It needed a special ball from Jasprit Bumrah to end a special innings from Dimuth Karunaratne at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday. Sri Lanka’s inspirational captain dug in for the long haul, aware that his team were waging a losing battle, but determined to let that work on his mind. The left-handed opener breezed to a stupendous 14th Test hundred on the third day of the second Test, heralding Sri Lanka’s only bright spot on a tour where nothing has gone their way. 

Standing ovation for Dimuth

His mellifluous 107 wasn’t going to be enough, not by a long way; all it could do was reduce the margin, soften the blow. But it was so beautifully conceived and flawlessly executed that it invited a standing ovation from one of the greatest openers of all time, Sunil Gavaskar.