Sri Lanka v West Indies, 2015-16

At Galle, October 14-17, 2015. Sri Lanka won by an innings and six runs. Toss: Sri Lanka. Test debut: T. A. M. Siriwardene.
Sri Lanka were easy winners in the end, running up a huge total, then letting their spinners loose on the ever-helpful Galle pitch. But it might have been different had West Indies not dropped five catches - two of them off Chandimal, who went on to make 151.

The hosts had started carefully on a sluggish surface, and reached 100 in the 41st over, when Thirimanne became the first of leg-spinner Bishoo's four expensive victims. But Karunaratne, the cautious left-hander, and the more adventurous Chandimal batted through the rest of a hot and humid first day, and opened out next morning to complete the first 200 partnership by either side in this fixture. Karunaratne, who reached three figures with a six off Bishoo, was eventually out for a chanceless career-best 186, compiled in 482 minutes. Chandimal put on 86 with Mathews in 20 overs, before the last seven wickets tumbled for 59, Bishoo taking three in 12 balls.

It wasn't long before Sri Lanka's spinners got stuck in. Herath came on for the sixth over, and Brathwaite was given out lbw to his third ball; a review saved him but, when he was trapped in front again next over, he didn't bother going upstairs. Hope and Samuels soon followed, but Bravo - who had scored 58 on Test debut at Galle five years previously - made another studied half-century, before falling to a superb catch by Chandimal, diving goalkeeper-style at short midwicket. No one else could make much headway, although Ramdin survived for 99 minutes and Roach for 108. Herath finished with six for 68, his eighth five-for at Galle, and ended the game with 78 wickets here in 14 Tests.

West Indies had prolonged their first innings past tea on the third day, but Mathews still enforced the follow-on. This time it was the other slow left-armer, the debutant Milinda Siriwardene, who made the breakthrough, as Hope dragged on an attempted leg-side force. Samuels failed again - a miserable match got worse when his bowling action was reported for the third time in his career - and, when Bravo wafted a catch behind, West Indies were sinking fast at 88 for five. Blackwood counter-attacked, hitting three sixes on his way to 92, but only delayed the inevitable. He was last out, midway through the fourth day, as Sri Lanka completed the ninth win in their last 14 Tests at Galle, dating back to July 2009.

The pitch was the first for 18 years not prepared by Jayananda Warnaweera, the Test- bowler-turned-Galle-groundsman, who was about to be suspended for two years by Sri Lanka Cricket after failing to appear before an ICC Anti Corruption Unit probe. The ICC later imposed their own three-year ban, stating: "Warnaweera failed, on two separate occasions, to attend a scheduled interview with the ACU in relation to an ongoing investigation, and failed to provide documents required from him. He also failed to respond in any manner to the charge and he is consequently deemed to have accepted that he committed the offence charged."
Man of the Match: H. M. R. K. B. Herath.