Centurion Sonal Dinusha’s unbending will en route an epic unbeaten 133 helped Sri Lanka enact a great jail break, battling persistent Indian bowlers, a fifth-day track and the weariness of following-on to eke out a memorable draw in the second and final Test
COLOMBO — Centurion Sonal Dinusha’s unbending will en route an epic unbeaten 133 helped Sri Lanka enact a great jail break, battling persistent Indian bowlers, a fifth-day track and the weariness of following-on to eke out a memorable draw in the second and final Test here on Thursday.
India won the two-match series 1-0, riding on their 165-run victory in the first Test at Galle, but Lanka can be proud of the way they fought back at the SSC ground.
Dinusha, who faced 264 balls across 420 minutes, was Lanka's Superman with an invisible cape around him, registering his third hundred of the series which was also his fourth 50-plus score in as many innings this series.
Dinusha faced as many as 722 balls and batted 1139 minutes over the course of the two-match series.
The 25-year-old also became the only the third batter to score twin hundreds in a Test match where his team followed-on, joining India’s Vijay Hazare and Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower in an elite club.
This statistical marvel enabled Lanka to end their second innings at 429 for nine declared for an overall lead of 216 runs, and at that point the players shook their hands, signalling the stalemate.
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But the situation was way different when Sri Lanka resumed the day at 229 for six, a mere 16 runs ahead.
It seemed just a matter of time before the home side caved in.
But the opposite happened as the Indians bowed to the spirit of the Lankan batters — Dinusha, who reached hundred in 196 balls, and Keshara Nuwantha (46, 150b).
The two milked 112 runs for the seventh wicket in 246 balls, which saw Lanka safely treading the first session without even losing a wicket.
But India enjoyed a rare moment of delight in the initial part of the post-lunch passage, as Manav Suthar dislodged Nuwantha, whose edge was taken safely by Dhruv Jurel in the slip.
Sri Lanka then mounted a mini fightback through Dinusha and Prabath Jayasuriya (2, 28b). The eighth wicket pair added only 25 runs but took 74 balls for it, pushing the clock further.
Ravindra Jadeja fetched another breakthrough as he jettisoned Jayasuriya, inducing an edge from the batter for Jurel in the second slip.
But they ran into another obdurate Lankan — Lahiru Kumara (12, 122m, 90b), with whom Dinusha added 47 runs but consumed 170 balls to wipe out the hopes of a victory from Indians’ hearts.
Kumara fell to Jadeja, but Asitha Fernando (0 not out, 24 balls) stayed with Dinusha till the end, ensuring that draw was the only possible result.
Dinusha was the chief catalyst of that eventuality. How this young cricketer, who is playing only his fifth Test, managed to rise above the situational pressure and cramping on his legs to bat the whole day will be a study material for several coaches and players in the years to come.
There is this innate elegance to Dinusha’s batting especially while driving and pulling.
But today he was ready to play ugly, trusting his defensive game. He smothered spinners’ turn from the back foot and moved well behind the ball against the quicker bowlers.
The Indians tried gamely even in patches, employing short-pitch balls and down the leg side delivery tactics to deprive Dinusha of strike, and get the late order batters in line against spinners.
It worked reasonably but just that the likes of Nuwantha and Kumara did not indulge in the expected slogging. They should be given truckload of credit for that.
The tourists were also not helped by the fact that lead pacer Mohammad Siraj was not at his best
Gill’s captaincy too left a lot to be desired when the going was not smooth in the first session, and went to dressing room for a possible conversation with the coaching staff.
But all that came to nothing, as Dinusha and the tailenders blunted the waves of attack.
India, of course, will take solace from the fact that this was their first overseas Test series win since beating the West Indies in July 2023. Gill also registered his first Test series triumph away from home.
But amidst all these happy notes, their failure to pluck four Lankan late order wickets in time to force a favourable result will irk them.
They might use bowling in successive innings as a shield for lack of bite on a wearing down fifth day pitch but deep down India will know that a weak link persists. It's an age-old problem too.