COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, CMC – Opener Kraigg Brathwaite grabbed a stunning six-wicket haul to rout Sri Lanka cheaply but he then perished cheaply leaving West Indies with a difficult run chase on today’s fourth day, in order to win the second Test at the P Sara Oval.
Trundling his unheralded off-spin that had previously brought him a single wicket from 48 overs in his 23 Tests, the 23-year-old ripped through the Sri Lanka second innings with a spell of six for 29 to send them crashing for 206, an hour after lunch on the third day yesterday.
He was supported by debutant specialist left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican who picked up two for 62.
Set 244 to win their first ever Test on Sri Lankan soil, West Indies lost Brathwaite for three to what turned out to be the last delivery before tea, as rain arrived to force end play ten minutes early, before forcing the abandonment of the final session with the score on 20 for one.
The right-handed Brathwaite, as he has done previously in the series, faced 26 deliveries before playing down the wrong line and falling lbw to seamer Dhammika Prasad.
Shai Hope was unbeaten on 17, with West Indies requiring a further 224 runs to win the contest.
Earlier, resuming the day on 76 for two, recovered from two early blows within the first 35 minutes to cruise to 154 for four before dramatically losing their last six wickets for 52 runs.
Captain Angelo Matthews top-scored with 46, Milinda Siriwardana got 42, while Kusal Mendis chipped in with 39 and Kaushal Silva, 32.
West Indies were rewarded in the day’s fifth over when Silva edged a defensive prod at Warrican to first slip where Jermaine Blackwood pouched the first of his five catches, at 84 for three.
Two balls later in the next over with no runs added, fast bowler Jerome Taylor got the right-handed Chandimal (12) to inside edge a delivery that came back and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin took a sharp catch moving to his left.
Mathews and Siriwardana then bolstered the innings with a 67-run, fifth wicket stand, which kept the West Indies bowlers at bay.
The right-handed Mathews faced 120 deliveries and struck three fours while the left-handed Siriwardana slammed three fours and two sixes, in an entertaining 60-ball knock.
Siriwardana, in only his second Test, played positively, striking straight sixes off both Warrican and leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo who went wicket-less from 20 overs.
However, with lunch beckoning, West Indies struck two crucial blows to regain the advantage. In the fifth over before the break, Brathwaite got the breakthrough with the first ball of the second over of his opening spell, getting Siriwardana to edge a turning delivery to Blackwood at slip.
Then, with the first ball of the final over before lunch, Kusal Perera bottom-edged a cut at Brathwaite to Ramdin, to leave Sri Lanka on 165 for six at the interval.
Mathews and Rangana Herath, who made 18, held up the Windies after the break by adding a precious 30 for the seventh wicket.
Herath played freely, hitting three fours off 26 balls, before top-edging a sweep at Brathwaite for Blackwood at slip to take a comfortable catch, at 195 for seven.
The end came swiftly for the hosts as Brathwaite snapped up the three remaining wickets. Dilruwan Perera (7) picked out Kemar Roach in the deep, Mathews bungled a reverse sweep and was taken by Blackwood at slip and the young Jamaican snared his fifth catch of the innings when Nuwan Pradeep edged the first ball he faced.
SCOREBOARD
SRI LANKA 1st Innings 200
WEST INDIES 1st Innings 163
SRI LANKA 2nd Innings
(overnight 76 for two)
D Karunaratne c Bishoo b Taylor 0
K Silva c Blackwood b Warrican 32
K Mendis c wkp Ramdin b Warrican 39
D Chandimal c wkp Ramdin b Taylor 12
*A Mathews c Blackwood b Brathwaite 46
M Siriwardana c Blackwood b Brathwaite 42
+D Perera c wkp Ramdin b Brathwaite 5
R Herath c Blackwood b Brathwaite 18
D Perera c Roach b Brathwaite 7
D Prasad not out 1
N Pradeep c Blackwood b Brathwaite 0
Extras (b2, lb2) 4
TOTAL (all out, 75.3 overs) 206
Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Karunaratne), 2-55 (Mendis), 3-84 (Silva), 4-84 (Chandimal), 5-151 (Siriwardana), 6-165 (K Perera), 7-195 (Herath), 8-203 (D Perera), 9-206 (Mathews), 10-206 (Pradeep).
Bowling: Taylor 8-3-26-2, Roach 6-1-15-0, Holder 5-1-9-0, Warrican 25-2-62-2, Bishoo 20-3-61-0, Brathwaite 11.3-4-29-6.
WEST INDIES 2nd Innings
K Brathwaite lbw b Prasad 3
S Hope not out 17
TOTAL (1 wkt, 9 overs) 20
Fall of wicket: 1-20 (Brathwaite).
Bowling: Prasad 5-2-4-1, Pradeep 1-0-8-0, Herath 3-1-8-0.
Position: West Indies require a further 224 runs with nine wickets intact.
Umpires: Simon Fry, Rod Tucker; TV – Marais Erasmus.
