PORT OF SPAIN: West Indies were 209 for seven in their second innings, an overall lead of 438 runs, at lunch on the fourth day of the first Test against Sri Lanka at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad on Saturday.

Resuming at 131-4, West indies lost three more wickets while adding 78 runs in the morning session, including that of Kieran Powell for 88.

Following the devastation wreaked by pacers Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach late on Thursday’s day two and at the start of day three, it was fast-medium bowler Miguel Cummins who cleaned up the Sri Lankan tail to finish with the best innings figures of three for 39 on Friday afternoon.

However, there can be no trivialising the damage inflicted by the two new ball bowlers, both in terms of wickets and psychologically, on batsmen who appeared almost completely incapable of coping with fast, short-pitched bowling on a sporting surface.

Yet as well as the hosts bowled on the third day, the visitors contributed to their own demise with a succession of poor shots.

Skipper Dinesh Chandimal and Niroshan Dickwella offered the only substantial resistance as they looked to be getting on top of the bowling heading into the lunch interval when Chandimal, on 44, set the tone for the remainder of the innings by playing a loose shot in the final over before the break off Gabriel for Roston Chase to take his third catch of the innings at backward point.

Dickwella was then run out for 31 in a mix-up with new batsman Dilruwan Perera early into the afternoon session and from that point the innings subsided swiftly.

Despite the West Indies’ comfortable position at the start of the second innings, the pressure was once again on the recalled Devon Smith to deliver at the top of the order.

Run out in the first innings for just seven, he was first bowled by a no-ball from Suranga Lakmal and then bowled again by the very next delivery, this time legitimately, and departed for 20.

Lahiru Kumara, who impressed with his pace and effort in taking four wickets in the first innings, enjoyed success again when he had the other opener, Kraigg Brathwaite, caught by Dickwella and removed premier middle-order batsman Shai Hope shortly after to a second slip catch by Roshen Silva.

At the other end, Powell was all impressive assurance with his stroke play, reaching the half-century mark off just 59 deliveries. By the time stumps were drawn, his 64 had occupied 80 balls in an innings embellished by two sixes and six fours.

He lost Chase just before the close of play, bowled by Rangana Herath. It was hardly cause for celebration, though, in a Sri Lankan camp bracing for the challenge of batting for survival at some point on the fourth day against the likes of Gabriel and Roach on a wearing pitch.

Scoreboard

WEST INDIES (1st Innings) 414-8 declared (S.O. Dowrich 125 not out, S.D. Hope 44, J.O. Holder 40, D. Bishoo 40; C.B.R.L.S. Kumara 4-95).

SRI LANKA (1st Innings):
B.K.G. Mendis c Holder b Gabriel 4
M.D.K.J. Perera c Chase b Roach 0
L.D. Chandimal c Chase b Gabriel 44
A.D. Mathews c Chase b Holder 11
A.R.S. Silva b Roach 5
N. Dickwella run out 31
M.D.K. Perera c Hope b Bishoo 20
H.M.R.K.B. Herath c sub b Cummins 5
R.A.S. Lakmal c Bishoo b Cummins 15
P.L.S. Gamage not out 0
C.B.R.L.S Kumara c Dowrich b Cummins 8

EXTRAS (B-8, LB-16, W-12, NB-6) 42
TOTAL (all out, 55.4 overs) 185
FALL OF WKTS: 1-2, 2-16, 3-30, 4-43, 5-121, 6-140, 7-148, 8-156, 9-175. BOWLING: Roach 10-3-34-2 (1nb, 1w); Gabriel 13-0-48-2 (2nb, 1w); Cummins 12.4-4-39-3 (2nb, 1w); Holder 7-1-15-1 (1nb); Bishoo 13-2-25-1.

WEST INDIES (2nd Innings, overnight 131-4):
K.C. Brathwaite c Dickwella b Kumara 16
D.S. Smith b Lakmal 20
K.O.A. Powell c sub b M.D.K. Perera 88
S.D. Hope c Silva b Kumara 1
R.L. Chase b Herath 12
S.O. Dowrich lbw b Kumara 13
J.O. Holder lbw b Herath 39
D. Bishoo not out 12
K.A.J. Roach not out 1

EXTRAS (B-4, LB-2, NB-1) 7
TOTAL (for seven wkts, 69 overs) 209
FALL OF WKTS: 1-36, 2-55, 3-75, 4-119, 5-149, 6-191, 7-203.
BOWLING (to date): Lakmal 11-2-30-1 (1nb); Gamage 15-3-43-0; Herath 23-5-47-2; Kumara 9-0-40-3; M.D.K. Perera 11-1-43-1.

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2018