The Citizen e-edition

Sri Lankan spin pairing leave Windies in tatters

Galle – Spinners Lasith Embuldeniya (right) and Ramesh Mendis took all 10 wickets as Sri Lanka demolished the West Indies to win the second Test in Galle yesterday with a session to spare.

Chasing an improbable target of 297 to secure their maiden Test win on the island, the visitors lost only two wickets in the first session and looked determined to save the Test match.

But in a sensational collapse, they lost eight wickets for 40 runs after lunch to leave them all out for 132 and hand the hosts a 164-run victory.

Not a single batsman managed a half-century in the second innings with Nkrumah Bonner’s 44 being the highest.

Off-spinner Ramesh Mendis triggered the collapse when he claimed three wickets in an over in the afternoon session.

He started off by breaking the 27-run third wicket partnership between Nkrumah Bonner and Shai Hope when Hope clipped one straight to Suranga Lakmal at square leg.

Then Roston Chase was superbly caught by Osada Fernando at short leg.

Kyle Mayers survived the hat-trick ball but four balls later edged one to Dhananjaya de Silva at first slip.

It was a first 10-wicket Test haul for Mendis after he claimed career-best figures of 6/70 in the first innings amd has been the main tormentor of the Windies with 18 wickets in the series.

Playing just his fourth Test match, the 26-year-old Mendis has been a real find for Sri Lanka, bowling long spells and becoming his captain’s most trusted bowler.

“One thing Ramesh does is he spins the ball really big,” said outgoing Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur after he signed off with a win.

“We’ve just had to work on him being really consistent with his lines and with his lengths – the attacking lines that he’s worked on. I just think he’s getting his just rewards now.”

Mendis finished with a match bag of 11 wickets and was named Player-of-the-Series, while Dhananjaya de Silva – who hit an unbeaten 155 in Sri Lanka’s second innings – was declared the Man-of-theMatch.

Mendis was well supported by left-arm orthodox spinner Embuldeniya, who also finished with a five-wicket haul in the second innings – his fifth in Test cricket.

Embuldeniya dismissed Jermaine Blackwood in the last over before lunch and then came back to polish off the tail as West Indies’ troubles with spin continued.

Sri Lanka retained the Sobers-Tissera Trophy and moved up to seventh in the ICC Test rankings, with Windies slipping to eighth.

“When you are playing in these conditions, it is a learning curve. I am sure we will get better,” said West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite. –

SPORT

en-za

2021-12-04T08:00:00.0000000Z

2021-12-04T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://thecitizen.pressreader.com/article/282471417145176

The Citizen