Lanka has the advantage

GALLE, NOV. 16. Sri Lanka completed a slow day of dominance by reducing West Indies to nine for one in its second innings at the close of the fourth day of the first Test here on Friday.

Opener Chris Gayle was removed for one to leave the visitor trailing by 133 runs after Sri Lanka had earlier piled up a substantial first innings of 590 for nine declared, its highest total in Tests against West Indies.

It was the first time Sri Lanka had topped 500 against the West Indies, and it has passed 500 in each of its last three Tests after scoring 610 for six declared against India and 555 for five declared against Bangladesh.

Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya wants his side to press hard for victory on the final day, adding that Brian Lara and Carl Hooper would be the key West Indies batsmen.

``If we can get them out early, I think we'll have a very good chance,'' he said. ``The pitch is not like the last Test we played here. It is a hard wicket and batsmen can get a big score. ``It has slow turn but, on the fifth day, we expect it to turn more. It is not easy to get wickets on this pitch, but we will try our best.''

Hashan Tillekeratne became the second century-maker of the innings, with 105 not out, and Tilan Samaraweera contributed 77 as Sri Lanka comfortably overhauled the West Indies first innings of 448. But Tillekeratne spent six and a half hours over his eighth Test hundred, hitting just three fours in 247 balls, as he and Samaraweera put on 154 painstaking runs for the sixth wicket, a Sri Lankan record against West Indies.

The host adopted a cautions approach, Samaraweera hitting his only boundary after 105 balls and 137 minutes when he lofted left-arm spinner Neil McGarrell to long-off.

The batting was so pedestrian that not a boundary was scored for 36 overs, the trend only being broken when Tillekeratne hit McGarrell over his head to reach his half- century in 206 minutes off 142 balls.

- Reuters

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