SL vs IND, 3rd Test: Chaminda Vaas hails Lankan spin dou of Malinda Pushpakumara, Lakshan Sadakan

Courtesy: Reuters

New Delhi: Sri Lanka enjoyed a relatively better day against India as spinners Malinda Pushpakumara and Lakshan Sadakan led the hosts' fightback after Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul scripted a record 188-run opening stand on Day 1 of the third and final Test Pallekele on Saturday.

Lanka, playing to avoid a rare series whitewash at home, did well to restrict the visitors to 329 for 6 at stumps on day one of the third Test. At one time, Virat Kohli & Co were looking at a score of more than 400 runs on the first day itself.

But Pushpakumara (3/40 in 18 overs) and Sadakan (2/84 in 25 overs) took five wickets between them to pull things back for the hosts.

After the day's play, Lanka's bowling coach Chaminda Vaas hailed the spin duo for their disciplined performance.

"The bowlers came and bowled pretty well, especially the spinners. We kept them to 320 for the first day. I am really, really happy with the spinners. At the end, the way Vishwa Fernando bowled in the last two spells was also good," said Vaas at the press conference.

It was indeed commendable effort from the bowlers, considering the home side has been fighting injury concerns. Senior bowlers Nuwan Pradeep and Suranga Lakmal are unavailable, and inexperienced Vishwa Fernando and Lahiru Kumara were called up in their absence after giving rest to mercurial Rangana Herath.

"The track is really good for batting. We saw in the first few hours how the ball was behaving, and how the batsmen were scoring runs. This is a typical Kandy wicket," he added.

But the legendary pacer expressed his dissatisfaction with the Lankan pacers.

"I am not happy with the way the fast bowlers bowled in the morning. They bowled here and there. These guys are inexperienced. Vishwa is playing his second game and Lahiru is bowling his sixth. They didn't bowl well. After lunch they came back strongly and bowled pretty well," said Vaas.

"Yes, we have good fast bowlers, but Sri Lanka Cricket needs to give some time to these fast bowlers. They haven't played much cricket. If you see the Indian fast bowlers they have played about 60 games. We need to be patient and we will be able to get the result from the fast bowlers.

"They need to play more. If you take pacers from any country, they start bowling well after they have played 20-25 Tests. We can't suddenly expect a lot from Vishwa and Lahiru. But they need to practice and play a lot of games. With that match experience only they will develop," he added.

India have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. If Virat Kohli & Co manage to win the third Test too, it will be India's first ever overseas series whitewash.

(With PTI inputs)