India may have won the first Test in Galle by 165 runs, but former wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik believes there is one area the team needs to fix before the second Test.

India will face Sri Lanka again on August 23 at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. While the big win has given India plenty of confidence, Karthik feels their second-innings batting was a concern.

Sri Lankan pacers exposed India

India were in a strong position after scoring 462 in their first innings. They then reduced Sri Lanka to 90/5, putting themselves in a position to finish the match quickly.

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But things changed when India came out to bat for the second time.

The Indian batting order struggled and lost six wickets to Sri Lanka's pace bowlers. That caught Karthik's attention because Galle is usually a venue where spinners are expected to play the bigger role.

Karthik believes India cannot afford to repeat the same mistake in future Tests.

The former India player also pointed out how quickly the situation changed. After India had dominated the opening stages, their batting collapse gave Sri Lanka a brief chance to fight back.

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India still dominated in Galle

Despite that setback, India remained in control for most of the Test. They posted 462 in their first innings before bowling Sri Lanka out for 284. That gave India a 178-run lead. India then scored 193 in their second innings and set Sri Lanka a target of 372.

The hosts could not handle the pressure and were bowled out for 206. India therefore completed a comfortable 165-run victory and moved 1-0 ahead in the two-Test series.

The second Test in Colombo will now be an opportunity for India to seal the series, but they will also want to avoid another batting collapse.

India improve WTC position

The victory also gave India a useful boost in the World Test Championship 2025-27 standings. It was India's fifth win in 10 matches in the current WTC cycle. The result also ended their wait for a Test victory after their previous win against the West Indies in Ahmedabad last year.

India's points percentage improved from 48.14 to 53.33. However, they remained fifth in the table. Australia lead the standings with 77.77 per cent, followed by South Africa on 75.00, New Zealand on 72.22 and Bangladesh on 66.67.

Sri Lanka remain sixth after their second defeat in five matches. Their points percentage has fallen to 33.33.

India’s WTC road ahead

India still have plenty of important Tests left in the current WTC cycle. After the Colombo Test, they are scheduled to travel to New Zealand for a two-Test series. Their campaign will then continue with a five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia on home soil next year.

India have made a strong start to the Sri Lanka series, but Karthik's warning highlights an area the team will want to improve before the next Test.