Pacer Lakmal named Sri Lanka vicecaptain
Sri Lanka Cricket named paceman Suranga Lakmal as the Test vice captain, while announcing the squad for the brief two-Test tour to Bangladesh, starting January 31. The Test squad also sees the return of batsmen Kusal Mendis and Danushka Gunathilaka.
But it is the first-time selection of unorthodox offspinner Akila Dananjaya that is the strongest indication that the selectors and new coach are looking at taking Sri Lanka’s attack in a new direction.
South Africa made the most of almost perfect batting conditions at the SuperSport Park on Saturday as they reached 182/2 at tea on the first day of the second Test. R Ashwin took both the wickets but South Africa seemed set for a huge first innings score after opener Aiden Markram’s 94 off 150 balls.
Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers were batting on 35 and 16, but Amla should consider himself lucky as wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel dropped him on 30 while trying to catch a leg glance with both hands, more like a goalkeeper. Wriddhiman Saha, forced out of the side due to a suspicious niggle, was outstanding in the first Test, claiming an Indian record 10 victims.
(SA slumped to 269/6 at stumps after Ashwin’s 3/90)
Patel was among the three changes in the team as India captain Virat Kohli continued to tinker with the eleven for the 34th Test in a row. KL Rahul replaced Shikhar Dhawan while Bhuvneshwar Kumar, India’s most successful bowler in the Cape Town Test, was replaced by Ishant Sharma because Kohli felt he would get more bounce on this pitch. South Africa made one change – local pace sensation Lungi Ngidi made his debut in place of the injured Dale Steyn.
Having seen off the first hour safely after skipper Faf du Plessis won the toss again and chose to bat, Markram and Dean Elgar were restricted to 78 runs in the first session. But South Africa quickly ramped up their scoring, piling up 104 runs in 29 overs. Markram caressed 15 boundaries and was on top of India’s bowling, but Elgar faced more problems.
Murali Vijay should have caught him, off a Jasprit Bumrah bouncer, at deep square leg but could not go back after running in a few yards as the ball carried longer due to the altitude.
Before that, Elgar had almost dragged Ishant on to the stumps. India also thought they had a chance when it Elgar appeared to have nicked Ashwin, but a review showed no edge. With Markram showing touch, South Africa’s run rate didn’t fall much though it wasn’t as high as in Newlands.
Scoring picked up in the second session. In search of some early morning seam movement, Kohli opened with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami but they didn’t strike.
Shami looked flat, prompting Kohli to ring in quick changes and by the 13th over India had already tried out four bowlers. Ashwin came on in the 20th over and straightaway made an
COLOMBO: CENTURION:
impression. Elgar, hassled earlier, tried to spoil the spinner’s length by going down the pitch but Ashwin pulled back just a bit to induce a drive that Vijay somehow held on. Markram looked good to score his first century at home but Ashwin did him in with another back of the length delivery that he tried to cut. Proteas were on the ascendancy though. And with AB de Villiers’ arrival, Amla too started playing freely, setting up another session where South Africa should make hay.