Result, Day 5: Sri Lanka 549 for 9 dec & 251 for 9 dec. (Chandimal 71, Kamindu 44, Alzarri 2-44) drew with West Indies 499 & 109 for 0 (Campbell 51*, King 51*)
Before the start of the series, the last West Indian captain to claim a Test series win over Sri Lanka was Brian Lara, 23 years ago. On Tuesday, Roston Chase’s men secured a draw that earned the Caribbean side a 1-0 series triumph, their first over the Asian team since then.
Chase is not underestimating the result. “I'm very elated, [winning] against a team like Sri Lanka that we struggle to beat, even at home,” he began. “So to come here and to not just beat them but [to win] in a dominating kind of way, it's very pleasing.”
Chase himself was part of that dominance, scoring 194 to help his team to an innings and 217-run victory in the first Test. He starred alongside Amir Jangoo (233) in a record-breaking 401-run stand for the sixth-wicket. Their partnership went a long way in helping the West Indies to what proved to be a decisive win.
The result was the first positive one in nine attempts for Chase as captain, who had been averaging 13.8 with the bat since his appointment.
“It's a great feeling [but] I don't want to take too much credit for it because at the end of the day it's a team sport and I can't go out there and do it by myself,” he said simply.
Handshakes signal the end of the Test (AFP/Getty Images)
Wrist spinner Vitel Lawes has earned a maiden senior call-up after being included in the West Indies' 15-member squad for the opening three games of the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series against New Zealand, to be played in Guyana and Barbados.
The 19-year-old Jamaican has been training with the Senior team since the camp prior to the start of the home series.
Earlier this year, he was named in the ICC Under-19 World Cup’s Team of the Tournament, where he impressed by claiming 10 wickets and bowling the highest number of dot balls during the competition.
“The inclusion of Vitel Lawes is strategic as we continue our long-term vision of exposing players who can complement the team in conditions that best suit their skill sets,” said Head Coach Daren Sammy.
Stumps, Day 4: Sri Lanka 549 for 9 dec & 92 for 2 (Chandimal 40*, Kamindu 30*, Alzarri 1-17) lead West Indies 499 (Greaves 180, Hope 112, Fernando 5-130) by 142 runs
All three results are still possible ahead of Tuesday’s final day of the second Test between the West Indies and Sri Lanka at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua and Barbuda.
Despite two early strikes from the West Indians in the evening session, Dinesh Chandimal (40*) and Kamindu Mendis (30*) stitched together an unbroken 60-run partnership to see the visitors stretch their lead to 142 runs at close of play.
On a day that Sri Lanka tried everything with the ball, the West Indies might have thought they batted themselves to safety after Justin Greaves’ 180 helped the Caribbean side occupy the crease for a little over two sessions on the penultimate day, trimming the visitors’ first innings advantage to 50 runs before they were dismissed for 499.
The overnight pair of Greaves and Shai Hope resumed batting with Windies 318 for four and still trailing by 231. Once again, the discipline from the visiting bowlers meant they had to grind out every run during the morning session.
Sri Lanka missed an opportunity for the perfect start after failing to review one Hope had feathered down the leg side to the wicketkeeper in the first over.
He capitalized on the opportunity, extending the fifth-wicket partnership with Greaves to 242. They eventually brought up individual milestones. The classy Hope was the first to raise his bat. He notched a fifth Test ton, his third since his recall to the side last summer and a first in the Caribbean.
Stumps, Day 3: West Indies 318 for 4 (Hope 86*, Greaves 85*, Fernando 2-74) trail Sri Lanka 549 for 9 dec. (Udara 188, Dinusha 92, Seales 2-98) by 231 runs
A 174-run unbeaten fifth-wicket stand between Shai Hope and Justin Greaves has put the West Indies 32 runs away from forcing Sri Lanka to bat again in the second Test.
On a day that they only lost three wickets, the Caribbean side got to stumps on 318 for 4, still 231 runs adrift of the visitors’ first innings, 549 for 9, declared.
Hope and Greaves came together early in the second session with the score at 144 for 4. They batted expertly for 54 overs, ensuring the West Indies got to close of play without further loss.
Theirs was a partnership of control and sublime strokeplay. With the Sri Lankans targeting the stumps, the Barbadian duo responded with repeated flicks and clips through the on-side.
Hope’s 86* is his fourth 50-plus score in his last five innings, which includes two centuries. Meanwhile, Greaves’ unbeaten 85 is only his second half-century in 16 Tests.
Stumps, Day 2: West Indies 58 for 1 (Campbell 31*, King 17, Fernando 1-11) trail Sri Lanka 549 for 9 dec. (Udara 188, Dinusha 92, Seales 2-98) by 491 runs
The West Indies will enter Day 3 of the second Test 491 runs behind Sri Lanka, having gotten to stumps at 58 for the loss of Brandon King, responding to the visitors’ mammoth first innings total of 549 for nine, declared.
King was caught at slip off Asitha Fernando for 17 before Kavem Hodge (6*) joined John Campbell (31*), and the pair added 25 runs to see Windies through to close of play.
Having already batted 24 overs, Jayden Seales is confident the hosts can build a strong response on the North Sound wicket.
“Once the lacquer comes off and the hardness of the ball goes out, it's pretty easy to bat, whether you're bowling in a good area or not,” Seales said.
“And the wicket seems to be an easy-paced one now; it's more of a new-ball pitch.”
John Campbell (39), Brandon King (31), and Da Silva (20) all got starts before Amir Jangoo (233) and Roston Chase (194) took the game away from Sri Lanka in the first Test.
Jayden Seales reacts to a dropped catch (AFP/Getty Images)
