Australia wobble in a tense 268-run chase
Sri Lanka set Australia a stiff 268-run victory target before claiming three wickets in a truncated afternoon session to take the upper hand on the penultimate day of the first Test.
By : migrator
Update: 2016-07-29 14:30 GMT
Skipper Steve Smith (26) and Adam Voges (9) guided Australia to 83 for three when bad light forced early tea with the visitors still needing 185 runs to go 1-0 up in the three-match series. Earlier, Kusal Mendis fell for a marathon 176 but the Sri Lankan tail wagged as the hosts, resuming on 282 for six, posted 353 all out in their second innings. Mendis added seven runs to his overnight before Mitchell Starc (4-84) dismissed him caught behind.
Rangana Herath (35) frustrated the Australians with his belligerent batting until substitute fielder Moises Henriques took a stunning one-handed diving catch to send him back. Herath was soon back to torment the touring side again, this time with the ball, when the left-arm spinner bowled David Warner who ended the match with scores of one and zero.
Dilruwan Perera trapped Usman Khawaja (18) lbw and left-arm chinaman bowler Lakshan Sandakan bowled Joe Burns (29) with a sharp-turning delivery to reduce Australia to 63-3. Persistent rain washed out the final sessions of the first two days of the test and allowed only 10 overs to be bowled after tea on Thursday. There was no respite on the penultimate day either, as steady drizzle delayed the start and allowed only 7.3 overs in the first session.
Visit news.dtnext.in to explore our interactive epaper!
Download the DT Next app for more exciting features!
Click here for iOS
Click here for Android