da jogodeouro： Zimbabwe finished the first day of the final Janashakthi National Test withtheir self-respect intact
Charlie Austin12-Jan-2002Zimbabwe finished the first day of the final Janashakthi National Test withtheir self-respect intact. For the first time in the series their bowlerswere not bullied into a submission and, when play resumes tomorrow, theywill have realistic hopes of bowling out Sri Lanka for a sensible score.However, for much of the day it had looked like the same old story. SkipperStuart Carlisle had lost the toss on a slow, dry pitch and Sri Lanka’sbatsmen were meticulously building the foundations for another mammothtotal. Zimbabwe, desperately lacking a specialist spinner, looked well oncourse for a third successive innings defeat.However, in the final hour, with the score on 222 for three and umpire DavidSheperd hopping uncomfortably in the enervating heat, Grant Flower brokethrough with his benign-looking left-arm spinners as Mahela Jayawardene wascaught and bowled for 74.Next, Hashan Tillakaratne (3) gloved a catch to wicket-keeper Andy Floweroff the gangly batsman-turned-spinner, Douglas Marillier, andRussel Arnold, who had added 97 with Jayawardene, feathered a catch behindshortly after the new ball was taken. Sri Lanka were 236 for six having lostthree wickets for 14 runs. Thilan Samaraweera then survived till the closewith Chaminda VaasFor a team now used to astronomical scores, it was as close to a collapsethey have come for months. But an end of the day score of 243 for six isbetter than it looks. The pitch may not be assisting the fast bowlers but italready resembles badly laid crazy paving and even Zimbabwe’s part-timespinners proved a handful. Should Sri Lanka pass 300 then the visitors arestill left to contemplate the daunting challenge of a facing a revved upMuttiah Muralitharan desperate for his 400th wicket. The ball will literallyturn square.Nevertheless, for the time being, the Zimbabwe team will be looking on thebright side after an entirely unsatisfactory week, during which they haveseen their countries political problems heighten and a Test series lost.Considering that background, coupled with the fact they were so handicappedhere by not having a specialist spinner, their battling performance was evenmore commendable.The heroes of the piece were Grant Flower and Marillier, who together bowled49 overs for 105 runs and picked up four wickets – not bad for a pair moreaccustomed to operating in the one-day game.After the early loss of Jayasuriya who chopped onto his stumps having scored28, Sri Lanka had crawled to 107 for one when Flower, somewhat fortuitously,broke through.Atapattu, who had just reached his tenth Test fifty, rocked onto hisbackfoot and cracked a short ball straight into the midriff of Gavin Renniefielding at short leg. Somehow, Rennie, who was celebrating his birthday,clung onto the ball as he took evasive action.Next, Kumar Sangakkara (28), who had already flirted with danger with a topedged pull just before lunch, tried to sweep Marillier and was clean bowledto leave Sri Lanka on 125 for three.Arnold and Jayawardene then cobbled together their useful 97 runpartnership, before the part-timers reeked further damage in the final hour.