Sri Lanka bundled out for 169

Sri Lanka showed little fight on the first day of the opening Test against the West Indies folding for just 169 runs  yesterday, with the home side’s former captain Jason Holder taking 5 for 27.

There was little resistance from the visiting team right through their innings with the best partnership being for 58 runs for the sixth wicket between Lahiru Thirimanne and Niroshan Dickwella.

West Indian openers Kriagg Brathwaite and John Campbell batted out the last 13 over of play for 13 runs.
Opting to bowl first after winning the toss at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, new West Indies captain Brathwaite introduced the spin of Rahkeem Cornwall after just seven overs and gained immediate returns.
Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne, badly missed by Jermaine Blackwood at backward-point off pacer Kemar Roach in the previous over, fell to the off-spinner for 12 after a smart catch by John Campbell at forward short-leg.
Brathwaite’s speed and accuracy then accounted for Oshada Fernando.

Thirimanne nudged the ball into the off side and the batsmen set off for a sharp single but Fernando was well short when the new West Indies skipper, running in from cover, hit the stumps at the striker’s end.

Thirimanne and former captain Dinesh Chandimal were within minutes of surviving to the lunch break, when Jason Holder, who has lost the Test captaincy to his fellow-Barbadian, induced an edge from Chandimal for wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva to snare a regulation catch.

Their 25-run partnership was the second best of the innings.

Sri Lanka then lost two early wickets in the second session with Dhananjaya de Silva cleaned up by Roach for 13, before the bowler picking up his second wicket when debutant Pathum Nissanka was caught by Holder at first slip for 9.

Thirimanne, on 30 at the lunch break, was then joined by Dickwella, with the pair taking Sri Lanka to tea on 129 for 5, and the former reaching his seventh Test fifty later during their 58-run partnership.

But as had been the pattern throughout the innings, both fell in quick succession as Sri Lanka slumped to 160 for 7.

There was little added after that as the last three wickets accounted just nine runs with Holder and Roach cleaning up the tail. 

Chief Scores:
Sri Lanka 169 (Lahiru Thirmanne 70, Niroshan Dickwella 32; Jason Holder 5-27)
West Indies 13/0 (Kraigg Brathwaite n.o. 3, John Campbell n.o. 7)