat, and slowly an alliance was formed. Dhawan did not need to change his approach, because solidity and judgement outside the off stump were what had taken him past his century already. Thus it was surprising when he almost lazily pushed at Pradeep and dragged the ball onto his stumps. Not long after, Pradeep hit R Ashwin's off stump to leave India at 302/6.
Earlier, from an overnight 128/2, trailing by 55 runs, Dhawan and Kohli had chipped away at the deficit and by lunch had put India ahead by 44. With the pitch playing easy and Sri Lanka's spinners not extracting significant turn from it, Dhawan and Kohli ticked away at the total without taking undue risks. The first hour produced just 41 runs, the overnight pair content to leave well enough alone outside off stump and bunt the spinners for singles.
Kohli brought up his fifty in the fourth over of the morning, his first in internationals since he opened India's World Cup campaign with a century against Pakistan in February, but was otherwise subdued during the morning. He added just 13 to his overnight total in the first hour, while Dhawan was more proactive in extending his score to 81 during the same time. The left-hander took 18 deliveries to move from 91 to 98, then reached his hundred with another fluently placed cover-drive between the offside fielders for four, off his 178th delivery faced.
With Angelo Mathews off the field in the morning with flu, Lahiru Thirimanne took over the captaincy and appeared keener to go ahead with spin. Rangana Herath was given ten consecutive overs to try and snap the burgeoning partnership but could not break the Indian pair, while Kaushal was turned to after 14 overs were bowled, and even he did not offer much threat. Herath and Kaushal stuck to overall tidy lines, but their lack of bite allowed Dhawan and Kohli to play with assurance.
Brief scores: India 304/6 (Shikhar Dhawan 134, Virat Kohli 103) lead Sri Lanka 183 by 121 runs.
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