NORTH SOUND, Antigua, CMC – Weary West Indies were left staring at yet another formidable but intriguing final day run chase after Pathum Nissanka became only the fourth Sri Lankan to hit a century on debut, to lead the touring side’s domination of the penultimate day of the opening Test here yesterday.
The 22-year-old stroked a near flawless 103 as Sri Lanka piled up a massive 475 all out in their second innings, to wrestle control of the contest at the Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium and install themselves as favourites for victory.
Wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella perished agonisingly short of his maiden Test hundred with a charmed 96 while Dhanajaya de Silva hit exactly 50, allowing Sri Lanka to dictate 2-½ sessions and frustrate the hosts, before being dismissed nearly an hour after tea.
Tasked with surviving just under an hour-and-a-half, West Indies lost left-hander John Campbell for 11 in the sixth over before crawling to the close on 34 for one with Nkrumah Bonner unbeaten on 15 and captain Kraigg Brathwaite on eight.
Campbell faced 15 deliveries before nicking a Vishwa Fernando out-swinger to Dickwella with 12 runs on the board.
West Indies now face the onerous task of scoring a further 341 runs today in order to win the match but will back themselves especially following their recent exploits in Bangladesh last month.
Set 395 to win the Chattogram first Test, the Caribbean side finished the fourth day on 110 for three before gathering the remaining 285 runs on the final day behind debutant Kyle Mayers’s unbeaten double hundred.
Speaking following the close, West Indies batting coach Monty Desai refused to rule out a successful run chase by his side.
“I wouldn’t say [a draw or a win]. The way we look at it at the moment is that we want to take it one ball at a time,” Desai said.
“Once we come in the morning, we will be batting with the intent of batting properly. More importantly, once there are loose balls, we must cash [in on them].”
He added: “I’m very keen and excited about the fact that our batting now needs to bat on day five and that is what we’re meant for as a Test team.”
West Indies brandished dreams of a brighter day when fast bowler Alzarri Joseph rearranged Dhananjaya’s stumps with the fifth ball of the morning after Sri Lanka resumed on 255 for four.
Unbeaten on 46 overnight, the right-hander clipped the third ball of the over to the square leg boundary to reach his eighth Test half-century before playing all around the fifth.
That proved the last taste of success for West Indies over the better part of the next three sessions as Nissanka and Dickwella cashed in on loose bowling on a flat deck to put on 179 for the sixth wicket.
Nissanka struck half-dozen fours in an innings spanning 252 deliveries and just under 5-¾ hours while the left-handed Dickwella faced 163 balls in a shade over 4-½ hours and counted eight fours.
Behind their efforts, Sri Lanka plundered 104 runs in the first session to reach lunch on 359 for five and then added a further 76 in the second session, to find themselves well placed at tea on 435 without further loss.
Starting the day on 21, Nissanka reached his maiden Test fifty when he steered fast bowler Shannon Gabriel to the ropes at backward point in the first over following the first drinks break, to be unbeaten at lunch on 74 with Dickwella on 38.
Nissanka eventually reached triple figures in the penultimate over before tea when he edged part-time off-spinner Jermaine Blackwood wide of slip for a couple. Perched on 101 at the break, he lasted only a further six balls on resumption before top-edging a slog-sweep at off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall (3-137) to be taken at deep backward square by Kemar Roach in the second over.
Dickwella, dropped by Bonner at gully off fast bowler Jason Holder on 44, reached his 17th Test half-century approaching the first hour after lunch with a single to mid-wicket off Cornwall.
He was again fortunate on 74 when he tickled a leg side catch to wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva only for Joseph’s appeal to find no support from his teammates or umpire.
On 81 at tea, Nissanka looked set to finally reach the elusive hundred when he moved into the 90s on resumption but was eventually bowled by Roach (3-74) nearly 40 minutes after the interval at 460 for seven, trying to guide a delivery to third man.
Cornwall then picked up two of the last three wickets to fall as Sri Lanka lost their last five wickets for 40 runs.