Windies trail by 37 runs with sightings of variable bounce
Stumps, Day 2: West Indies 271 for 5 (Jangoo 78*, Chase 42*; Fernando 2-25) trail Sri Lanka 308 all out (de Silva 120, Chandimal 54; Greaves 3-39) by 37 runs
The West Indies have positioned themselves to build a first innings lead after ending Day 2 of the first Test trailing Sri Lanka by just 37 runs with five wickets in hand.
A century stand between Amir Jangoo and captain Roston Chase lifted the Caribbean side from 168 for 5 to 271 without further loss at stumps, responding to 308 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua and Barbuda.
If Thursday’s opening day was marred by inconsistency from the West Indies fast bowlers, then Day 2 was a highlight reel of impatience from the Caribbean batters, with Jangoo as the outlier.
The left-hander was circumspect on his way to a maiden Test match fifty, which he fashioned into an unbeaten 78 at stumps. He first shared in a 52-run stand for the fourth wicket with Joshua Da Silva before partnering with Chase – whose 42 not out is his highest score in 16 innings – for a tide-turning unbroken 103-run stay.
The pair batted the entirety of the final session, negotiating variable bounce and defying a determined and largely disciplined Sri Lankan attack, earning the right to return to the crease on Day 3.
