Rangana Herath piled on the agony for the West Indies by removing both openers cheaply to leave the visitors struggling at 66-2 at stumps on the second day of the first Test on Thursday, still 418 runs behind Sri lanka.
After a record stand of 238 by Dimuth Karunaratne and Dinesh Chandimal, veteran spinner Herath turned the screws on West Indies by dismissing Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope in quick succession. The visitors’ hopes of saving the match now lie in the hands of two of their most experienced batsmen, Darren Bravo and Marlon Samuels, who were unbeaten at the close with 15 and seven respectively.
Brathwaite was the first to fall, trapped leg before wicket for 19 by Herath. Then, Hope was sent packing after scoring 23 when he was bowled by Herath.
Brief Scores: Sri lanka: 484 (Karunaratne 186, Chandimal 151; Bishoo 4/143) lead West Indies: 66/2 (Hearth 2/14) by 418 runs.