Colombo: Sri Lanka showed considerable resistance in the second session on Day 3 of the second Test, but India continued to tighten their grip on the Test as the hosts reached 216/7 at tea, still trailing by a substantial margin, here at the Sinhalese Sports Club.
Resuming after a 30-minute rain interruption, Sri Lanka began the session at 131/4, with Pasindu Sooriyabandara and Dhananjaya de Silva at the crease. India immediately turned to spin, with Manav Suthar operating from one end, while the overcast conditions offered the prospect of assistance for the seamers.
The breakthrough came soon enough. Suthar dismissed de Silva for 8, getting the Sri Lankan captain to edge a delivery that gripped and turned. The ball deflected off Dhruv Jurel’s gloves before Rahul completed the catch at slip. Sri Lanka were reduced to 137/5 and were still more than 350 runs behind.
Sooriyabandara, however, continued to hold the innings together. He reached 80 from 133 balls, striking nine fours, before Ravindra Jadeja finally ended his resistance. The left-arm spinner repeatedly attacked the stumps and was rewarded when Sooriyabandara got a thick inside edge that ricocheted off his back thigh and rolled onto the stumps.
His dismissal ended a crucial partnership and left Sri Lanka 171/6. India then made another breakthrough when Mohammed Siraj removed Niroshan Dickwella for a duck. The pacer bowled a short delivery down the leg side, and Dickwella got a faint edge while attempting to tuck it away, with Jurel completing a low catch behind the stumps. It was Siraj’s first wicket of the innings.
With Sri Lanka seven down, Sonal Dinusha emerged as the key figure in the lower order. He combined with Keshara Nuwantha to frustrate India’s bowlers and took the attack back to the spinners whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Dinusha reached his half-century from 84 balls, bringing it up with a glance off Suthar for four. Earlier, he had launched Saransh Jain for six and later struck Jadeja for another boundary as Sri Lanka crossed 200.
Nuwantha also provided resistance, including a six off Jain that briefly broke the pressure created by consecutive maiden overs from Jadeja and Jain. India had one anxious moment when they reviewed an lbw decision against Nuwantha, only for replays to confirm a substantial inside edge. The review was consequently lost.
At tea, Dinusha remained unbeaten on 52 from 84 balls, while Nuwantha was 13 not out from 65 deliveries. The pair had added an important partnership for the eighth wicket and ensured Sri Lanka did not collapse before the interval. For India, Jadeja bowled a disciplined spell of 15 overs for 27 runs and a wicket, while Suthar had two wickets to his name. Prasidh Krishna remained India’s most successful bowler with three wickets.
The hosts concluded their second session at 216/7, leaving India with three wickets to enforce a follow-on.
Brief Scores: India 503/9 in 138 overs (Devdutt Padikkal 117, Dhruv Jurel 115 not out; Asitha Fernando 4-106, Prabath Jayasuriya 2-132) lead Sri Lanka 216/7 in 65 overs (Pasindu Sooriyabandara 80, Sonal Dinusha 52; Prasidh Krishna 3-46, Manav Suthar 2-71) by 287 runs
(IANS)
