Ajinkya Rahane urges India to be proactive with the bat ahead of Sri Lanka Tests

Former India captain Ajinkya Rahane has urged Shubman Gill's men to adopt a proactive approach against Sri Lanka's bowlers ahead of the two-Test series that begins on August 15. Speaking days after announcing his retirement from international cricket, the middle-order batter said the first innings would be crucial and warned against an overly defensive approach to Sri Lanka's spin threat.

India will play two Tests in Galle and Colombo. The team enjoyed successful tours of Sri Lanka in 2015 and 2017, but its batting versus spin has been criticised in recent seasons. India suffered home series whitewashes against New Zealand and South Africa over the last two years, with visiting spinners repeatedly troubling the batters.

Rahane spoke about conditions and batting approach, saying: "I think in Sri Lanka, the first-day wicket generally is very good. But being on top of the bowler as a batsman is very important. That's what I have learned in Sri Lanka. You cannot be too defensive," Rahane, who scored 407 runs, including two hundreds, in six Tests in Sri Lanka during his career, told PTI.

On preparing for spin and the nature of home advantage, Rahane added: "You have to probably be more proactive because they will have spin-friendly wickets, and Sri Lanka do have decent spinners in their side. And again, a home team is always a tough team to beat. Whatever I've learned playing cricket for so many years, you can't take anyone lightly," Rahane said. "So it's all about, I think, having your own game plan as an individual and being proactive. Even in Test cricket, it's going to be the key," he added.

India began a three-day practice match at the NCC Ground in Colombo on Friday. Opting to bat, Sri Lanka reached 358/8 at stumps, putting the Indian bowlers to work on what was described as a placid surface. India are expected to begin batting on Day 2; Shubman Gill sat out on Friday with a niggle in his left thumb and KL Rahul led the Indian side in his absence.

Several batters in the India squad — including Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel — toured Sri Lanka with the India A side last month for two four-day matches.

India sit fifth in the World Test Championship standings with four wins from nine Tests and need seven victories from their remaining nine matches to stay in contention, a run that includes an away series in New Zealand later this year and a five-Test home series against Australia early next year.