Upul Tharanga top-scored for the hosts with a classic knock of 77 as the 3rd unofficial Test match between Sri Lanka ‘A’ and West Indies ‘A’ hangs in the balance after two days of cricket at Tyronne Fernando stadium in Morutuwa.
The Windies skipper Carlos Braithwaite won the toss of coin and elected to take the first lease of the surface on Saturday. The opening pair of Assad Fudadin and Kraigg Braithwaite batted for over 3 hours as they added 137 runs for the first wicket before Braithwaite was dismissed by Tharindu Kaushal for 75 runs. After the demise of Braithwaite, the visitors lost momentum and they kept on losing wickets with the 21-year old off-spinner from NCC, Tharindu Kaushal ripped apart the middle-order with his accurate turners which restricted the men from Caribbean Islands from scoring runs at their will.
Left-handed Assad Fudadin was the main pillar of strength in Windies batting as he scored a delightful 103 in 187 balls with 11 boundaries. Fudadin was the 5th victim of Kaushal. The Windies were 239/6 in 66 overs at close of play on day 1. Early morning on day 2, Right-arm seamer Nuwan Pradeep captured the final 4 wickets as the visitors were bowled out for 282 in 74.5 overs. Kaushal scalped 5 wickets for 125 runs while Pradeep gave away only 40 runs for his 4 wickets.
Sri Lanka ’A’ in their reply got off to a substantial start with the left-handed combination of Kusal Janith Perera and Upul Tharanga scoring 72 runs for the first wicket. Kusal was the first to return as he was caught behind by Chadwick Walton off Jermaine Blackwood for 38. One drop batsman Lahiru Thirimanne and Tharanga added 66 runs for the 2nd wicket until Carlos Braithwaite dismissed both players in successive overs for 21 and 77 respectively.
Dinesh Chandimal held the innings till close of play with a flawless 43 runs to remain unbeaten while all-rounder Chathuranga De Silva was not out on 24. Ashan Priyanjan and Niroshan Dickwella failed to impress as both batsmen were dismissed cheaply. Sri Lanka ‘A’ ended day 2 on 248/6 in 72 overs and they are only 34 runs behind with 4 wickets remaining.
The match will be continued tomorrow (Monday).
Chief Scores:
West Indies ‘A’ – 282 all out in 74.5 overs: Assad Fudadin 103, Kraigg Braithwaite 75, Tharindu Kaushal 5/125, Nuwan Pradeep 4/40.
Sri Lanka ‘A’ – 248/6 in 72 overs: Upul Tharanga 77, Kusal Janith Perera 38, Dinesh Chandimal 43*, Kithruwan Vithanage 25, Chathuranga De Silva 24*, Carlos Braithwaite 2/20, Devendra Bishoo 2/81.
