Left hanging on 99 in a single day, West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite accomplished his ninth check century to position his group in a robust place at stumps on the second day of the second cricket check in opposition to Sri Lanka.
Brathwaite wanted solely two balls initially of the day to achieve his first century since July 2018. He labored the second ball from Suranga Lakmal to superb leg for a single to additionally full his first hundred as West Indies captain from 241 balls with 11 fours.
Brathwaite was the sixteenth participant in check historical past to be stranded on 99 in a single day and he maintained a streak as all 16 have been transformed into a whole bunch. He has now scored 9 of the final 10 centuries by a West Indies opener.
Brathwaite’s 103-run eighth-wicket partnership with Rahkeem Cornwall helped the West Indies to 354 because it batted first after shedding the toss. At stumps, Sri Lanka was 136-3, 218 runs behind.
Lahiru Thirimanne adopted his scores of 70 and 76 within the first check with 55 which supplied solidity on the prime of the Sri Lanka order. Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva then batted via 25 overs in an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership which was value 59 runs at stumps when Chandimal was 34 not out and de Silva 23.
🔹️Kraigg Brathwaite reaches fifth on the all time most runs checklist of WI Test opening batsmen!👏🏾
🔹️Rahkeem Cornwall reaches the seventh highest rating by a WI quantity 9 batsman.👏🏾#WIvSL #MenInMaroon pic.twitter.com/PZTPtViKvL
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) March 30, 2021
De Silva survived a assured attraction for caught behind off Cornwall’s bowling two balls earlier than stumps. He tried to tug a flighted supply and there was a transparent noise because the ball handed the bat down the leg aspect.
The umpire rejected Sri Lanka’s attraction for a catch behind and the West Indies referred to as for a overview. Replays confirmed a transparent spike because the ball handed the bat. But the tv umpire, matching totally different replay angles with the audio proof, dominated appropriately that the sound didn’t come from the ball hitting the bat.
Jason Holder, who was changed by Brathwaite as captain, performed a serious function in encouraging the West Indies gamers late within the day.
“It’s been a pretty docile wicket so far so we’ve got to try and motivate ourselves,” Holder stated.
“I took it upon myself to attempt to encourage the fellows and guarantee we stored going via the whole innings at this time.
“It was a pretty good effort from the bowlers so far, not a wicket on which you can just blast people out.”Holder stated the match is intently balanced after two days.
“It’s pretty even-stevens,” he stated.
“We’ve got two set batsmen at the crease at the moment. Our bowlers toiled very hard, we’re still 60 overs in; maybe if we can grab one of two more wickets before the second new ball then I believe we’ll be pretty much in the game.”
The day started with excessive anticipation of Brathwaite’s century and he didn’t hold followers ready.
Cornwall, 43 not out in a single day, reached his half century with a 4 off Lakmal, from 64 balls with eight fours and a six.
Brathwaite survived a assured attraction for lbw when he was 102. Sri Lanka’s attraction was rejected. Replays confirmed the ball simply clipping leg stump.
The century partnership between Brathwaite and Cornwall got here from 185 balls with Cornwall contributing 72.
Cornwall had reached a brand new excessive rating, 73, when he mistimed a drive off Lakmal and supplied a mild, lobbed catch to Vishwa Fernando and mid-off.
Brathwaite stepped up his scoring charge, hitting Lakmal and Dushmantha Chameera to the boundaries at mid-off and mid-on within the subsequent two overs.
He loved a short stand with Kemar Roach who was out for 9, caught by Niroshan Dickwella off Chameera, giving the wicketkeeper his fifth catch of the innings.
Brathwaite batted via the West Indies innings and was the final man out at 354, dragging a ball from Chameera onto his stumps to finish his 514-minute keep on the crease.