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Remember this game? And this? And this one?The Kolkata Knight Riders probably had no business winning any of those games, but win is what they did. They have only won two other games so far this season, and if those jailbreaks were taken away from them, they wouldn’t be where they are on the table.Where they are is fourth, and within the playoffs’ range, but that can change quickly. There are teams currently outside the top four who have built a bit of momentum, and they know they can displace the Knight Riders, who have a distinct air of vulnerability about them after suffering a walloping at the hands of the Royal Challengers Bangalore. That defeat left the Knight Riders nursing the worst net run rate (-0.828) of all teams in the competition.How do you bounce back from the lows of 84 for 8? How do you do that without Andre Russell or Sunil Narine, or possibly both? How do you begin the process of bouncing back when you’re up against the in-form Delhi Capitals, who are gunning for a top-two finish and are themselves looking to bounce back from – a less severe but still wounding – defeat?There aren’t easy answers to these, but the Knight Riders will have to answer them soon. If they do, you might come to talk in hushed tones about those wins snatched from the jaws of defeat. “It’s the sign of a great team,” you might say, “when they win even when they aren’t playing well.”If the Knight Riders slide away from the playoffs spots, however, you will look at those wins differently. You will look at them and say they were warning signs of a team in decline.

In the news

Russell injured his hamstring in the tied game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad and didn’t feature against the Royal Challengers. Narine was free to play that game, having had his action cleared, but he missed out because of what his captain Eoin Morgan described as a “niggle”. The fitness status of the two West Indians ahead of the game against the Capitals is not yet clear.

Previous meeting

Half-centuries from Prithvi Shaw and Rishabh Pant powered the Capitals to 228, but that total didn’t appear entirely safe in early-season Sharjah. Despite slipping to 122 for 6, the Knight Riders still came close in their chase, thanks to Morgan’s 18-ball 44 and Rahul Tripathi’s 16-ball 36. It came down to 26 from the last over, and Marcus Stoinis sealed victory for the Capitals with a pinpoint yorker to bowl Tripathi.Shikhar Dhawan brings out his trademark celebration•BCCI

Likely XIs

Delhi Capitals: 1 Prithvi Shaw, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Shreyas Iyer (capt), 4 Rishabh Pant (wk), 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Axar Patel, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Anrich Nortje/Daniel Sams, 11 Tushar DeshpandeKolkata Knight Riders: 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Rahul Tripathi, 3 Nitish Rana, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Andre Russell/Tom Banton, 7 Pat Cummins/Sunil Narine, 8 Lockie Ferguson, 9 Prasidh Krishna, 10 Varun Chakravarthy, 11 Kuldeep Yadav

Strategy punts

• Shikhar Dhawan (69*, 57, 101*, 106*) has scored exactly half of the Capitals’ runs over their last four matches, so his wicket – particularly with the rest of the top order suffering a dip in form – becomes crucial for the Knight Riders. How do they get him early? Well, since the start of the 2019 season, fast bowlers have only dismissed Dhawan four times within the powerplay overs. He averages 84.75 against pace while striking at a healthy 135.05. His strike rate against spin in this phase (159.82) is even better, but he’s been dismissed six times in 112 balls by the slower bowlers, so the Knight Riders could look to attack him with Varun Chakravarthy or – if he plays – Narine taking the new ball from one end.
• Kuldeep Yadav has only bowled nine powerplay overs in his entire IPL career, but he’s not a bad candidate to try against Dhawan. In all T20 meetings, Dhawan has scored just 34 off 37 balls against Yadav, while being dismissed twice. The Knight Riders, however, might look to hold Yadav back for Rishabh Pant, who’s scored 23 off 21 balls against the left-arm wristspinner while being dismissed twice.
• Dinesh Karthik has a shocking record against legspinners this season: 14 runs off 18 balls, five dismissals. Against all other types of bowling, he has scored 131 runs at a more-than-decent average of 32.75 and a more-than-decent strike rate of 135.05. Morgan has also struggled against legspin: one dismissal in 55 balls, but . The Capitals don’t have a legspinner in their first-choice XI, but if they wanted to give Sandeep Lamichhane an opportunity ahead of the playoffs, this wouldn’t be a bad time to do it.

Stats that matter

• The Capitals are yet to win a match in Abu Dhabi this season. This will be their third game at the venue.
• The Knight Riders (6.73) have the worst powerplay run rate of all teams this season. That low scoring rate isn’t necessarily because their openers have traded explosiveness for stability – the Knight Riders haven’t finished a single powerplay wicketless this season.
• They are up against a Capitals attack that has consistently taken wickets in the powerplay, picking up 17 at a best-in-the-competition strike rate of 21.18. The early overs of the Knight Riders innings, therefore, could be a key phase in the game.
• The Knight Riders have been poor in the powerplay with the ball as well. They have the worst economy rate of all teams in this phase (8.260 and have only taken six wickets in 60 overs, at an average of 82.66.
• Given that they were only defending 84, the Knight Riders’ refusal to bowl Lockie Ferguson in the powerplay against the Royal Challengers was perplexing, but they were probably going by the data, if a little too rigidly. In the IPL, Ferguson has a middle-overs (7-15) economy rate of 5.05 and has taken six wickets in that phase at an average of 14.33. In all other phases, he has an economy rate of 10.57 while taking only three wickets at 74.00.
• If they play, it will be Yadav’s 100th T20 game and Ajinkya Rahane’s 200th.
• Harshal Patel is two wickets short of 100 in T20s.

Shai Hope has been tipped for “a tremendous future in Test cricket” despite being dropped from the West Indies Test squad for the tour of New Zealand.Hope, now aged 26 and a veteran of 34 Tests, has long been viewed as one of the most talented batsmen in the Caribbean. But despite performing well in ODI cricket – he is currently placed at No. 12 in the ICC’s batting rankings in the format and was at No. 4 midway through 2019 – he has endured a grim run of form in Test cricket. He has averaged 19.48 since December 2017 and just 14.45 since February 2019. His career average in Test cricket has slipped to 26.27. As a result, he has been omitted from the touring squad and will instead work on his game in Barbados.”I think we would all agree that he’s not been at his best in Test cricket for quite a while,” Roger Harper, CWI lead selector, said. “He’s performed very well in the 50-over version, but in Test cricket he’s not been anywhere close to his best and this has gone on for a while.

West Indies touring party

Test squad: Jason Holder (capt), Jermaine Blackwood, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shimron Hetmyer, Chemar Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Keemo Paul, Kemar Roach
Test Reserves: Nkrumah Bonner, Joshua DaSilva, Preston McSween, Shayne Moseley, Raymon Reifer, Jayden Seales
T20I squad: Kieron Pollard (capt), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Andre Fletcher, Shimron Hetmyer, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Rovman Powell, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr, Kesrick Williams

“Sometimes, by continuing to select a player, you do them more harm than good. So, we’ve given him an opportunity to go away and work on his game. The head coach, Phil Simmons, has put a programme in place to help him get back to his best. He’s not being left to his own devices.”He has an important part to play in the future of West Indies cricket. There’s a tremendous future for him in Test cricket, but he needs to get his batting back to where we know it can be. That’s what this is about: giving him that opportunity to find his mojo again in Test cricket and come back a stronger and better player.”John Campbell may consider himself fortunate not to have suffered the same fate. Campbell, who has a top score of 55 after nine Tests, actually scored fewer runs than Hope in England but, while Harper admitted there was “a lot of discussion” over his position, he has held his spot.”There was a lot of debate about this,” Harper said. “And there were a lot of other players considered, including Kieran Powell. But in the end, the panel decided to give him another opportunity to cement his place in the team.”While Harper admitted the batting, especially the top order, had been a concern for a while, he was hopeful the return of Darren Bravo and Shimron Hetmyer would add some solidity. Both men have earned recalls – Hetmyer is also in the T20I squad – after having opted out of the tour to England on health grounds.”The return of these guys is very important,” Harper said. “Our batting at the top has been a bit of a problem. It is an area that has been concerning us for a while. We’re hoping that the return of Bravo will add some solidity and leadership at the top of the order. We hope it will help us lay the foundations to build big totals. He’s been making runs consistently in every format.Rahkeem Cornwall retained his place in the Test squad despite an underwhelming performance in England•Getty Images

“We know how talented Hetmyer is and he gives us a lot more depth, quality and ability in the middle order. He’s hungry to get back and anxious to show what a quality player he is, especially in Test cricket. I personally believe he has the ability to be one of best batsmen in the world in Test cricket. We hope he’ll be able to seize the opportunity to show how good he is.”With quarantine regulations in the Caribbean rendering a training camp difficult to arrange, the squad is expected to depart for New Zealand early and have a camp there. The tour will also see an A side made-up of the reserves, the T20I squad, and those not required by the Test team, play two four-day first-class games during the Test series. Nicholas Pooran, who has only played three first-class games, is one of those expected to feature in these matches. “A lot of consideration was given to [selecting] him [in the Test squad] and we’re still considering,” Harper said.Meanwhile, Harper insisted that both Chris Gayle, who last played T20I cricket in March 2019, and Sunil Narine, who has recently been reported as having a suspect action, remained under consideration for T20 World Cup selection.”Chris is a world-class player,” Harper said. “We know what he’s capable of, so he’ll be considered going forward. And Sunil is a world-class performer. We know what he can do. He understands the process of getting through these challenges. Once he’s available, we’ll look at him.”Andre Fletcher, meanwhile, returned to the T20I squad for the first time since 2018, while there is a first call-up in the format for Kyle Mayers, who enjoyed a good CPL campaign. Rahkeem Cornwall retained his place in the Test squad, too, despite an underwhelming performance in England.”Of course we kept faith in him [Cornwall],” Harper said. “You have to remember, two Tests ago, he has a ten-wicket haul in Test cricket. It was one Test in England. A little bit of inexperience showed there. We expect he can raise his game if called upon again.”Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons and Evin Lewis opted not to participate in the tour. Health concerns and the demands of life in lockdown are understood to be have been key factors, while Lewis told the selectors he was injured. A statement from CWI said it “fully respects their decision” and that it “will not impact consideration for future selection”.

A week after returning home from the UAE as a victorious IPL captain, Rohit Sharma, who played the last three weeks of the tournament at “70 percent fitness” according to the BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, arrived at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru on Thursday. It isn’t clear yet if Rohit is at the NCA to finish his rehabilitation or take a fitness test.There has been some confusion surrounding Rohit’s hamstring injury. It was expected earlier that he would fly with the rest of the team to Australia directly from Dubai on November 12. And only a week prior to the departure, Ganguly had asked Rohit to exercise caution given the nature of his injury.”Rohit is injured at the moment. Otherwise, why would we leave out a player like him? He is the vice-captain of the national [limited-overs’] team,” Ganguly had said. “We will have to assess him. I don’t know [when he can come back]. He hasn’t played so far since the time he has got injured. We want him to recover. It’s the BCCI’s job to get their best players on the park. If he recovers, he plays.”ALSO READ: Wriddhiman Saha back at India nets, on road to recoveryRohit had suffered a hamstring tear in his left leg during the Mumbai Indians’ match against the Kings XI Punjab in Dubai on October 18. He missed the team’s next four games, but came back for the last three, helping them seal the title with a match-winning half-century against the Delhi Capitals in the final.The selection committee had first left Rohit out of all three squads for Australia, but he was later added to the Test squad. If he is cleared by the NCA staff and Sunil Joshi, the chief selector who is also assessing the fitness of Ishant Sharma at the NCA, Rohit will join the squad directly ahead of the Test series.But it isn’t yet clear if Rohit and Ishant will be available for both the warm-up fixtures leading into the first Test in Adelaide from December 17.

The Jaffna Stallions’ road to the final has been littered with games that they’ve won despite having at some point been behind the proverbial eight ball. Oddly enough, many of these games they’ve gone on to win comfortably, though those have been largely down to some stellar individual efforts.The most memorable such occurrence came in just their second game of the tournament against Dambulla Viiking. Having found themselves staring down the barrel at 64 for 5, Thisara Perera’s 44-ball 97-run shellacking would set up a dominant 66-run win. Then against the Kandy Tuskers, it was again Perera, this time with a little help from Dhananjaya De Silva, that helped the Stallions to a comfortable 54-run win, after yet another slow start where they had found themselves 26 for 2 at the end of the powerplay. Then in a win against the Galle Gladiators, set up by the excellence of Wanindu Hasaranga, what should have been a comfortable chase was made a little nervy by the loss of a flurry of late wickets.But on other occasions – albeit after semifinal qualification was secured, and complacency may have set in – these blips and lapses in concentration have been rather more costly. The Stallions’ first loss of the tournament could have been a lot more devastating had it not been for a Hasaranga cameo late-on that helped put up a semi-competitive target of 149. In their loss to the Viiking, it was Shoaib Malik’s 44-ball 59 that would get them up to 150. While in their final loss of the tournament, a late thrust by Thisara and co wasn’t enough to overhaul a gettable target of 174, after the top and middle order had let the required rate get away from them.Even in their 37-run semifinal win over the Viiking, if not for Hasaranga’s golden arm and Usman Shinwari’s laser-guided throws, it could have all been so different.Dhananjaya de Silva and Thisara Perera put on a rapid century stand•LPL

In fact, the only game you could say they were in control almost throughout was their opening encounter, incidentally against their finals opponents the Gladiators. Save for some vintage Shahid Afridi pyrotechnics, the Stallions had the best of proceedings, making light work of a 176 target, cruising home with eight wickets in hand.But if you listen to Stallions skipper Perera, this seeming dependence on individual performances is more by design than chance. Indeed, with a batting lineup that snakes along all the way to No.8, and a plethora of all-rounders to call on either with the bat or ball, Perera’s confidence that someone will deliver on the day doesn’t seem all that misplaced.”We can’t predict what will happen out there, when you will need to come in to bat etc. But at all times we try and do what we think is best for the team – you’re not always going to get it right though,” Thisara said on the eve of the final.”But I do expect our batting to click far more than it did in the semifinal, we bat deep because we have a lot of allrounders. So all we need is even one or two from the top eight – like Johnson Charles the other day – to hit form.”T20 cricket is also geared in such a way that it can very easily turn into a ‘one-man show,’ where any bowler or batsman can take the game away from you. For us the most important thing is to play each ball on its merits. If we plan too much also, I don’t think it’ll be a successful strategy. We need to constantly reevaluate the situation from over to over.”This ability to make decisions on the fly will undoubtedly come in handy when they take on a Gladiators side that has changed considerably since the Stallions’ group stage encounters against them. Those games saw the Stallions’ batters find proceedings as comfortable as they had at any point across the tournament, though they will be keenly aware of the improvements the Gladiators have undergone since those early tussles.”At no point will we underestimate our opponents, I said this before the semi-final as well. It really comes to which team on the day makes the least amount of mistakes.”If there are any concerns for the Stallions, it would be with regard to their tendency to sometimes lose wickets in clusters, while their running between the wickets hasn’t showered them in glory either.”There’s not much you can do about it (run outs) sometimes, because it depends on the talent of the fielder and whether they can execute their skills at that time. But of course batsmen need to be mindful as well, because if we don’t call properly then that can lead to misunderstandings in the middle. That’s also part of the game though, mistakes happen, so we shouldn’t dwell too much on it.”[In terms of our batting] we’re confident going into the final, even if we might have a slight problem to address in terms of losing wickets in quick succession. But the most important thing is that we collectively put in a performance on the day, as a team – cricket is after all a team game.”In the last game our top order gave us a good start, but our middle order wasn’t able to capitalise on it – but in the same vein in previous games the middle order has bailed us out after the top order failed. This is why I think, as a team we’re in a good place, and we’re looking forward to the final.”

Joe Root’s first Test century since November 2019 has helped England tighten their grip on the second day of the first Test in Galle.Root went through 2020 without a century – the first time in his Test career he has gone through a full year without one – and dropped out of the top 10 in the ICC’s batting rankings in the process.But here he has provided a demonstration of his enduring class in negating the sharply turning ball with calm authority and moving to his 18th Test century in the process. More importantly, he extended England’s lead to 185 with six first-innings wickets still in hand by the time rain returned at tea to bring an early close. Sri Lanka will have to bat substantially better than they managed in the first innings if they are to make England bat again.If they require an example of how to go about things, they could do far worse than emulate Root. With his judgement of when to go forward and back, his ability to manoeuvre the ball into gaps and his ability to sweep both in front and behind square, he has provided a masterclass in playing spin bowling. Kusal Mendis, at short leg, took so many blows, you suspect a boxing referee might have suggested he had taken enough punishment. Never has Root scored so many runs in a single innings from the sweep.Related

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It was Root’s eighth score of 150 or more in Test cricket and the highest score made by an England player in a Test in Sri Lanka. The previous highest was Kevin Pietersen’s 151 made in Colombo in 2012.Root was given assured support from debutant Dan Lawrence. The pair added 173 in 43.1 overs – England’s highest-ever stand in Tests in Sri Lanka – for the fourth wicket, with Lawrence losing little by comparison.Indeed, were you to put together a highlights package of the day, it would be Lawrence’s strokes that dominated. There were cuts, drives, sweeps and, shortly before lunch, he launched Lasith Embuldeniya for a slog-swept six that would have pleased Pietersen or AB de Villiers, the men his father told the BBC he idolised growing up. All in all, it suggested England might just have found a man with the character and skill to flourish at this level. Sterner tests loom, no doubt, but this was an accomplished first international innings from Lawrence.To be fair, Root’s innings was not the sort to be accurately represented by a highlights package. 72 of his runs have come in singles, after all. But while those runs might not have made the immediate impression of Lawrence’s six, his ability to find the gaps and rotate the strike make him desperately tough to contain. He looked hungry, patient and technically excellent.While Lawrence was not able to emulate the achievement of Ben Foakes, who made a century on debut here in 2018, this was a hugely promising start from the 23-year-old. Getting off the mark first ball, Lawrence looked confident from the off and, picking up the length nicely, was comfortable to skip down the pitch or go deep into his crease when required.Joe Root and Dan Lawrence took England past 300•SLC

He did provide one chance. Appearing to lose concentration for a moment, he skipped down the pitch to Embuldeniya when he had 68 and was fortunate to see the keeper, Niroshan Dickwella, parry the ball past the slips. A short while later, he received one from Dilruwan Perera which spat off the surface, took his glove and ballooned to short-leg. It was a disappointment for Lawrence, of course, but England will have noted the signs of deterioration in the surface with interest.Root and Lawrence were helped, it does have to be said, by some loose bowling. While Embuldeniya – who took the first three wickets to fall – continued to ask questions of the batsmen, he lacked the support required to build pressure. Perera, in particular, has struggled with his line and length – a floated full toss allowed Lawrence to ease his second delivery through the covers for four – allowing England to pick up regular singles.The legspinner, Wanindu Hasaranga, was no better. Lawrence was able to cut, sweep and drive him for boundaries as he struggled with his length. Hasaranga has conceded more than four-an-over so far; in a low-scoring game, it is a cost Sri Lanka can ill afford.To be fair to the bowlers, when you have Root’s range of strokes – his ability to find the gaps, in particular – it can be hard to find answers. But the fact that there were only eight maiden overs in the innings (and only three on the second day), reflects both the excellence of the batting and the lack of discipline in the bowling. To have hit ‘only’ 12 fours – 10 of them on the leg side – but still have a strike rate of 66.14 runs per 100 balls, underlines Root’s method: it’s maybe not as eye-catching as soon, but it is mightily effective.Earlier, play was delayed by 70 minutes due to rain. When the resumption eventually came, Jonny Bairstow fell in the second over of the day without adding to his overnight score. While Bairstow may reflect he could have left the ball, Embuldeniya had drawn him forward nicely and gained sharp turn to take the outside edge. Mendis also did well to cling on to a sharp, low catch.At that stage, Sri Lanka still held a narrow first-innings innings. But Root and Lawrence crushed any hopes the home side may have had of making deeper inroads into the England innings. Even the rain that returned at tea to wash out the final session only delayed Sri Lanka’s pain.

India have named three of IPL 2020’s top performers – batsman Suryakumar Yadav, wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan, and allrounder Rahul Tewatia in their squad for the five-match T20I series against England that begins from March 12. The squad also has the returning Rohit Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant and Varun Chakarvarthy, but the injured Manish Pandey, Sanju Samson, and Mayank Agarwal, who were all part of India’s last T20I assignment in Australia late last year, have missed out on selection. Jasprit Bumrah is also not part of the squad.These are maiden call-ups for Yadav, Tewatia and Kishan, who put on some of the most sparkling batting displays during last year’s IPL which ended shortly before India flew to Australia. Thirty-year-old Yadav is the most experienced cricketer of the trio, while 22-year-old Kishan – who made 173 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy hours before the squad announcement – has long been seen as a potential India player since breaking through with the Under-19 team. The pair of them formed a deadly combination in Mumbai Indians’ top three, particularly towards the end of their title-winning campaign in the UAE. Kishan takes the place of Samson, who was the second wicketkeeper in India’s last few series.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The selection of 27-year-old Tewatia, in comparison, is another case of a player transcending limitations in other formats and finding a path to the national team via the IPL. Like T Natarajan, who was called in to replaced the injured Chakravarthy – himself a product of T20 leagues – in Australia, Tewatia made his abilities known with stellar performances in last year’s edition, particularly an innings where he went from struggling on 5 off 13 to hit six sixes off his last eight balls to take Rajasthan Royals to victory against Punjab Kings. He played a few other key knocks of a similar flavour, while being Royals’ only fixed domestic bowler throughout their campaign.Of the players returning to the squad, Sharma, Bhuvneshwar and Chakravarthy all missed out during the Australia tour through injuries. Pant though had been overlooked for those T20Is with India opting to trial KL Rahul as wicketkeeper. That experiment now appears to be put on hold with the young left-hander winning the team management’s faith with sublime performances in the Test series that followed.Also coming back into the fray is Axar Patel, who made his Test debut as a replacement for Ravindra Jadeja last week, who continues to be in rehabilitation himself. Bhuvneshwar last played for India in December 2019, a T20I against the West Indies, and has been on the road back since missing a majority of IPL 2020 with a thigh injury and rehabilitating at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. He played four games for his state side, Uttar Pradesh, in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, and completed a 10-over spell for them on Saturday against Karnataka.He will likely lead India’s fast bowling contingent, which has Natarajan, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini, and Shardul Thakur who make up a diverse and relatively experienced line-up. Mohammed Shami, who wasn’t part of the T20Is in Australia and who picked up an injury to his hand later in the Tests, remains absent. Among the batsmen, both Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan retain their places, as does Shreyas Iyer. Tewatia, Axar, Washington Sundar, and Hardik Pandya make up the allrounders, although it is still uncertain whether Pandya is fit enough to play in a bowling role. Yuzvendra Chahal is the only other wristspinner.

Fast bowler S Sreesanth was among the heroes for Kerala as they beat Uttar Pradesh by three wickets to register their second win in two games in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Sreesanth took 5 for 65 as Kerala bowled UP out for 283, before fifties from Robin Uthappa (81 off 55) and Sachin Baby (76 off 83) laid the foundation for a chase that went deep.Sreesanth is playing in his first full domestic season for Kerala since 2013 following his ban in relation to the IPL spot-fixing episode. He played the entirety of the 20-over Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy that preceded the Vijay Hazare Trophy. In the 50-over competition, he now has seven wickets in two games.This was the 37-year-old Sreesanth’s second five-wicket haul in List A cricket, the first one being his ODI-best 6 for 55 against England in 2006. He dismissed two of UP’s half-centurions, opener Abhishek Goswami and middle-order batsman Akshdeep Nath, and took the last four wickets of the innings, including that of Bhuvneshwar Kumar.In their chase, Kerala lost Vishnu Vinod early to Bhuvneshwar, but a brisk 104-run stand between Uthappa and Sanju Samson kept them on track with the required rate. Two quick wickets followed, however, and it took consolidation from the middle order before No. 9 M Nidheesh struck an unbeaten 13 off 6 to help them get over the line.

Big picture

After a first Test that had started with a patented Sri Lankan batting collapse that almost anyone who had been watching them play cricket over the past few years could have predicted, here we are somehow entertaining the very real possibility of them securing a first ever Test series win in the Caribbean.Now, of course, for this to actually transpire, it would require Sri Lanka to replicate, and most likely better, their performance from the previous week – certainly no little ask, but one considerably less farfetched than it might have been at the same point last week.Related

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Much of this optimism is down to, as is now almost their trademark, some previously unheralded player from their fractured domestic system beating the odds to spark the team into life.This time it was Pathum Nissanka with a magnificent century on debut. Against South Africa a few years back, while Kusal Perera will always be the highlight, it’s easy to forget the resilience brought to that middle order by debutant Oshada Fernando. And then a couple of years before that, when Sri Lanka famously beat Australia at home, it was none other than the green pairing of Dhananjaya de Silva and Kusal Mendis who breathed life into the side.But on all those previous occasions, the team failed to build on the exuberance injected by fresh blood. Will Nissanka’s entry into the side be met with similar regression? Well we’ll soon find out.As for the West Indies, after the relative ease with which the visitors had been dispatched in the limited-overs series, the trouble the Sri Lankan batsmen had had in the warm-up game ahead of the first Test, and then that first innings collapse, it might have come as a fair shock when they found themselves having to bat out the last day of the Test just to avoid defeat.But this West Indian side doesn’t cower from adversity all that easily – as underscored so sensationally in Bangladesh earlier this year – and the first Test would have provided them with all the evidence they need to know that they have the tools to hurt this Sri Lanka side.So in many ways, with the match being played at the same venue, this is simply a continuation of proceedings from that first game. And with seemingly not much to separate both sides, once more, victory will depend largely on which side makes the fewer mistakes.

Form guide

Sri Lanka – DLLLLWest Indies – DWWLL

In the spotlight

Pathum Nissanka is not the first – and he certainly won’t be the last – debutant to reignite cricketing interest from an increasingly apathetic Sri Lankan fanbase. But that doesn’t make it any less exciting. Sure, he may not have the flair of a Kusal Mendis, or the explosiveness of an Avishka Fernando, but in a side that has been crying out for a steadying presence, Nissanka’s bloodymindedness and ability to simply occupy the crease – a feat that many around him seemed to struggle with – might as well make him the next coming of Sanath Jayasuriya at this point.But if Nissanka is the proverbial immovable object, then in Kemar Roach the West Indies possess the unstoppable force – well, at least when it comes to cricket played at North Sound in Antigua. With 36 wickets in six matches at an average 15.77, it’s safe to say Roach likes playing here. In the first Test, the Sri Lankan batsmen struggled to get him away; if he gets more support from the sometimes wayward pair of Shannon Gabriel and Alzari Joseph, then it could be another very testing outing for the visitors.

Team news

Sri Lanka may play an extra spinner – Lakshan Sandakan – if they think the track could take decent turn in the second innings. To cover their bases, they may bring seam-bowling allrounder Dasun Shanaka into the side. Dinesh Chandimal, who had only made one fifty in his last three Tests, may make way for Shanaka. Either Vishwa Fernando or Dushmantha Chameera may be displaced by Sandakan.Sri Lanka XI (possible): Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne, Oshada Fernando, Pathum Nissanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Dasun Shanaka, Lasith Enbuldeniya, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera, Lakshan SandakanThe West Indies will have been quite happy with their overall performance from the first Test, and so will not want to change up too much. Shannon Gabriel was relatively disappointing but he will likely be backed to put forward an improved showing.West Indies XI (possible): Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), John Campbell, Nkrumah Bonner, Kyle Mayers, Jermaine Blackwood, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva, Alzarri Joseph, Rakheem Cornwall, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel

Pitch and conditions

The weather is expected to be clear for the duration of the Test. It is possible that this pitch will turn more than the surface for the first Test, which took very little spin, even on day five.

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka have failed to win a Test series in the West Indies in four attempts, though the last two series were drawn.
• Suranga Lakmal needs six more wickets to climb to fourth in the all-time Test wicket-taker list for Sri Lanka.
• Kraigg Brathwaite needs 98 runs to reach 4000 Test runs. He will be the 16th West Indian to reach the milestone.
• Niroshan Dickwella now has scored the most fifties (17) without converting to a century. He has scored 2291 Test runs in the process; the most runs scored without a century is 3154 by Shane Warne.

Ben Stokes looks set to miss England’s Test series against New Zealand in June after the ECB said that he would require surgery on his broken finger, putting him out for up to 12 weeks.The England allrounder underwent an X-ray and CT scan on Thursday and will fly home from the IPL on Saturday after fracturing his left index finger in Rajasthan Royals’ opening game. The first Test of the summer, against New Zealand at Lord’s starting on June 2, is just over six weeks away.Related

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Stokes had initially indicated he wanted to stay with the Royals to provide “valued support and inputs off the field”, but he will now return to the UK for an operation in Leeds on Monday. He had already been ruled out of the IPL by the injury, which he sustained while diving to take a catch against Punjab Kings.England had been facing the possibility of missing Stokes, the Test vice-captain, for the Lord’s game, should the Royals remain involved for the IPL’s knockout stages. They will also play New Zealand at Edgbaston the following week, before limited-overs series against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.A 12-week rehabilitation process would mean Stokes returning to fitness in time for the start of the Hundred in mid-July, which is followed by a five-Test series against India.