We want to work hard on each of the five days to win a Test match.Those were the words of Gautam Gambhir, India’s coach, when his team set eyes on the pitch at the Sinhalese Sports Club, sitting on a 1-0 lead.Even he, however, would’ve wanted the returns to be proportionate to the hard work his team put in.On a hot, humid day in Colombo, on Tuesday, India sent down 80.4 overs, but could only pick up six wickets. When rain brought an early close to play, Sri Lanka had 265 runs on the board but had moved close enough to the followon target to make it unlikely that India would enforce it, even if they have the option.Also read: Hungry for more! Harmanpreet Kaur says winnng culture taking shape ahead of Asia Cup, Asian GamesPasindu Sooriyabandara, playing his first full Test after coming in as Dinesh Chandimal’s concussion substitute in the first Test, and Sonal Dinusha were immaculate in applying themselves. Their performance ensured that the opposition could not dominate, even if they held the upper hand.India did not get everything right on the day. There were passages when Shubman Gill, the captain, appeared to be chasing the ball with his field settings.Sooriyabandara and Dinusha worked the ball around expertly, which meant that Gill could not bring the scoreboard pressure to bear on the Sri Lankans.India’s bowling was also found wanting initially. Mohammed Siraj lacked the intensity and zip that are characteristic of his bowling. He had plenty to say to the batsmen, but the ball was just not doing what he wanted it to.Saransh Jain began his Test career poorly, with a big no-ball — an oddity for an off-spinner — and his day did not get much better. He bowls off a straight run-up with a high-arm action, but his tendency to jump away to his left meant that he did not get consistently close to the stumps, something you look for in an off-spinner.Also read: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Asitha Fernando sanctioned by ICC for on-field clash during Colombo TestJain sent down 18 overs, so it was not as though he did not have the backing of the captain. Even with the second new ball, Jain was given a go, but could not claim his maiden Test wicket. The odd ball did turn, but if he is the best offspin option in the country, the Indian cricket system needs to look inwards.If there was one bright spot, it was Prasidh Krishna. The tall fast bowler from Karnataka has grown as a player. While the bounce he extracts first brought him into the reckoning, as a 19-year-old in a tour game against Bangladesh A in Mysore in 2015, he had to wait three years to break into the Karnataka Ranji team, such was the strength of their bowling stocks at the time.Prasidh then lost a lot of ground through injury: a stress fracture of the leg in 2019, a stress fracture of the back in 2022 and then a quadriceps injury in 2024. In nearly 11 and a half years, Prasidh has managed just 36 first class matches, and this includes eight Tests and his appearances for India A.On the day he showed up when the team needed him. Kamindu Mendis slapped a short one to square leg, and a short one got big on Kamil Mishara, who could only fend to the keeper. Prasidh ended the day with 3 for 47 from 14 purposeful overs.“It just shows the character of Prasidh. He had the media on his back, the commentators on his back … to fight through that for me is very impressive,” said Morne Morkel, India’s bowling coach.“As a team, we always knew about his potential. For him, it was about quieting those voices and just playing cricket. I think as soon as you get into this environment, you want to impress a billion cricket fans. You are under the microscope, every movement gets analysed, and sometimes you try and fight against those elements.The biggest change [from Prasidh] is just to let go of all those thoughts, all those comments that are made on him, and just enjoy his cricket. I think for India, in all formats, he has the potential and talent to play for a very long time.”When the fourth day’s play begins, Sri Lanka will need 39 more to avoid a follow-on that India are unlikely to enforce, unless the weather forces their hand.Brief scoresIndia 503 for 9 dec lead Sri Lanka 265 for 8 (Dinusha 85*, Sooriyabandara 80; Prasidh 3/47, Suthar 3/83) trail by 238 runs