Sri Lanka-Windies Test ends in a draw

GALLE: Tharanga Paranavitana missed out on a century as the opening Test between Sri Lanka and the West Indies ended in a draw on the fifth and final day in Galle on Friday.

The left-handed opener scored an impressive 95 as Sri Lanka reached 241-4 in their second innings at tea on the fifth and final day after following on 202 runs behind. The hosts are now 39 runs ahead with six wickets in hand.

Thilan Samaraweera was unbeaten on 19 and Angelo Mathews was on five not out when tea was taken early due to rain.

Paranavitana, dropped on 53, steered Sri Lanka to safety with a defiant 87-run stand for the third wicket with former captain Mahela Jayawardene, who batted patiently for his 58.

The West Indies bowled well in the extended morning session, with paceman Kemar Roach grabbing two wickets off successive overs in a lively opening spell after the hosts had resumed at 89 for no loss.

The tourists then struggled for success as Paranavitana and Jayawardene took no risks during their stand to boost their team's chances of drawing the match.

Off-spinner Shane Shillingford, who took four wickets in the first innings, also kept the pressure on the batsmen with his disciplined bowling and was rewarded for his hard work when he dismissed well-set Paranavitana.

Paranavitana, 44 overnight, missed out on his third Test century when he was caught at first slip by skipper Darren Sammy while attempting to steer the spinner. He hit eight fours in his 219-ball knock.

Jayawardene, who scored 59 in the first innings, completed his second successive half-century in style when he lofted part-time spinner Brendan Nash for a straight six. He also hit seven fours in his 134-ball knock.

Nash removed Jayawardene in his next over, holding a return catch for only his second wicket in Test cricket.

The tourists started the day with pace from one end and spin from the other, succeeding in getting a wicket in the morning's fifth over when Roach bowled opener Tillakaratne Dilshan (54) with a yorker.

Dilshan, who added just 10 to his overnight score of 44, hit five fours in his 78-ball knock for his 16th Test half-century. He added 102 for the opening wicket with Paranavitana.

Roach nearly got the wicket of skipper Kumar Sangakkara with his next delivery, which was turned to square-leg but Andre Russell failed to hold on to a sharp chance.

The fast bowler did not have to wait long for his second success as he removed Sangakkara in his next over, caught by Sammy in the slips after scoring just four runs.

The West Indies had a chance to put more pressure on Sri Lanka when Paranavitana edged Shillingford, but Sammy failed to hold on to the ball at first slip when the batsman was on 53.

The second Test of the three-match series starts in Colombo on Nov 23.