da betano casino： Chris Martin’s swinging burst rattled the Sri Lankan top order before Thilan Samaraweera lent the total some respectability on the opening day of the second Test at Wellington
The Bulletin by Charlie Austin11-Apr-2005
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Chris Martin: simply irrepressible on the opening day at Wellington© Getty Images
Chris Martin wreaked havoc on a juicy Basin Reserve pitch to leave NewZealand in firm control before Thilan Samaraweera’s half-century lent the Sri Lankan total some degree of respectability. Martin’s 6 for 54 was thebest ever figures for a New Zealander against Sri Lanka and restricted them to 211. New Zealand’s openers then strengthened their team’s hand with a solid start, closing on 52 without loss after bad light stopped play 11 overs before the scheduled close.Martin quickly justified Stephen Fleming’s decision to bowl first afterwinning what proved to be a crucial toss. Swinging the ball back sharplyinto the right-handers and extracting steep lift, especially with the newball, he ripped through Sri Lanka’s top order in the first hour, takingthree wickets in nine balls to leave them reeling at 41 for 4, aposition from which they were never able to full recover despite a fighting 73 from Samaraweera.Martin, an unlikely looking sportsman with his stiff, pumping run-up andscientist’s face, was a class act and head and shoulders above the mainsupport bowlers, including James Franklin, who lacked penetration. New Zealand relied heavily on Martin during the first two sessions, but as he ran out of steam after tea, Nathan Astle stepped up with his accurate dibbly-dobblers, taking 3 for 35 to polish off the tail.Chaminda Vaas bent the ball around like a banana in his first couple ofovers and might easily have accounted for Craig Cumming with one vociferouslbw appeal. But Cumming, who started to leave the ball with brave skill, andJames Marshall battled through the key threat of the new ball and thenstarted to capitalise on a few loose offerings from Lasith Malinga andFarveez Maharoof.Malinga, the first Test hero, beat the bat on a couple of occasions and bothopeners appeared uncomfortable with his low-arm trajectory, which hasstirred up controversy in New Zealand, not because of suspicions over itslegality but because umpire Darrell Hair’s point-blank refusal to take offhis trousers off to help New Zealand’s batsmen pick up the deliveries. Hair,somewhat farcically, has insisted that the colour of his trousers is an ICCissue.Sri Lanka will hope that Hair’s trousers provide a constant source ofirritation for New Zealand on the second day too because they were hanging on the brink. The morning spice in the pitch appeared to have mellowed and the pitch should now behave far more sensibly than it did the first couple of hours.The first session, though, may have a large bearing on the outcome of this game. Marvan Atapattu started the procession as he followed his sublime Testhundred in the first Test with his 22nd duck in Test cricket when he slicedto third slip in the first over. Kumar Sangakkara, after a couple of stylishshots, then cut short the brightest partnership of the morning, a brisk34-run stand with Sanath Jayasuriya, and precipated the innings’ freefall byflashing a catch into the gully off a short and wide delivery.
Thilan Samaraweera’s fighting half-century lent the Sri Lankan total some respectability© Getty Images
Sangakkara’s departure was quickly followed by the loss of two more wicketsas Sri Lanka slumped from 34 for 1 to 41 for 4. Mahela Jayawardene’s regalhundred in the first game was long forgotten as he lost his balance and wastrapped lbw by a curving full-length inswinger. Jayasuriya, who swished hisway to 22, was neatly pouched by Astle high to his right after a edging anexcellent outswinger.Samaraweera and Tillakaratne Dilshan attempted a rescue operation butprogress was painfully slow as Martin probed away menacingly. Kyle Mills,meanwhile, was less threatening but gun-barrel tight and difficult to scoreoff. Finally, after adding 19 runs in 11.5 overs, Dilshan, who was exposedagainst the short ball on several occasions, gloved a nasty Martin deliverythat cut-back and climbed too sharply for him to take evasive action. The breakthrough brought the uncapped Shantha Kalavitgoda to the crease. Included as an insurance policy in the morning instead of Rangana Herath, the second spinner, Kalavitgoda, 27, couldn’t cash in and as he edged to the slips.Franklin cleaned up Vaas a few minutes after and Sri Lanka were in dire straits on 86 for 7. That was when Samaraweera and Upul Chandana (41) mounted a rescue operation. Samaraweera had been tortuously slow in the morning, scoring 11 from 57 balls, but after lunch he was more fluent. He was helped by some butter-fingered catching throughout the day. Cumming missed a bat-padcatch on 7 and then Fleming spilled slip catches on 9 and 28, the second ofwhich cracked him on the inside of the knee and sent him back to thephysiotherapists’s couch for the rest of the day.With Samaraweera steadily growing in stature, playing one lordly extra cover-drive off Astle, Chandana also settled, successfully flicking awayboundaries to third man and fine leg. New Zealand grew increasinglyfrustrated at having let the Sri Lankans off the hook and the eighth-wicketpair added 89 priceless runs. In the end it took a marginal lbw call toseparate them as Chandana was hit on the front pad by an Astle inswinger. Sri Lanka had fought back from a perilous situation but the odds were still heavily stacked against them at the end of the day.How they were out
Fell to sharp catch at third slip.
Flashed at wide delivery and caught in slips.
Beaten by movement back into his pads.
Edged off-stump delivery low into slips.
Gloved while taking evasive action.Shantha Kalavitigoda c Vincent b Martin 7 (80 for 6)
Edged a good-length ball to second slip.
Squared up by a full-length outswinger.
Marginal lbw call on front foot
Sliced into gully where brilliantly pouched
Unluckily adjudged lbw after nicking straight outswinger