West Indies v Sri Lanka - Test Series

[couragous cloke]

ouch, thank god we've hit back with 5 wickets, this is set to be a great test! whats the bet lara will play a big part

[Lazza]

SL has a very good chance of actually winning this test & the series with a lead of 190 or so. Murali will be extremely dangerous on this pitch as it wears, along with Dharmasena. Also, Nissanka & Vaas will be a handful with the uneven bounce & pace.
It will be close but I pick SL to bring home the bacon this time!
Go SL!!

[Donny]

Tillakaratne (7) went early (bowled by Collymore) but Vaas is hitting out (21 from 14) and Dharmasena is on 20. SL 6/173 and a lead of 190.

[Donny]

Collymore dismissed Dharmasena and Vaas. Both were caught by Lara. Collymore has 5/48 and SL are 8/179 with a lead of 196.

[Donny]

Sri Lanka made 194, giving them an overall lead of 211. Collymore took a career best 7/57.

When Vaas dismissed Gayle for a duck in the third over, things looked promising for the Sri Lankans but, apart from another wicket on 54 (Hinds for 29) they had no further joy as Sarwan and Lara added 161 for the third wicket to win easily.

Sarwan was out with the scores tied, for 82 and Lara remained not out on 80 from only 90 balls.

Corey Collymore (9 wickets) was named Man of the Match and the series.

[HAL]

Well. . . . . my philosophy is: The past is history, the future a mystery. Today is a gift, that's why its called "the present".

[Donny]

Lara and Sarwan romp to victory
Wisden CricInfo staff - June 29, 2003

It threatened to be a tense, tentative shuffle of a run-chase, but it turned into a joyful end-of-term romp, as Ramnaresh Sarwan and Brian Lara flailed 161 runs for the third wicket to seal the second Test against Sri Lanka in Jamaica, and with it the series. Sarwan, who had come to the crease at 1 for 1 in the third over, played a scintillating innings of 82, studded with 13 fours all around the wicket and a six over backward square-leg, and for once even Lara was overshadowed by his strokeplay.

The match ended on a note of anticlimax for a frenzied Kingston crowd, when Sarwan holed out to cover with the scores level, but fittingly it was left to Lara to nudge the winning runs off Muttiah Muralitharan, with whom he had enjoyed a fascinating tussle in the early part of his innings, but over whom he once again established his mastery. Lara was left not out on 80, taking his series aggregate to 299 runs.

In what had effectively become a one-innings contest, Sri Lanka had resumed in the morning on their overnight 129 for 5 – a lead of 146 – but had no answer to an extraordinary spell of bowling from Corey Collymore, who had been ignored by the Test selectors for four years, but responded with career-best figure of 7 for 57, including all five of the remaining wickets in an eight-over spell.

It took just three overs of the third day for Collymore to make the breakthrough – Sri Lanka's captain, Hashan Tillakaratne, who played loosely across the line to a length delivery, and lost his off stump for 7 (138 for 6). With every run crucial on a tricky pitch, Chaminda Vaas restored Sri Lanka's fortunes with a volley of boundaries in a brisk counterattack, but Collymore struck back for West Indies with two wickets in an over.

First he tempted Kumara Dharmasena into nibbling a simple catch to Lara at first slip (173 for 7), then followed up with a superb delivery, angled across Vaas's bows, which was athletically caught by Lara, diving forward from slip (176 for . Muralitharan then spooned a brainless carve straight to Sarwan at mid-off for 6 (184 for 9), before Thilan Thushara edged an accurate lifter, for Lara to complete his third catch of the morning.

The target was less than half than that achieved against Australia in Antigua in May, but it threatened to be a tense run-chase nonetheless, especially when Chris Gayle was unluckily adjudged lbw for 0 in Vaas's second over (1 for 1). But Sarwan began with a blaze of attacking strokes all around the ground, and Wavell Hinds joined him in a vital second-wicket partnership of 49, before being bowled, sweeping at Muralitharan's arm-ball, for 29 (50 for 1).

Nobody in world cricket, though, is better equipped than Lara to combat Muralitharan, and he stamped his authority on the contest by sweeping Murali's first ball for four, for the third innings running. It wasn't all one-way traffic however, and Murali might have pinned him lbw with a superb doosra, but Russell Tiffin reckoned that the ball was slipping down leg.

But Murali's support act was flagging, and Prabath Nissanka was treated especially brutally, conceding 64 runs in his eight overs. The end came in an absurd blizzard of boundaries, with the last 91 runs coming from 11 overs as Sarwan and Lara raced each other to the tape. It was a suitably upbeat finish to one of the most uplifting seasons that the Caribbean has enjoyed in many a year.

[couragous cloke]

YEEES! go those windies! thanks to a Rejuvenated collymore, and lara in top form! be afraid! their coming..... i can smell it! GO WINDIES!!

[HAL]

I heard they have a good coming.

[Lazza]

Congrats to the mighty Windies. This was truly a great effort, considering
their very long season. Well done to that out & out champion Lara (who I
rate in Tendulkar's class now) and also Collymore, Edwards & Sarwan. Good
stuff.

[couragous cloke]

your a bloody good loser lazza! yes, lara is an out and out champion! and i rate him in the ponting, tendulka class aswell! YOU ROCK LARA!