The former captain of Sri Lanka Dinesh Chandimal scored an unbeaten maiden double hundred to hand his team a commanding 190-run lead on fourth day of the second test against Australia at Galle.
The hosts resumed the day with 431 for 6, and Chandimal started from where he left. He added another 88 runs to his tally that took his total to unbeaten 206 as Sri Lanka posted a mammoth 554 in the first innings.
With this, the veteran batter has edged past his previous best of 164. His double ton is the highest score ever by a Sri Lankan against Australia, surpassing former captain Kumar Sangakkara’s 192 in Hobart.
Sri Lanka were able to add 123 more runs on board, all thanks to Chandimal heroics.
Mitchel Starc was the pick of the bowler for Australia with 4 wickets. Mitchell Swepson bagged three wickets, Nathan Lyon grabbed two. While the skipper Pat Cummins took a single wicket.
Australia Vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test Highlights:
Earlier, David Warner was cheaply dismissed by Kasun Rajitha’s brilliant angling delivery, giving Australia a terrible start.
The second opener Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne then added 55 runs to help the team move forward. Ramesh Mendis, though, was able to strike Khawaja out with his magical delivery.
Steve Smith, a former captain of Australia, entered the field at number four and handled all the pressure with ease. Before exiting the field, Labuschagne had 104 runs. His 134-run partnership with Smith enabled Australia to surpass the 200-point mark.
At the conclusion of the first day of play, the visitors had a score of 298 for 5. On day 2, however, the morning session saw Sri Lankan bowlers quickly eliminate the visitors for 364 runs. Steve Smith maintained his scoring lead for Australia with an unblemished 145.
Sri Lanka’s debutant Prabath Jayasuriya took the most wickets (6). Kasun Rajitha secured two wickets for the team. While debutants, Maheesh Theekshana and Kamindu Mendis, each took a wicket.
In reply, Sri Lanka lost their first wicket at just 12, but captain Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Mendis helped to steady the ship before Dinesh Chandimal assumed leadership of the scoring the runs and continued to push it forward.
