Lahiru Thirimanne and Angelo Mathews slammed respective half-centuries To Help Sri Lanka took the advantage after their bowlers continued to impress and folded India for below par 172 in their first innings on the third day of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday. As bad light forced another early end, Sri Lanka trail by just seven runs in their first innings.
Sadeera Samarawickrama and Dimuth Karunaratne gave the visitors the perfect start in the match as both played some positive strokes. Samarawickrama, who made his Test debut in the second and final Test against Pakistan in Dubai last month, faced the first delivery and showed his positive intent with a first ball four. He looked exquisite with his strokemaking as he drove and cut with equal ease.
The duo put on 29 runs for the first wicket before Bhuvneshwar got into the act and removed Karunaratne for 8. Bhuvneshwar came from around the wicket and the ball hit the front pad of the southpaw, who didn’t offer a shot. He was given out by the on-field umpire but Karunaratne challenged it. However, the third umpire also ruled in favour of India, after reviewing the replays. Then in his next over, Bhuvneshwar scalped the other opener Samarawickrama for 23. The right-arm pacer produced an edge off the bat of Samarawickrama and wicket-keeper Saha took an easy catch.
But from there on Lahiru Thirimmane and Angelo Mathews took the attack to the Indian bowlers and they started to dominate proceedings. India had a chance to break this partnership but Shikhar Dhawan dropped Thirimanne when he was batting on 27.
Post tea, Thirimanne was the first to reach his fifty and this was fifth half-century in the longest format of the game. After completing his fifty, Umesh got the better of the southpaw, who was dismissed for 51.
Mathews then hit a boundary to cross the fifty-run mark but his innings was also cut short by Umesh, as the right-hander hit the half-volley straight into the hands of KL Rahul, who was fielding in the covers.
Earlier, Cheteshwar Pujara hit a boundary to reach his 16th fifty in Test cricket. However, soon after completing his fifty, the right-hander lost his concentration and he let a Gamage delivery creep in between his bat and pad and it crashed into the stumps.
Ravindra Jadeja then joined Wriddhiman Saha in the middle and the duo started to take the attack to the visitors. Jadeja played the role of the aggressor and hit few boundaries to shift the pressure on the visiting team.
Two balls later, Perera got rid of Saha as well who edged a delivery straight into the hands of Mathews, who was fielding at first slip. Saha opted to use the DRS but replays showed that the ball had hit his bat first and then his elbow.
