COLOMBO – West Indies’ early gains in the second Test against Sri Lanka yesterday were eroded following a half-century stand between Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera, and then fickle weather that prompted an early close.
Kemar Roach and Darren Sammy exploited the conditions to give West Indies the upper hand, but Sangakkara and Samaraweera led a recovery to take Sri Lanka to 84 for three in their first innings, when bad light stopped play about five minutes after the rescheduled tea break with a minimum of 40.4 overs remaining on the opening day.
Inclement weather also badly disrupted the first Test, which ended in a draw at Galle last Friday to leave the three-Test series level at 0-0.
The weather forecast over the remaining four days also appears bleak with a 50-50 per cent chance of further rain interruptions.
Roach and Sammy made hay while the rain stayed away, and had Sri Lanka wobbling on 34 for three inside the first hour, after the home team chose to bat on a Premadasa Stadium pitch freshened by a 2 ½-hour weather delay under overcast to partly cloudy skies.
Things, however, slipped out of West Indies control when Samaraweera, not out on 26, joined Sangakkara, not out on 25, and they added an even 50 – unbroken – for the fourth wicket either side of the tea break.
Roach has been the most successful West Indies bowler so far with two wickets for 24 runs from ten overs, and Sammy, the West Indies captain, sharing the new ball, has been the most economical with his wicket costing 25 in a marathon spell of 17 overs on the trot from the start.
Rookie speedster Roach said he was not deterred in any way by having to spearhead the West Indies bowling attack against Sri Lanka.
“I am doing much more with the ball now and I’m working hard to get things right,” said the 22-year-old who has played just eight Tests.
Hard work
“I am the main fast bowler in the side at the moment so I have to accept that responsibility. It’s hard work here in Sri Lanka.”
Not a ball was bowled before the scheduled lunch interval due to the wet outfield caused by overnight and early morning rain.
When play commenced, Roach gave West Indies an early breakthrough, when he bowled Dilshan for four in the fifth over – the batsman drove down the wrong line, and had his off-stump leaned.
Dilshan’s dismissal was the second time in as many innings that Roach had nabbed the right-hander.
“He seems to have a little problem with the ball when it’s straight and fast so I have been trying to exploit that weakness,” Roach said.
“This is the second time I got him bowled down with a full, straight ball and again it happened today.”
The West Indies strike bowler might have had Sangakkara on two, but Sammy got only his fingertips to a difficult chance, flying to his left at third slip.
Roach persevered, and was rewarded, when Paranavitana, playing defensively forward, was caught at second slip for 16 edging a well-pitched delivery that squared him up.
Next over, Sammy repaid his side for his indiscretion, when he bowled Jayawardene, scorer of a pair of half-centuries in the first Test, for two.
West Indies bowled with increased discipline, and continued to hunt the wickets, but Sangakkara and Samaraweera stood firm, and started to dig Sri Lanka out of the hole.
West Indies made one change to the team, bringing beanpole left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn in to replace Andre Russell, following the end of his one-Test suspension for unsportsmanlike conduct during his previous Test against South Africa last July on home soil in Barbados. (CMC)
SCOREBOARD
SRI LANKA 1st Innings
T. Paranavitana c Dw Bravo b Roach 16
T. Dilshan b Roach 4
*K. Sangakkara not out 25
M. Jayawardene b *Sammy 2
T. Samaraweera not out 26
Extras (b1, lb4, w5, nb1) 11
TOTAL (3 wkts – 37.2 overs) 84
To bat: A. Mathews, +P. Jayawardene, N. Kulasekara, A. Mendis, R. Herath, S. Lakmal.
Fall of wickets: 1-10 (Dilshan), 2-31 (Paranavitana), 3-34 (M. Jayawardene)
Bowling: Roach 10-4-24-2, Sammy 17-6-25-1 (nb1), Dwayne Bravo 7.2-3-21-0 (w5); Benn 3-1-9-0
WEST INDIES – C. Gayle, A. Barath, Darren Bravo, S. Chanderpaul, B. Nash, Dwayne Bravo, +C. Baugh, *D. Sammy, S. Benn, S. Shillingford, K. Roach
Toss: Sri Lanka
Umpires: Asad Rauf, Richard Kettleborough.
TV umpire: Steve Davis
Match referee: A. Hurst
