With Rangana Herath shepherding the lower-order with a streaky 67, Sri Lanka were all out for 294, a lead of 122 on the fourth day of the first Test against India at Eden Gardens here on Sunday. India had been dismissed for 172 on Saturday.
Mohammed Shami and Bhuvenshwar Kumar took four wickets each, Shami dismissing Suranga Lakmal after the batsman aimed to play away from his body and was played-on. Shami finished with 4/100 and Kumar took 4/88. Umesh Yadav took two for 2/79.
India’s inability to clean up the lower order would be a cause for concern as they ready for tougher away battles. They had Sri Lanka on 201/7 with three wickets — Niroshan Dickwella, Dasun Shanaka and Dinesh Chandimal —- going with only one run being added to the scoreboard.
But then, riding a successful review, Dilruwan Perera and Herath added 43 for the eighth wicket. Herath then joined forces with Lakmal to add 46 runs for the ninth wicket. En route, Herath, 39, got to his third Test half-century, two of which have come against India. Herath’s last half-century came in England last year. He had made 61 at Chester-le-Street then.
He became the third Sri Lankan batsman to score a half-century in the first innings. This was the Sri Lanka left-arm spinner’s third 50 in his 86th Test match. Herath’s highest score, an unbeaten 80, came against India in Galle in 2010.
At a time when Sri Lanka needed as many runs as they could get to ensure they stay in front on a Test where the wicket has eased considerably, Herath used the odd long handle to prolong the home team’s agony. He hit nine fours off 105 balls.
Coming in at 201/7 after three wickets had fallen for one run, Herath played and missed all right but because survived because India bowled the wrong line to the left-hander. Along with a 99-run partnership for the third wicket, Herath’s adding 43 runs with Dilruwan Perera for the eighth wicket and his partnership with Lakmal took Sri Lanka much farther ahead than India would have been comfortable with.
Shami, wicketless after a lion-hearted effort on Saturday, took three of the four wickets to fall in the first session. Resuming on 165/4, Sri Lanka overtook India’s first innings total of 172 and reached 200 without further damage.
Shami starting the rot by getting Niroshan Dickwella, resuming on 14, caught by Virat Kohli at second slip. Dasun Shanaka was trapped in front of the wicket by Kumar and when Chandimal, who was batting on 13 at stumps on Day 3, was caught at the wicket off Shami, it seemed a late order collapse was on the cards.
Had Perera not asked for a review, seemingly having a second thought after umpire Nigel Llong had upheld Shami’s appeal of a leg-before, it would have been 208/8. But on turning towards the dressing room, Perera apparently had a change of mind and sought a re-look at the dismissal.
Whether this was provoked by a signal from the dressing room —- like it was with Steve Smith’s Australia earlier in the year — couldn’t be confirmed even though Twitterati went on the overdrive to protest and one television commentators said he “didn’t like it”. Television replays showed that the peach of a delivery was pitched marginally outside off-stump.
Into the second session on the penultimate day, 18 over of spin has been used showing again that this is wicket you would rarely find in India.
