Defiant Dinusha earns epic draw for Sri Lanka

COLOMBO: India skipper Shubman Gill reckoned “Test cricket won” after Sri Lanka produced a stirring rearguard action to help the hosts to a draw in the second match, with Sonal Dinusha’s second century of the game denying the visitors victory.

India dominated large stretches of the contest and were in a commanding position to force a result, but Sonal stood firm in the second innings, producing another resolute hundred to help Sri Lanka survive 154 overs and walk away with a draw that felt no less than a win for the visitors.

But centurion Sonal Dinusha’s unbending will en route to an epic unbeaten 133 helped Sri Lanka enact a great jail break, battling persistent Indian bowlers, a fifth-day track and the weariness of following on to eke out a memorable draw in the second and final Test here on Thursday. India won the two-match series 1-0, riding on their 165-run victory in the first Test at Galle, but Lanka can be proud of the way they fought back at the SSC ground.

Dinusha, who faced 264 balls over 420 minutes, was Lanka’s Superman with an invisible cape, registering his third hundred of the series and his fourth 50-plus score in as many innings.

Dinusha faced as many as 722 balls and batted 1139 minutes over the course of the two-match series.

The 25-year-old also became the only third batter to score twin hundreds in a Test match where his team followed on, joining India’s Vijay Hazare and Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower in an elite club.

This statistical marvel enabled Lanka to end their second innings at 429 for nine declared for an overall lead of 216 runs, and at that point the players shook their hands, signalling the stalemate.

But the situation was way different when Sri Lanka resumed the day at 229 for six, a mere 16 runs

ahead. “We fielded for about 150 overs; we did everything that we could. I don’t think we could have done anything differently. Keeping the weather in mind, we could talk about these things (enforcing follow-on) only in hindsight.

“You take the best decision you can in the moment, and something didn’t go our way. But it was a brilliant game, and I think Test cricket won today,” Gill said after the match here on Thursday.

“A lot of positives for us, learning from the opposition. The way they came back, it was tremendous to see. I don’t think we could have done things differently. They bowled brilliantly in this game.” India’s young batting group had its moments, with Devdutt Padikkal and KL Rahul among the performers, while Gill also praised the bowlers for their efforts.

Padikkal, who was named Player of the Series, admitted India would have preferred to finish with a win but said the team had plenty to learn from the contest.

“Would have been better if we won this game. It was quite similar to be honest, it was slow here as well. It takes a lot of clarity, you need to have clear plans,” he said.

“You always want to play and represent your country. I am happy to score runs, doesn’t matter at which position I score those runs . It’s important that the team wins. A lot of work to do, it’s a young side, everyone is really hungry. I am sure we will continue to improve.”

For Sonal, named Player of the Match, the twin-century outing was a reward for preparation and perseverance, with the batter also crediting the lower order for helping him get across the line.

“I tried to do my best, and play according to the situation. I wanted to get runs for the team, I am really happy that I was able to do that. Getting runs against India is pleasure,” he said.

Sri Lanka skipper Dhananjaya de Silva credited the team’s selectors and coach for backing young talent, with Sonal’s emergence providing a welcome headache for the side. “It’s all about finding the talent, I think the selectors and coach gave me that opportunity. That’s a good headache,” he said.

BRIEF SCORES: India 503 for 9 decl (Padikkal 117, Jurel 115 not out, Asitha 4-106) drew with Sri Lanka 290 (Dinusha 103, Sooriyabandara 80, Prasidh 3-52, Suthar 3-85) and 429 for 9 decl (Dinusha 133 not out, Sooriyabandara 92, Jadeja 3-94, Suthar 3-121)