WI ‘A’ CRUISE TO MASSIVE WIN

The visiting West Indies ‘A’ Team made a great comeback after losing the first unofficial Test in Colombo last week when they cruised to a massive 333-run win over Sri Lanka ‘A’ in the second unofficial Test match which concluded at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium yesterday to level the three-match series one each.

West Indies ‘A’ needed just 37.2 overs on the final day as Sri Lanka ‘A’ in pursuit of a massive target of 481 runs perished for just 147 runs.

West Indies ‘A’ had almost sealed the game in the morning session of play through their pacies the rightarm pair of Kemar Roach and Keon Joseph and left-arm pacie Delorn Johnson who together shared six wickets between them to have the home side struggling for survival in a perilous position of 101 for seven.

Sri Lanka ‘A’ resuming from their overnight score of 36 for two lost their first wicket on the final day at the same score that of Avishka Fernando and three runs later they fell into deeper trouble with Roshen Silva getting run out having added just one run to his overnight score of 11.

With Sri Lanka ‘A’ reeling on 39 for four the two recognised batsmen Asela Gunaratne and first innings top scorer Niroshan Dickwella was expected to take the side out of the woods. But that was not to be as Gunaratne was dismissed by Joseph as Sri Lanka ‘A’ went further down and it seemed that the match would be over before lunch with the top five batsmen back in the pavilion with just 42 runs on the board.

Dickwella was unable to make any impression being able to contribute just six before being dislodged by Johnson which followed a brief 27 runs for the seventh wicket between Charith Asalanka and Anuk Fernando coming to an end with the dismissal of Fernando by Roach.

Asalanka joined by Jefferey Vandersay negotiated just under 11 overs but even then the Sri Lanka ‘A’ were way behind from saving the match as they went into the lunch break tottering at 101 for seven.

The post lunch saw the West Indies ‘A’ closing into victory with Asalanka falling victim to spinner Rakheem Cornwall and then left-arm orthodox spinner Moti-kanhai getting rid of Lahiru Kumara.

The resistance put in by Vandersay thereafter did not make any difference but he hit an entertaining innings cracking three sixes off Cornwall and half a dozen boundaries before being dismissed by Moti-kanhai for 47 as Sri Lanka ‘A’ perished for a low score of 147.

The two sides will meet in the deciding third encounter scheduled to be played from October 18 to 21 at the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium.