Sri Lankans tumble to easy innings defeat by N.Z.

Press, 7 March 1983, Page 36

Sri Lankans tumble to easy innings defeat by N.Z.

By

R. T. BRITTENDEN

The pitch at Lancaster Park was little more than a holding paddock for Sri Lankan batsmen yesterday; they met their demise with such regularity that New Zealand won the first test by an innings and 25 runs, in the first over of an extra half-hour on the third day.

It was a disappointing display by Sri Lanka, which had shown it is a capable side in its earlier tests. However, not at the weekend. The ball moving away in the air seemed to fascinate them, and they were drawn to it irresistibly. Had they been able to make contact more often, the game could well have been over even earlier. That the last rites were not performed until 5.35 p.m. was partly the fault of the New Zealand bowlers. who generally lacked a consistent line. Sri Lanka was singularly unfortunate that its two best batsmen, Duleep Mendis and Roy Dias, were injured; one can only hope that the visiting team is at full strength for the return game at Wellington on Friday. When play began on Saturday morning, the teams were still at each other’s throats. Sri Lanka’s first grave failure was not to wrap up the New Zealand innings expeditiously. An overnight score of 217 for seven was inflated to 344. and then by the end of a sorry day for the visitors, eight wickets were down for 141. Yesterday it became 144 all out and in the follow-on , Sri Lanka scored 185. It was all New Zealand on. Saturday. Jeremy Coney was thrown out for 84 by Ravi Batnayeke. He again batted well, to reach his best test score, and it was a pity’ he was not spared a little longer, for it is six seasons since he scored a century, this although he has been a consistent success as a New Zealand player. Most of the New Zealand recovery was to the credit of Warren Lees, who made 89, his second-best score in tests. He batted with style and aplomb, controlling the situation almost as if he was on playground duty at his school. He hit Somachandra de Silva for a lovely 6 over long-on; after de Silva’s tight control of the previous day, it was rather like walking unchallenged into a vault at the Bank of England. Lees played some handsome cuts, pulls and drives and when Coney had gone after sharing a stand of 79, .

there was Martin Snedden to further embellish his considerable reputation as a courageous and capable batsman. One of his drives to the boundary was as lovely a shot as any in the match. He helped Lees make 42 for the ninth wicket, but Lees was still not done. He has been a prince and a pauper during his New Zealand career; he walked a regal way this time. Ewen Chatfield delighted everyone, even his modest self probably, by making 10 selfeffacing runs while 52 were added for the last wicket, in 47 minutes. The Sri Lankans' problems were inflated by the loss of one of the seam bowlers. Vinodhan John, through injury. He was unable to bowl on Saturday. Sidath Wettimuny showed his class by batting right through the Sri Lankan first innings, for 63 not out. He is the twentieth player to perform this feat in test cricket; some of them did it twice. Sound on defence, and with a good repertoire of strokes, Wettimundy played impressively. He had his brother Mithra with him while 49 were made for the first wicket, in just over an hour, but after Ranjan Madugalle had been run out with the total 104, there was only Sidath Wettimuny to stand erect in the ruins of an innings. The New Zealanders, on a placid pitch, were able to move the ball about enough to disconcert the Sri Lankans. Madugalle batted with considerable flourish, and looked a very good player indeed. However, Wettimuny went on and on — 210 minutes in all — and it was strange that he made very little effort to protect his less accomplished partners late in the list. He had a job to do there, in which he failed, and Sri Lanka was only one run short of making New Zealand bat again. All the New Zealand bowlers looked impressive, although Richard Hadlee on Saturday seemed to be short of a gallop. Sri Lanka continued to struggle for survival in its

second innings. There was some quite violent swing in the humid air. Snedden at least once was a threat to his slips, as he bowled four of the widest of wides. By lunch three were down for 46. There was a hint of reprieve in the light rain which fell at the interval, but play was delayed by only 32 minutes. Susil Femando lurked unhappily for about an hour, but in the last 100 minutes of his innings played some assertive, good-looking strokes. Madugalle again looked very capable, although in both innings he was firmly tied down by Chatfield, who bowled him 28 balls in all. and conceded but one single. The principal resistance against an advance which always looked inevitable came from de Silva. Although he had to have a runner because of a muscle ailment, he battled on for two hours and a half, for a well-deserved half-century. He then capitulated by making the most rural of swipes at Chatfield. All the New Zealand bowlers bowled some superb deliveries, nearly all were guilty, of bowling too wide too often, all of them improved their test figures. The most successful was Lance Cairns, who had eight in the match; that put him in seventh place of all New Zealand test bowlers, with 80 dismissals. Lees, was adjudged man of the match. The scoreboard; NEW ZEALAND First innings G, M. Turner c de Alwis b John 32 B. A. Edgar c M. Wettimuny b Ratnayeke . 39 J. G. Wright b Ratnayake 13 G. P. Howarth c Goonasekera b Ratnayeke ... 0 J. J. Crowe run but.... 12 J. V. Coney run out... . 84 R. J. Hadlee b John. ... 12 B. L. Cairns c M. Wettimuny b Ratnayake . 3 W. K. Lees b de Silva . . 89 M. C. Snedden c sub b Ratnayeke . 22

E. J. Chatfield not out . 10 Extras ilb!4. w2. nbl2) . . 28 Total 344 Fall. 59. 93. 93. 93. 137. 159. 171. 250. 292. Bowling OM R W R J Ratnayake 31 8 125 2 V. J. B. J. John 12 2 45 2 J. R. Ratnaveke 31 9 93 3 D. S. de Silva 22.5 10 41 1 S. Jeganathan 5 2 12 0 SRI LANKA First innings S. Wettimuny not out . . 63 M. de S. Wettimuny c Lees b Cairns 17 E. R. N. S. Fernando b Cairns 0 Y. Goonasekera c Lees b Cairns 4 R. S. Madugalle run out . 34 D. S. de Silva c Lees b Hadlee 7 J. R. Ratnayeke run out . 0 R. G. de Alwis c Turner b Hadlee 0 S. Jeganathan lbw b Cairns 6 R. J. Ratnayake c Coney b Hadlee.' 1 V. J. B. J. John lbw b Hadlee, 0 Extras (b2. Ib7. nb3) . . 12 Total ’ 144 Fall: 49. 49. 55. 104. 121. 129. 133. 141, 144. Bowling OM R W R. J. Hadlee 13.3 1 33 4 M. C. Snedden 10 1 30 0 B. L. Cairns 15 6 49 4 E. J. Chatfield 15 4 20 0 Second innings M. Wettimuny c Lees b Snedden 5 S. Wettimuny lbw b Cairns 7 Fernando b Cairns 46 Goonasekera c Turner b Cairns 8 Madugalle c Lees b Snedden 23 de Silva b Chatfield .... 52 Ratnayeke lbw b Cairns . 7 de Alwis c Hadlee b Snedden 3 Jeganathan b’Chatfield . . 8 Ratnayake c Howarth b Chatfield 0 John not out ' 3 Extras (b2. Ibs. w5. nbl). 13 Total 175 Fall: 14. 26. 46. 95. 108, 124. 133. 168, 170. Bowling OM R W Hadlee 22 12 27 0 Snedden 23 6 48 3 Chatfield 16.5 3 40 3 Cairns 20 7 47 4