Ind SL T2 Day 5: The Farce Comes To An Early End With A Predictable Draw

Finally the umpires and the players had enough and called time an hour before the usual close of play. The pitch though will remaining a talking point long beyond the duration of the second Test at the SSC in Colombo.
In the final conclusion, India will need to be credited for digging themselves out of a hole, even if it was on predicted lines and on a pitch that remained as flat as it did on the first day.
It is never easy to follow up on a team that has scored over 600 runs, even on a track like this. And to India’s credit, they played to their strength which was obviously their batting. Built upon Virender Sehwag’s intiative, despite that hiccup of his dismissal, and carried on on the shoulders of the stalwart Sachin Tendulkar with his double century and Suresh Raina with his debut Test hundred, India were able to ensure that the match would head in the direction of a draw, the possibility of either team winning being bleak at best.
Folding eventually on 707 after Abhimanyu Mithun and Ishant Sharma hunga round longer than expected, India had a lead enough to entice Sri Lanka into potentially troublesome situation if only to tease the outcome. But with the pitch conditions being what they are and without the bowlers to make inroads, Sri Lanka were able to overcome the hiccups, enough to create a sedate end at 129 for three before it was time to shake hands and call it a day.

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