Paranavitana firm after early blows

Lunch Sri Lanka 378 and 159 for 2 (Paranavitana 83*, M Jayawardene 14*) trail West Indies 580 for 9 dec by 43 runs
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Kemar Roach is thrilled after bowling Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sri Lanka v West Indies, 1st Test, Galle, 5th day, November 19, 2010
Kemar Roach gave West Indies two wickets in the morning session © AFP


An electric opening spell from Kemar Roach put Sri Lanka under pressure on the final day in Galle, as he blasted out Tillakaratne Dilshan and the in-form Kumar Sangakkara to leave the hosts tottering at 110 for 2. Tharanga Paranavitana and Mahela Jayawardene clawed, tussled and scrapped their way through to lunch, with Sri Lanka still 43 runs behind.

Roach sizzled from the first delivery of the day, bowling two hostile maidens to Paranavitana before returning to send Dilshan's off stump flying with a yorker in his third over. He should have had Kumar Sangakkara in the very next delivery as well, but an aerial clip off the legs burst through the fingers of Andre Russell at square leg. The drop only cost West Indies four runs, though, as Roach had Sangakkara edging to Darren Sammy at gully in his next over; this time, the fielder holding on to the sharp chance.

The Sri Lankans could relax a little when Sammy brought himself on in place of Roach from the Pavilion end, but there were no freebies from the West Indies captain either. Sammy bowled a nagging line and length and ensured that the pressure was not released with some tight field placements.

Shane Shillingford, meanwhile, continued to distress the batsmen from the other end as the ball began to fizz and bite off the track with increasing regularity. Shillingford too bowled an exceptional line and did almost everything but make the important breakthrough. Paranavitana was the beneficiary of the second drop of the morning when Sammy spilt a chance off Shillingford at slip. Mahela Jayawardene was again troubled by the turn and bounce, pushing and poking to keep the phalanx of close-in catchers interested.

Sammy began to ring in the bowling changes just before lunch, after his strike bowlers had failed to make further inroads, and a crucial second session awaits in Galle. West Indies will come hard at Sri Lanka once more, in their attempt to secure a historic Test victory and go to Colombo 1-0 up in the series.