West Indies 185 for 4 (Rutherford 74*, Carty 37, Chase 33*, Hasaranga 2-18) vs. Sri Lanka
Dunith Wellalage was on the attack from the fifth over, or even before medium pacer Janith Liyanage had resorted to cutting into a wizened space; the chance turn was in effect from both ends not long after. West Indies, to their credit, had started for good, with Brandon King swooping into the break shed, two eye-catching units amid Asitha Fernando’s covers in the highlights. He assumed that they were willing to maintain a slightly conditional run rate at a tick of more than five years during this initial period.
However, once King fell, playing during a Hasaranga googly, offered in the eighth over of the innings, the pace dropped considerably. Another googly stumped the advancing Alick Athanaze at the start of Hasaranga’s end, and it wasn’t long before Sri Lanka’s third check spinner Vandersay was called into action. Shai Hope is traditionally a good turning actor, but a good check by Vandersay showed that a law defense ahead was home first, as Hope was usually trapped lbw.
A Rutherford cut for four in the seventeenth over was West Indies’ first boundary in 47 deliveries; Through the standard medium order of 25 overs, they had inched to 94 for three. It was here that an angry Carty unleashed a formidable long one-handed loft for 6 to moderately break the shackles, but that break was short-lived as he went down looking for a replay at that point. supply. That ended a 46-run partnership – West Indies’ best innings up to that point.
But with the loyal Chase at his side, Rutherford held on as before, picking singles and trying to attack any rare shed deliveries. This was simply fantastic for Sri Lanka because it allowed Asalanka to bowl 9 overs for 40 runs. Although he probably should have cashed in then, heeding Rutherford’s blackmail: a monster six-over cow corner at the end of his ninth over. But instead, the Sri Lanka captain overdid it and went for a final over, which Chase and Rutherford duly dispatched for 16 runs, something that gave the innings a much-needed boost.
With heavy drops of rain wetting the pitch and making the ball slide a little further, the five overs went over a run of the ball and the West Indies were probably looking at a total in the area of 275. But then the rains came. here.
