Rangana Herath’s 23rd five-wicket haul demolished West Indies on day three in the first Sobers-Tissers Test match at Galle International Stadium on Friday.
Rangana’s 8th five-for at Galle ensured Sri Lanka bowl out the team from Caribbean Islands for 251 in their first innings. With 233 runs ahead, Sri Lanka enforced the follow-on.
In the 2nd innings, The Windies lost both their openers, Shai Hope and Kraigg Braithwaite during the post-tea session. Hope was bowled by debutant Milinda Siriwardana in the 10th over while Braithwaite was trapped LBW by Herath for 34.
West Indies will have to bat their skins out if they are to survive in this game as they are still trailing by 166 runs with 8 wickets and 2 days remaining in the match.
Earlier in the day, Marlon Samuels was the first to be dismissed on day three when he was bowled off Herath while attempting a big heave to the leg-side but the ball deviated off his thigh pad onto the stumps.
Jermaine Blackwood and Darren Bravo added valuable 41 runs for the 4th wicket but pushed hard at a delivery well outside his off-stump to the bowling of Prasad and was caught at first-slip.
Left-hander Bravo looked promising and was handling the Lankan spinners quite well. With three overs to go for lunch, Herath came back on and struck immediately when Bravo was caught at short mid-wicket by Dinesh Chandimal just after he reached his half-ton. Chandimal flew to his right and clung onto the ball in the air to raise Lankan hopes.
Skipper Holder and former captain Denesh Ramdin added 33 runs for the 6th wicket but both fell to the Lankan fast-bowling pair.
Prasad removed Holder in the 7th over after lunch when he found the perfect length to exploit the West Indian skipper’s indecisive footwork. Prasad bowled few short deliveries which made him camp on his back foot but the good-length delivery did the trick as the right-hander poked outside his body without any foot movement.
Ramdin was next to go when he slashed at a Nuwan Pradeep delivery away from his body and providing Kusal Perera another catch behind the stumps.
Jerome Taylor and Kemar Roach came together when the score was 171 for 7. They put on 46 for the 8th wicket with Taylor scoring a brisk run-a-ball 31 with 4 fours and a six as he took on the Lankan bowling but he too perished attempting to a loose drive off Tharindu Kaushal and was caught at first-slip.
Sri Lanka was unable to breakthrough Roach and Devendra Bishoo but Herath completed his maiden five-wicket haul against West Indies soon after taking the second new ball.
The left-arm spin legend ended the stubborn-resistance of Roach (stumped) and last man Shannon Gabriel (bowled) off successive deliveries and finished with figures of 6 for 68 from 33 overs.
Sri Lanka – 484 all out in 152.3 overs: Dimuth Karunaratne 186, Dinesh Chandimal 151, Angelo Mathews 48, Devendra Bishoo 4/143, Jerome Taylor 2/65.
West Indies – 251 all out in 82 overs: Darren Bravo 50, Jerome Taylor 31, Shai Hope 23, Denesh Ramdin 23, Devendra Bishoo 23*, Rangana Herath 6/68, Dhammika Prasad 2/38.
West Indies (2nd inn F/O) – 67/2 in 27 overs: Kraigg Braithwaite 34, Darren Bravo 20*, Rangana Herath 1/17.
