Gunawardene, Nawaz help Sri Lanka A draw first 'Test'

Disciplined batting and rain helped Sri Lanka A draw their first unofficial Test against India A at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo. After a wet ground prevented play from starting before 12:30 p.m., the home side, chasing an improbable victory target of 418 runs in the fourth innings, settled for a draw, making 291 for five before play was called off.

Earlier, India A, as was expected, declared at their overnight second innings score of 302 for four. This left them with 80 overs in which to bowl out the home team and go 1-0 up in the three-`Test' series.

If the Sri Lanka A start was anything to go by, it seemed that they too harboured visions of an improbable victory. Hard-hitting opener Avishka Gunawardene, in particular, seemed a man on a mission. Opening his broad and strong shoulders to good effect, he pummeled the visiting bowlers into submission.

Seeing the mood his partner was in, the other opener, GI Daniel, sensibly dropped anchor. The duo put on an impressive 138 run partnership in just 30.4 overs before Gunawardene was unfortunately run-out by Akash Chopra. The left-hander's belligerent 82 off 94 balls contained 10 fours and one hefty six.

With more than 49 overs left to play, India A must suddenly have caught a faint scent of victory. But sadly it was to prove but a chimera. Sri Lanka A No. 3 Mohamed Nawaz, who strode out to the middle next, proved a worthy replacement for Gunawardene.

Showing commendable caution, he helped Daniel add another 77 runs for the second wicket before the latter was stumped by Parthiv Patel off leg-spinner Sairaj Bahatule. Daniel's sedate 84 off 171 balls with just six fours came to an end with 23 overs remaining to be bowled.

Nawaz propping one end up meant that the home team was able to brush aside the loss of the next three batsmen for poor scores and ensure that the honours were shared at the end of the day. The Sri Lanka A No. 3 remained not out on 84 off 149 balls with eight fours.

For India A, left-arm quick Irfan Pathan Jnr claimed two wickets while leg-spinners Bahatule and Amit Mishra shared the remaining two.