Fifties by Senesh Hettiarachchi and Charuka Peiris helped steer S. Thomas’ College out of troubled waters and finish the day on 207 for six wickets on day one of the 143rd Battle of the Blues at the SSC Grounds in Colombo yesterday.

The middle-order pair stitched together a 94-run partnership for the sixth wicket after the Thomians had a meltdown after lunch that saw them lose five wickets in the space of 45 minutes. Pix by Pradeep Dilrukshana