New Delhi: Sonal Dinusha turned out to be the hero for Sri Lanka as his unbeaten 133 helped the hosts secure an improbable draw in the 2nd Test against India in Colombo on Thursday, July 27. Heading into the final day, India needed only 4 wickets to bundle out Sri Lanka, but Dinusha combined with the tail to help Sri Lanka post 429/9 in their second innings after being asked to follow on.
India eventually decided to shake hands as early stumps were called after the visitors failed to bundle out Sri Lanka on the final day of the Test match. India were hoping to clean sweep the two-match series 2-0 to keep their World Test Championship (WTC) final hopes intact. However, Dinusha’s ton denied them a second successive win as India had to settle for a 1-0 series victory.
Sonal Dinusha saves Test match for Sri Lanka
Dinusha was Sri Lanka’s only practical hope to save the Test match on Day 5, with the hosts ahead by merely 16 runs at 229/6. As it turned out, the left-hander produced one of the best knocks of his Test career so far to help the hosts bat India out of the game. Dinusha joined hands with Keshara Nuwantha (46 off 150 balls) to see out the first session comfortably.
The duo added 112 runs for the 7th wicket while playing out 246 deliveries. Manav Suthar dismissed Nuwantha post-lunch, raising hopes for India. However, Dinusha combined with Prabath Jayasuriya (2 off 28 balls) to stage another mini fightback. The duo added 25 runs for the 8th wicket while playing 74 deliveries between them.
Ravindra Jadeja managed to get rid of Jayasuriya in the 117th over, but by that time India’s hopes of pulling off a victory had already started fading. Lahiru Kumara and Dinusha added another 47 runs for the 9th wicket while playing 170 deliveries to end any hopes of India’s victory.
Sri Lanka’s no.11 Asitha Fernando (0 not out, 24 balls) stayed with Dinusha till the end to help his team secure a memorable draw. Dinusha finished with a valiant 133 off 264 deliveries, becoming only the third batter to score a century in each innings of a Test match after his side was asked to follow on.
He also became only the third Sri Lankan batter to score centuries in each innings of a Test match against India. It was Dinusha’s third century in the series and fourth fifty-plus score in as many innings. The left-hander batted a whopping 722 balls and spent 1139 minutes in the middle throughout the series, deservingly helping the hosts avoid a series whitewash after losing the first Test by 165 runs in Galle.
Jadeja and Suthar picked up three wickets apiece during Sri Lanka’s second innings, but both spinners ran out of ideas when Dinusha led the resistance for the hosts on Day 5. Earlier, India rode on centuries from Devdutt Padikkal (117) and Dhruv Jurel(115*) to post a big total of 503/9 (declared) in their first innings. They asked Sri Lanka to follow on after bundling the hosts out for 290 runs in their first innings.
India would have hope for a chase on Day 5 after taking 6 wickets in Sri Lanka’s second innings at stumps on Day 4, however, a chance to bat for the second time never arrived for the visitors. India would take solace from the fact that they won the series 1-0, marking their first overseas Test series win since their series win against West Indies in 2023.
