Pasindu Sooriyabandara and Sonal Dinusha reached the 80s, while valuable support from the tailenders helped Sri Lanka move closer to avoiding the follow-on, but India remained in the driver’s seat at stumps on Day 3 of the second Test at the SSC.
The two newcomers, Kamil Mishara and Pasindu Sooriyabandara, resumed Sri Lanka’s first innings on Day 3. However, just 6.3 overs into the day’s play, India claimed their third wicket with only 35 runs on the board. Debutant Kamil Mishara, who had looked promising, fell to a short delivery from Prasidh Krishna.
>>India seize control after Jurel’s hundred lifts them to 503
Kamindu Mendis then joined Sooriyabandara in the middle. The duo continued their positive approach and kept the scoreboard ticking at a healthy rate of more than four runs per over. Sooriyabandara also brought up his maiden Test fifty during the partnership. Neither Saransh Jain nor Manav Suthar was able to apply much pressure as the two batters looked to close out the morning session. This prompted Shubman Gill to bring Krishna back just before the lunch break. The pacer removed Mendis to break the 87-run stand and claim his third wicket, with just two overs remaining before the interval. Mendis played a loose pull shot off a short delivery and picked out short midwicket.
The start of the second session was delayed by 30 minutes due to a short shower.
Suthar claimed his second wicket by dismissing Sri Lankan captain Dhananjaya de Silva in the third over of the second session, leaving the hosts five down for 137. Ravindra Jadeja then joined the wickets column with his first of the innings, removing the well-set Sooriyabandara for 80. Four balls later, Mohammed Siraj dismissed Niroshan Dickwella for a three-ball duck as Sri Lanka slipped to 173/7.
With Sri Lanka still 330 runs behind, India looked to wrap up the remaining three wickets quickly and enforce the follow-on.
The hero from the Galle Test for the home side, Sonal Dinusha, once again showed plenty of resilience, battling hard alongside the tailenders. With Keshara Nuwantha joining him, the pair took Sri Lanka to tea without further damage. The eighth-wicket partnership reached fifty, with Dinusha bringing up another half-century while Nuwantha battled for more than 70 balls. However, after attempting to clear the packed off-side field, Nuwantha was caught at mid-off, with Suthar breaking the stubborn stand.
>>Padikkal shines again with 117 on hard-fought Day 1 at SSC
Dinusha continued to battle on, while No. 10 batter Lahiru Kumara provided valuable support. The duo added an unbeaten 35 runs before bad light brought an early end to play at around 5.00 PM. Dinusha is closing in on a century, while Kumara has also faced 50 deliveries to help Sri Lanka survive the day. India will be looking to take the remaining two wickets before Sri Lanka score the 38 runs needed to avoid the follow-on.
Brief Scores:
India 503/9 (138) Devdutt Padikkal 117, Dhruv Jurel 115*, Rishabh Pant 63, Shubman Gill 50, Asitha Fernando 4/106, Prabath Jayasuriya 2/132, Keshara Nuwantha 2/154
Sri Lanka 265/8 (83.4) Sonal Dinusha 85*, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 80, Kamindu Mendis 32, Prasidh Krishna 3/47, Manav Suthar 3/83
Stumps – Day 3, Sri Lanka trail by 238 runs.
https://stats.thepapare.com/cricket/match/sri-lanka-vs-india-india-tour-of-sri-lanka-2nd-test
