India will begin their long 2017 tour of Sri Lanka with the first Test starting on Wednesday in Galle, and Virat Kohli will hope his team have a trip to remember at the end of the three Test matches, five ODIs and one T20 international.
Having suffered a meltdown in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, and that too against Pakistan, and played some lukewarm cricket in the Caribbean, India will hope to find their mojo in the longest format of the game.
Test cricket is where India have come into their own in the recent past, and the start of that solid run in whites can be traced back to 2015, when India beat Sri Lanka in a three-match series, despite losing the first game.
That series victory, with Kohli captaining the side for the first time as a full-time skipper, gave India the belief to go and conquer the Test world, and while they have been helped by the fact that most of their series' since have been at home, they have turned into a serious force in the red ball game.
Much of that is down to the bowling attack of India, particularly the spinners. Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin are two of the most lethal bowlers you can ask for if the conditions are helpful, and these two have certainly made the most of playing at home over the past 18-24 months.
How well India do, to a large extent, will depend on Jadeja and Ashwin's bowling. If they do well, India will undoubtedly do well. However, if they struggle to get much out of the pitches in Sri Lanka, then there could be a surprise result or three in store.
India's batting in the Test format can be fragile, but they will be boosted by the return of KL Rahul, who has the ability of taking the game away from the opposition in one session – the kind of batsmen Kohli likes. Rahul though could miss the first Test through illness.
Kohli's side will also be under pressure to get results after the coach fiasco that surrounded Indian cricket during and after the Champions Trophy, and with Ravi Shastri, Kohli's choice, back at the helm, there really is no room for mistakes.
Because all the critics who wrote, wrote and then wrote some more about the way the entire Anil Kumble situation was handled will be desperate for a reason to tear into Kohli and co. again, and India need to make sure they do not get that reason.
Considering the condition of Sri Lankan cricket at the moment – they were beaten by Zimbabwe in an ODI series and only just escaped with a win in a one-off Test – India will be the overwhelming favourites, across all formats of the game.
However, as Sri Lanka showed in that Champions Trophy game against India, take them lightly at your own peril, and maybe the prospect of bigger opposition will bring out a bigger game from their players.
India tour of Sri Lanka 2017 schedule:
Test series:
1st Test match: Wednesday, July 26 to Sunday, July 30.
Time: 10am local time, 10am IST, 5.30am BST, 12.30am ET.
Venue: Galle International Stadium, Galle.
2nd Test: Thursday, August 3 to Monday, August 7.
Time: 10am local time, 10am IST, 5.30am BST, 12.30am ET.
Venue: SSC, Colombo.
3rd Test: Saturday, August 12 to Wednesday, August 16.
Time: 10am local time, 10am IST, 5.30am BST, 12.30am ET.
Venue: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele.
ODI series:
1st ODI: Sunday, August 20.
Time: 2.30pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 5am ET.
Venue: Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium, Dambulla.
2nd ODI: Thursday, August 24.
Time: 2.30pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 5am ET.
Venue: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele.
3rd ODI: Sunday, August 27.
Time: 2.30pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 5am ET.
Venue: Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele.
4th ODI: Thursday, August 31.
Time: 2.30pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 5am ET.
Venue: Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
5th ODI: Sunday, September 3.
Time: 2.30pm local time, 2.30pm IST, 10am BST, 5am ET.
Venue: Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
Only T20I: Wednesday, September 6.
Time: 7pm local time, 7pm IST, 2.30pm BST, 9.30am ET.
Venue: Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
