Windies v Sri Lanka 3rd Test... 20 Wkts tumble on day of inapt batting Windies crash to lowest total at Kensington

Windies v Sri Lanka 3rd Test… 20 Wkts tumble on day of inapt batting Windies crash to lowest total at Kensington

Jun 26, 2018 Sports

By Sean Devers in Barbados
In association with Carib Beer,
Noble House Seafoods, Vnet Communication’s
& Bounty Farm

Twenty wickets tumbled for 229 runs on a day off poor batting by both side as Sri Lanka ended the third day of the third and final Test at the Kensington Oval yesterday holding a slim advantage going into the penultimate day today.
Niroshan Dickwella hit six fours in 42 and got support from Danushka Gunathilaka, who hit three fours and a six in 29 and Kusal Mendis 22 as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 154.
Skipper Jason Holder captured 4-19 from 16 overs, while Shannon Gabriel had 3-54 and now four wickets short of joining Michael Holding had 24 in the three-Test in 1981 in Australia. Kemar Roach removed the openers on the second day to finish on 2-30.
Windies, with a lead of 50, tumbled for 91, their lowest ever score at this venue; falling short of the 94 against England in 2004 and their eighth lowest Test score.
Only Roach (23*) reached 20 in an embarrassing batting display as Lahiru Kumara took 2-31 to take his tally in the series to 17. Kasun Rajitha (3-20) and Suranga Lakmal (3-25) supported for Sri Lanka who were 81-5 by the close, still 63 runs away from victory with Mendis (25) and Dilruwan Perera (1) at the crease.
Holder has 4-21 so far to follow-up his four wickets haul in the first innings.
Earlier, on a day blessed with glorious sunshine Dickwella and Roshen Silva resumed with Sri Lanka, on their fifth tour to the West Indies and first Test in Barbados, on 99-5 and a handful of fans saw them survive the first half hour with responsible batting.
Batting on a track that provided pace and carry and a lush green outfield, the pair fought hard as a strong wind blew across the ground where West Indies had never lost a Test to an Asian side.
Silva (17) played a loose drive and edged a catch to the keeper to leave the score 118-6 as Gabriel got his 20thwicket in this series.
Dickwella drove Roach sweetly through cover for four before Perera edged the fiery Gabriel for a boundary and stroked Cummings past mid-on for bullet like boundary on the slowish outfield before flicking the Bajan pacer for four in the same over.
By the first water break Sri Lanka were 145-6 with Dickwella nine short of his tenth half-century and Dilruwan Perera on six before the innings took a nose dive.
The next four wickets tumbled for just nine runs as Holder struck thrice before Kumara (0) was run out in comical fashion.
Holder removed Dickwella at 147-7, while Kemo Paul got his first feel of Test cricket when he took the catch as substitute to dismiss Lakmal for a duck without addition to the score.
Perera’s stump was sent cartwheeling when he was on six with the score on 149-8 but the review showed that Holder had overstepped by a fraction of an inch but Kasun Rajitha (0) was bowled in the same over at 150-9 before Kumara was run out as the innings closed at 16:27hrs.
When Windies began their second innings, with a lead of 50, Devon Smith’s nightmare series concluded in spectacular fashion when his middle stump was sent for a walk off the second ball from Lakmal before he had scored at 1-1.
Smith made 1,095 runs in the Regional First-Class season and his demise yesterday emphasised the low standard of Regional cricket.
Things got progressively worse when Kraigg Braithwaite (2) was caught at short leg off Lakmal before Shai Hope’s struggles continued when his off stump was sent cartwheeling for a second ball duck off Sri Lanka’s fastest bowler Kumara as Windies slumped to 9-3.
By the first break, the Windies were 13-3 and after the interval Kieron Powell was hit on his helmet by a nasty lifter from Kumara, whi

le Roston Chase (5) was caught at slip playing a ‘nothing shot’ off Lakmal to leave the Windies on 14-4.
Powell (7) got a thin edge to a pull and was caught down the leg-side off Kumara as Windies slumped to an embarrassing 14-5 and once again it was left to Shane Dowrich and Holder to dig their team out of a hole.
Dowrich got going with an enterprising cover drive as Lakmal pitched up and pulled for another boundary when he bowled short, while Holder square drove Kumara for four but was hit on his Helmet when he missed a hook next ball.
It was sad to witness the discomfort to bouncers shown by West Indian batsmen for those who grew up watching Fredericks, Kallicharran, Greenidge, Haynes, Richards, Richardson, Lloyd and others who hooked anything short with contempt and disdain.
Dowrich, just after joining Deryck Murray, Jeff Dujon, Denesh Ramdin and Ridley Jacobs as West Indies Wicketkeepers with 1,000 runs, was undone by a short ball from Rajitha.
Rajitha then got rid of Devendra Bishoo for a duck as Windies slumped to 41-7 to equal their lowest total made against England in Jamaica 2004.
Holder, who hit three fours in his 15, edged Rajitha to second slip at 56-8 but Roach and Cummings contributed crucial runs before off-spinner Dilruwan Perera induced Cummings (14) to edge a wild swipe at 82-9.
Gabriel clobbered Lakmal to long-on and Kusal Perera crashed into the advertisement board as the ball went for six and after not moving for almost 10 minutes, Perera was taken by Ambulance to the Hospital. A second break was taken with Windies on 88-9.
Sri Lanka, set 145 to win lost Mahela Udawatte (0) LBW to Roach at 9-1, while Gunathilaka hit four boundaries in 22 before he was removed at 30-2 by Holder who soon bowled Dhananjaya de Silva (11) to 48-3.
Holder struck again to remove Roshen Silva (1), while Mendis was dropped off Holder on 15 and along with Dickwella added 23 before Dickwella (1) was bowled at 74-5. Sri Lanka survived to the end.
Scores: WEST INDIES 204 (Jason Holder 74, Shane Dowrich 71; Lahiru Kumara 4-58, Kasun Rajitha 3-68, Suranga Lakmal 2-52) and 93 (Kemar Roach 23 not out; Kasun Rajitha 3-20, Suranga Lakmal 3-25, Lahiru Kumara 2-31).
SRI LANKA 154 (Niroshan Dickwella 42, Danushka Gunathilaka 29, Kusal Mendis 22; Jason Holder 4-19, Shannon Gabriel 3-52, Kemar Roach 2-30) and 81 for five (Kusal Mendis 25 not out, Danushka Gunathilaka 21; Jason Holder Jason Holder 4-21).