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GALLE, Sri Lanka – Centuries from Sadeera Samarawickrama and Dinesh Chanidmal continued Sri Lanka’s dominance with the bat on day two before Ireland lost five wickets in the final session to finish the day on 117-7, trailing by 474 runs.
After starting the day on 381-4, Sri Lanka continued to pile on the runs, despite threatening Irish bowling, in particular from Mark Adair. Samarawickrama scored his maiden Test match century before Sri Lanka eventually declared on 591-6.

Harry Tector and James McCollum built a 70-run partnership in the evening session after Ireland lost two early wickets. But two wickets in two balls prompted an Ireland collapse, with three more going down before the end of play to give Prabath Jayasuriya his fifth Test five-for in ten innings.

At the beginning of the day Ireland were looking to quickly run through Sri Lanka’s middle order to avoid another heavy day in the field. There were positive signs early on, as Curtis Campher sent nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya back in the second over of play, pinned in front lbw.

Andy McBrine also struck early, his first ball of the day claiming Dhananjaya da Silva, hit on the pad plumb in front for 12. But the home side had it pretty much all their own way from there on out.

Samarawickrama and Chandimal started their partnership with a flurry of boundaries, five coming in four overs as they took advantage of the harder new ball. Chandimal was first to his fifty, shortly after the pair had brought up the 450 milestone for their side.

Chandimal survived a review a few balls later, given not out and just clipping leg stump on impact – umpire’s call. That was to be Ireland’s last realistic chance of the innings. Samarawickrama, playing his first Test since 2017, brought up his maiden Test fifty and the team 500 with the same stroke, pushing a single into the offside in the penultimate over before lunch.

Following the theme of day one, the middle session was the most bruising for Ireland, with the sun at its hottest and the pitch with nothing in it for the quickly ageing ball. Chandimal brought his century up first, again with a boundary but through the covers this time. It was his 15th hundred in Test cricket and his fifth at Galle.

Samarawickrama brought his maiden Test ton up in the following over with back-to-back fours – the first century by a Sri Lanka wicketkeeper since 2016. The partnership between Chandimal and Samarawickrama, that finished unbeaten on 183.

At the end of the over in which Samarawickrama reached his century, Karunaratne declared with Sri Lanka on a massive 591-6. That left Ireland just over half an hour in the session to bat.

They were left 0-1 after Murray Commins was cleaned up by a peach of a first delivery from Vishwa Fernando. The ball pitched on middle stump and shaped away from Commins’ bat, snaking past his outside edge and clipping off stump.

Just four balls later, Andrew Balbirnie was also on his way back to the dressing room, having been caught brilliantly by Nishan Madushka at short leg. Balbirnie had middled the ball off his pads, but straight to Madushka, who managed to parry the ball up before grasping onto it on his second attempt.

Tector and McCollom gave Ireland room to breathe, however, building a firm partnership to see them through to tea on 27-2. They continued after the break, putting on a fifty-run partnership in 17 overs and pushing on late into the session. Tector smashed a maximum off Ramesh Mendis high over long-on, the only six of the day.

Disaster struck, however, when Ireland lost three wickets in as many overs. Tector edged a drive off a tossed-up ball from Jayasuriya before Campher fell two balls later also looking for the drive. McCollum was Jayasuriya’s next victim, bowled this time by a ripper of a ball which took out his off stump.

PJ Moor caught behind for 14 followed by George Dockrell lbw for two gave Jayasuriya yet another five-for and left Ireland 117-7 at the end of play. Lorcan Tucker will resume on 21 tomorrow morning, with Andy McBrine unbeaten on five.

MATCH SUMMARY

Sri Lanka v Ireland, First Test match, Day Two, Galle International Stadium, Galle, 16th April 2023

Sri Lanka 591-4 (131 overs; Dimuth Karunaratne 179, Kusal Mendis 140, Curtis Campher 2-84)
Ireland 117-7 (45 overs; James McCollum 35, Harry Tector 34, Prabath Jayasuriya 5-42)

See full scorecard

Wisden
James McCollum started the innings positively
No
Connaught