Sri Lanka vs. India, 1st Test: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info, Preview

Sri Lanka and India have locked horns countless times over the years on the cricket field, but amazingly this clash at Galle is their first five-day meeting since 2010.

And with last-minute injuries, form issues, selection problems and off-field stories aplenty—let's not forget this is Kumar Sangakkara's penultimate Test—this contest has an abundance of subplots to investigate.

So without further ado, let's take a look a closer look at how the sides are shaping up ahead of this mouth-watering encounter.

Date: Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Time:  10 a.m. local, 4.30 a.m. GMT

Venue: Galle, Sri Lanka

Live stream and TV info: Sky Sports (UK), SKY Sport (New Zealand), SuperSport (South Africa), DD National/DD Sports (India), Fox Sports (Australia), Direct TV & Willow TV (United States of America), OSN Network (United Arab Emirates), PTV Sports (Pakistan), Ten Sports (Caribbean)

Weather: A tropical mixed bag is in store, according to BBC Weather, with sunshine, storms and lightning all possible over the course of the day.

Overview

India have won just two of their last 25 Tests away from home and will have to answer plenty of questions if they are to improve on that miserable record at Galle.

Eranga Jayawardena/Associated Press

And things have been made even more difficult for them with the news that Murali Vijay, who has scored more than 1,000 runs in his last 19 Test innings, has been ruled out with a hamstring injury.

The 31-year-old's absence means what was looking like a tough choice between Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul for the other opener's position is now redundant, and both will face the new ball.

Another interesting aspect to India's team selection is Virat Kohli's stated intention to play five bowlers, which suggests inexperienced wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha will bat at No. 6.

It is still a strange sight to see an Indian team on the field without the calming presence of MS Dhoni behind the stumps, and Saha, who averages just 17 over five Tests and scored 3 and 1 in the warm-up game against a President's XI, has big shoes to fill.

This curtailed batting lineup piles huge pressure on a talented but perhaps not the most obdurate (especially outside of India) middle order of Rohit Sharma, Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, who will need to register some big contributions.

The snowball effect means that as well as playing crucial roles with the ball when spin comes into play, the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh will have to chip in with lower-order runs too.

And while it could be the slow bowlers who end up dictating the game, suspected muggy conditions should give Bhuvneshwar Kumar a major say too, especially when the ball is new and his limbs are fresh.

Of course, Sri Lanka have plenty of issues to contend with also.

Injuries to Shaminda Eranga, Suranga Lakmal and pace sensation Dushmantha Chameera have left them with an inexperienced-looking bowling attack, headed up by Dhammika Prasad, who averages 43.25 per wicket.

And it could be said the batting side of things also like a certain know how, although the presence of Sangakkara, for the second-to-last-time ever in international cricket, is a major lift.

The classy left-hander made his Test debut on this ground in 2000, and who would bet against the 38-year-old adding to his haul of 38 career centuries to sign off with a bang?

Hopefully his fellow batsmen will be taking notes, as sooner or later, someone like Lahiru Thirimanne or Dinesh Chandimal, who average 20.67 and 31.28 when excluding Bangladesh from their statistics respectively, needs to come to the fore.

More positively, openers Kaushal Silva and Dimuth Karunaratne look solid and will have to play a key role if the Sri Lankans are to going to get themselves into winning positions.

Additionally, a resurgence of form from Rangana Herath, who hasn't taken multiple wickets in an entire match since February, would also be helpful.

Previous meeting and India vs. Sri Lanka head-to-head record:

Last time these sides met, way back in 2010, India, boasting the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in their ranks, secured a five-wicket victory thanks to a nerveless VVS Laxman ton, securing a 1-1 series draw in the process.

These teams have contested 35 Test matches so far, with India boasting a 14-6 record over their subcontinental rivals. However, in Sri Lanka, the hosts hold a slender 6-4 advantage from the 18 meetings.

Test Form (Most Recent Results First)

Sri Lanka: LWLLLW

India: DDDLLL

Squads

Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (captain), Lahiru Thirimanne, Kaushal Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kumar Sangakkara, Dinesh Chandimal, Upul Tharanga, Jehan Mubarak, Kusal Perera, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Tharindu Kaushal, Nuwan Pradeep, Dhammika Prasad, Vishwa Fernando

India: Virat Kohli (captain), Varun Aaron, R Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra, Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul

Key Players

Sri Lanka

While Sangakkara will capture the headlines in Galle, Angelo Mathews is the present and future of Sri Lankan cricket and boasts an incredible Test average of 51.67. Despite shouldering the responsibility of the captaincy, over the last few years, the all-rounder has had sensational form and regularly turns good team totals into great team totals and sub-par team totals into respectable ones.

India

Likewise, India's skipper Virat Kohli also carries pressure with him wherever he goes, especially with the spectre of the popular MS Dhoni still watching over him. But out in the middle, there are few better batsmen to watch when in full flow, as evidenced by his colossal return of 692 runs with four centuries in his country's January tour Down Under.

Prediction

Can India take a giant stride to winning their first Test series in Sri Lanka in 22 years at Galle? Even though their own XI looks unbalanced on paper, they have a great chance against what appears to be, Sangakkara and Herath aside, a fairly young-looking team. That said, the mixed bag of weather could have the final say, so a draw is the most likely result.