Lanka sweep series

Colombo, October 26

Left-arm spinners Rangana Herath and Milinda Siriwardana shared seven wickets as Sri Lanka thumped the West Indies by 72 runs in the second Test on Monday to sweep the series 2-0.

The tourists, who resumed on 20-1 chasing a victory target of 244, were shot out for 171 in the post-lunch session of the fifth day’s play at the P Sara Oval in Colombo.

Veteran Herath finished with 4-56 and Siriwardana took 3-25 to wreck the tourists, for whom Darren Bravo played a lone hand with 61. The West Indies slipped to 138-9 before the last-wicket pair of Kemar Roach (13) and Jomel Warrican (20 not out) put on 33 runs to hand a lesson to their teammates.

Sri Lanka, who had won the first Test in Galle by an innings and six runs, clinched the trophy named after West Indies great Garfield Sobers and former Sri Lankan captain Michael Tissera. Herath finished with 15 wickets in the series to take his tally to 293, nearing the 300-wicket mark previously achieved by only two Sri Lankan bowlers — world record holder Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas.