IND v SL, 1st Test, Day 3 Review: Sri Lanka end the day on a high note

Heavy rain, bad light and a soggy outfield played spoilsport to the first couple of days of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka. However, Day 3 witnessed sunshine and the fans were treated to some riveting cricket between the Asian giants. After the first two days, Sri Lanka had India on the mat, reducing them to 74/5 in 32 odd overs. India tried their hearts out, but hardly were able to ruffle the feathers of the lively bunch of Sri Lankan cricketers.

At the end of the second day’s play, Cheteshwar Pujara was there for India at the crease with a score of 47. He reached a gritty half-century, but perished to a vicious in-dipper by Lahiru Gamage. Wriddhiman Saha played brilliantly in the final session of Day 2. He carried forward the same form in the pre-lunch session and him along with Ravindra Jadeja stitched together a stand of 48 runs for the seventh wicket. The partnership wasn’t substantial, but was enough to inject some sort of momentum into the Indian innings.

However, tweaker Dilruwan Perera had other ideas in mind. He got rid of both Saha and Jadeja in the same over to leave India in shambles. First, it was Jadeja who was trapped in front of the wickets and then in the fifth ball, it was Saha’s turn to fall prey to the off-spinner. To India’s relief, their tail wagged and lifted them to a score of 172 runs, which seemed highly unlikely after Perera’s double strike in the 52nd over. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami’s short, yet useful stints with the willow added useful runs for India.

Shami played some cameos and hacked a few over the ropes when India toured Lanka in July. He replicated the same touch as he raced away to a score of 24 runs in 22 balls. During his knock, he scorched three fours. The pull shot yielded Shami quite a few runs. Nevertheless, it was the same delivery which led to his dismissal as Lahiru Gamage picked up the last wicket and pulled the curtains down on India’s first innings with the bat.

A resolute Lankan batting show

Even with a modest score ahead of them, the task for Dinesh Chandimal’s men wasn’t going to be a cakewalk. They started steadily with Sadeera Samarawickrama nailing two boundaries off Bhuvneshwar Kumar. However, Kumar stormed back to dismiss both Dimuth Karunaratne and Samarawickrama through some accurate piece of bowling. With Sri Lanka having lost the early wickets, India brought the game back in the balance.

The onus was on the veterans, Lahiru Thirimanne and Angelo Matthews, to bail Sri Lanka out of the precarious position. They not only dragged their team out of the pits, but also guided Sri Lanka to safer shores at the close of play on Day 3. Both of Thirimanne and Matthews displayed grit and determination and scored 51 and 52 runs respectively. Both of them hit 8 boundaries each during their stand of 99 runs in 30 overs. The ball seamed around quite a bit, but they were up to the task.

Matthews survived a scare when the ball went through the second and fourth slip for a streaky boundary. Nonetheless, a double-blow from Umesh Yadav saw both batsmen perish. Thirimanne was caught at slips by Virat Kohli and Matthews presented a simple catch to Lokesh Rahul at short extra cover. Skipper Dinesh Chandimal and wicket-keeper Niroshan Dickwella staved off the Indian attack and ensured that Sri Lanka end play for Day 3 without further hiccups.

With a trail of 7 runs and 6 wickets remaining, Sri Lanka clearly have the upper hand. While India will be itching to pick up early wickets on Day 4, Sri Lanka will be looking to pile on the agony for the hosts. With a couple of days left in the game, a draw seems to be on the cards, but the game has witnessed funnier things happen in the past.

Brief Scores

India 172 all out after 59.3 overs (Cheteshwar Pujara 52, Wriddhiman Saha 29; Suranga Lakmal 4/26, Dilruwan Perera 2/29

Sri Lanka 165/4 after 45.4 overs (Angelo Matthews 52, Lahiru Thirimanne 51; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/49, Umesh Yadav 2/50. Sri Lanka trail by 7 runs