GALLE, SRI LANKA – As India closes in on the four remaining wickets that would seal a win in the opening Test against Sri Lanka, batter Sonal Dinusha’s resilient unbeaten innings has kept the host nation in the contest heading into lunch on the fifth day of play. When play resumed Wednesday morning, Sri Lanka started at 84 for 4, still trailing India by a daunting 287 runs. Dinusha, who notched up a century in Sri Lanka’s first innings, returned to the crease not out on 25 alongside captain Dhananjaya de Silva, who sat on 31 overnight.
The pair had already built a steady 54-run partnership across 12.2 overs in the final session of Day 4, and they entered Wednesday’s morning play with a clear game plan: limit risky shots to protect their wicket and extend their stand. The strategy paid off through the first hour, as the partnership added another 54 runs, and both batters crossed the 50-run milestone. De Silva reached his half-century first from 125 patient deliveries, with Dinusha following just shortly after from 77 balls.
Dinusha survived the entire morning session unscathed, advancing to 65 not out off 112 total deliveries, with six confident fours and one six to his name. It was Indian spinner Ravindra Jadeja who finally broke the threatening 108-run stand, trapping de Silva caught at short fine leg when the Sri Lankan skipper attempted a sweep shot. De Silva departed for a gritty 59, leaving Sri Lanka at 162 for 5.
Just four overs after removing de Silva, India claimed a second wicket when Prasidh Krishna bowled a delivery that caught Niroshan Dickwella’s edge, with the wicketkeeper out for 10 caught behind. That left Sri Lanka at 168 for 6, and the hosts reached the lunch break at 175 for 6, with bowler Keshara Nuwantha holding firm to remain unbeaten after facing 27 deliveries, partnering Dinusha through to the interval.
Set a 372-run target to win, Sri Lanka still trails India by 197 runs heading into the afternoon session. For Sri Lanka, an outright victory remains a highly improbable outcome, while the home side needs to bat through 65 remaining overs to salvage a draw and deny India the win. The match has followed a tight narrative so far: India posted 462 in its first innings, dismissed Sri Lanka for 284 in reply, then added 193 in its second turn at bat to set the challenging chase.