Sri Lanka reached stumps on Day 3 of their West Indies tour warm-up match in commanding position, requiring just 94 more runs with nine wickets in hand to chase down a 124-run target at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua.
After bowling out the West Indies Select XI for 205 on Day 2, Sri Lanka posted 281 in their first innings to take a 76-run lead. Dinesh Chandimal anchored the innings with 74, while opener Nishan Madushka contributed a fluent 46. Lahiru Kumara had earlier set up the lead with figures of four for 39 in the West Indies first innings.
The hosts were dismissed for 199 in their second innings despite an aggressive 68 from Joshua Bishop and 46 from Ackeem Auguste. Spinner Sonal Dinusha and left-arm orthodox Prabath Jayasuriya took three wickets each, with the Sri Lanka attack rotating effectively across both pace and spin options on a wearing surface.
Set 124 for victory, the tourists lost Lahiru Udara for 2 in their reply but reached 30 for 1 at stumps. Nishan Madushka was unbeaten on 24 at the close.
Sri Lanka resumed on the fourth and final day needing 94 runs with nine wickets standing, with a likely morning chase pencilled in as a winning send-off into the Test series proper. The warm-up was meant to give the touring squad batting overs for Madushka, Madushanka, Dhananjaya and Chandimal, and meaningful workload for Kumara, Dinusha and Jayasuriya ahead of the first Test.
Update — June 21: Sri Lanka collapse, lose by 15 runs
The chase did not materialise. Sri Lanka were bowled out for 108 in their second innings, falling 15 runs short of the modest target as the West Indies Select XI fought back from what had looked like a hopeless position overnight.
West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph led the recovery with four wickets, supported by a disciplined attack that defended the total on a fourth-day surface. The Sri Lankan top order lost wickets at regular intervals from the early morning session, and the lower order could not bridge the gap.
The result hands the West Indies Select XI a 15-run win in the four-day fixture, an unwanted dent to Sri Lanka’s preparations before the Test series proper. The warm-up still delivered first-innings runs for Chandimal (74) and Madushka (46) and a four-wicket haul for Lahiru Kumara, but the collapse on the final day will be the takeaway for the touring management.
