Sri Lanka Cricket on Thursday announced that Galle and Colombo will host India's two-match Test series in August. The opening Test will be played at the Galle International Stadium from August 15 to 19, while the second Test is scheduled at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) in Colombo from August 23 to 27.
The series will be a key fixture for India in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. Although Sri Lanka has traditionally been a challenging destination for touring teams, India have enjoyed considerable success on their recent visits, recording a 3-0 series sweep in 2017 and a 2-1 comeback victory in the three-Test series in 2015.
Led by Shubman Gill, India's young Test side will face a significant challenge, particularly against Sri Lanka's spin attack, an area where Indian batters have struggled in recent outings.
India opened their current WTC campaign with a 2-2 drawn series in England before registering a 2-0 home series victory over the West Indies. However, a 2-0 defeat to South Africa at home last year dealt a setback to their hopes of qualifying for the World Test Championship final.
The team also played a one-off Test against Afghanistan in New Chandigarh in June, although that match was not part of the WTC.
India currently occupy fifth place in the World Test Championship standings with four wins and four losses. Following the Sri Lanka tour, they face two major assignments—a two-Test series in New Zealand in November and a five-match home Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia early next year.
Several Indian Test players, including Sai Sudharsan and Dhruv Jurel, are already in Sri Lanka representing India A in unofficial Test matches.
Sri Lanka, meanwhile, are looking to recover after suffering an innings defeat to the West Indies in the opening Test of their two-match series in Antigua. The second Test begins on July 3.
India's tour of Sri Lanka schedule
1st Test: August 15–19 – Galle International Stadium, Galle
2nd Test: August 23–27 – Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC), Colombo
