Colombo, August 22: With the rain clouds staying away and the skies clear, Sri Lanka tightened their grip on the first Test, moving within five wickets of victory on the final morning.
Thilan Thushara provided two early breakthroughs, and there was a wicket for Mahela Jayawardene as well as New Zealand’s reshaped top order disintegrated. It was left to Daniel Vettori and Jesse Ryder to keep Sri Lanka at bay, in sultry conditions that were the ultimate test for those battling sickness.
Sri Lanka started the morning with some exceptionally tidy overs, and that pressure eventually told once Thushara switched the angle of attack to round the wicket. Martin Guptill was clueless against one that came in with the arm and then darted away to clip the top of off stump. Soon after, Tim McIntosh, perhaps still suffering the after-effects of illness, was squared up, and Thilan Samaraweera took a fine low catch at third slip. McIntosh waited for the third umpire’s decision, but had to walk off eventually.
An even heftier blow came soon after. Kumar Sangakkara threw the ball to his predecessor as captain, and when Jayawardene got Ross Taylor to tickle on into Prasanna Jayawardene’s hands down the leg side, the Lankan celebrations were raucous. Up in the dressing room, Trevor Bayliss, the coach, held his head in his hands in disbelief.
With the fields more attacking, both Vettori and Jacob Oram had the opportunity to play some strokes. Vettori played a couple of lovely drives, and the sweep and pull were also employed by both as the scoreboard ticked along. But just when it seemed that they might get to lunch without further damage, Ajantha Mendis struck, trapping Oram in front with one that went straight on.
Both Vettori and Ryder saw edges off Muttiah Muralitharan escape past slip for four, and by the interval, Sangakkara had been forced to bring back Thushara in search of another wicket. It was still Sri Lanka’s match to win, but Vettori for one wasn’t going to gift it to them on a plate.
—–Agencies