As the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka was shared on Friday, West Indies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite said that he was very happy to see the attitude and discipline of his side.
A spirited batting display from Dimuth Karunaratne, Oshada Fernando, and Lahiru Thirimanne on Day Five ensured that the second Test between Sri Lanka and West Indies ended in a draw here at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium. With the result, the trophy was shared between the two teams as the first Test had also ended in a draw
“Very pleasing. As a leader of the team, you want to lead from the front. Happy to get those two scores. I wanted to keep it simple, made sure I had a solid plan and backed it 100 percent. I could change at times, I always play to the situation of the game. I am pretty confident that I could score at whatever rate I choose to. Very happy, it was a good pitch. In both Test matches, the bowlers worked really hard. I was pleased with how the guys never gave up,” Brathwaite said during the post-match presentation.
“Batting wise, we are continuing to bat 90+ overs which is a positive for us. We would have liked to win, but I was very happy with the attitude we had and the discipline. Very happy with the fast bowlers’ effort. We didn’t give up, we need to keep going from strength to strength. For me, it’s all about discipline. We have shown that in the back-to-back series, we can be consistent. South Africa, potentially next series, they are a good team, we need to have different pans. We are heading in the right direction,” he added.
Brathwaite was adjudged the Player of the Match while Suranga Lakmal was named the Player of the Series.
Resuming the final day at 29/0 and still needing 348 runs for the win, overnight batters Thirimanne and Karunaratne decided to grind it out in the first session and the duo ensured that the visitors did not lose any wickets before the interval. At the Lunch break, Sri Lanka’s score read 93/0 with Karunaratne and Thirimanne batting on 54 and 37 respectively.
However, in the second session, Windies was able to get the breakthrough early as Alzarri Joseph dismissed Thirimanne (39). Oshada Fernando then stitched a 45-run partnership with Karunaratne. In the 56th over of the innings, Kyle Mayers got the better of Karunaratne (75), reducing Sri Lanka to 146/2. However, Fernando and Dinesh Chandimal then made sure not to let the hosts get a chance to go for the win. They scored 47 runs between the two of them and ensured that the match ended in a draw with Sri Lanka reaching 193/2. Fernando and Chandimal remained unbeaten on 66 and 10 respectively. (ANI)