India take on Sri Lanka in the first Test of the three match series at Galle on Thursday.
Virat Kohli’s men, the top-ranked Test side in the world face a Rangana Herath led Sri Lanka ranked seventh in the world.
While the Indians had a glorious last year in the red-ball format, the islanders struggled through transition as they toiled to fill the void left by three greats of the game in Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Muttiah Muralitharan.
As the two teams prepare to battle it out in the picturesque Galle International Stadium, we look at some of the interesting statistics that could come into play.
The tall off spinner has had a stellar year in Tests which has capitulated him to the No.3 spot in the ICC Test bowlers ranking. The leader of the Indian spin attack will be playing Test number 50 of his career in Galle.
Sri Lanka has been a happy hunting ground for the Chennai born spinner who claimed 21 wickets at an average of 18.09 runs in the three-match series win for India in 2015.
While Kohli’s men did win a historic series the last time they were here in 2015, their series started with a loss in the opening Test at Galle.
In the last five tours to the island, India have drawn one and lost four of the opening Test of the series. The sole draw came in the 1997 tour and since then they have have been at the receiving end of comprehensive four consecutive losses in the series openers.
The Indians will be looking to avoid a similar disastrous start at Galle come Thursday.
Despite a series win, India were outplayed by the Sri Lankans at Galle in 2015.
Sri Lanka must be the favourite spot to watch Test cricket for fans who hate draws. In the previous three years, there have been a total of 16 Test matches played in the former Dutch colony.
All Tests have had a result either way. If it is no different this time, we might be in for a cracking series.
With 28 wickets to his name in Tests played in Sri Lanka, the tall and wiry bowler is the highest wicket-taker in matches played in the island between the two sides among the current crop of bowlers on either side. He even eclipses Sri Lankan skipper Herath who has 27 scalps.
While the emergence of Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami have relegated the Delhi pacer to a peripheral role in the Test squad, it will be interesting to see if Kohli decides to pick Ishant in the playing eleven based on his 2015 performance.
While the Lankans appear to be struggling in the longer format of the game, their recent run on home soil will give them cause for optimism. The islanders have won five of the last six Tests they have played at home.
While this period includes test wins against the formidable Aussies, the loss to Bangladesh will still rankle the islanders.
The 40-year-old continues to defy age as he prepares to lead his boys against the Indians. With 384 Test victims to his name, the wily left-arm orthodox spinner will be looking to hit the magic number of 400 come the end of the series.
Herath will be looking to reach the 400 wickets mark in the India series.
From 2011 to 2016, the average opening stand for Test in Sri Lanka is 25.11 which is the lowest among all Test playing nations. While one would think batting first in the subcontinent is easier, Sri Lanka remains an anomaly.
There has been only one century stand in the 107 opening partnerships between this period and that was achieved by Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss of England in 2012.
