Dhananjaya de Silva, Kamindu Mendis and bowlers help Sri Lanka fight back
Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis hit fifties as Sri Lanka fought back on day two of the second Test against Australia in Galle.
The pair put on 101 for the fifth wicket after Sri Lanka had slumped to 138-4, and their partnership helped the hosts reach 289-7 at the close.
Kamindu Mendis was dismissed for 61, but Dhananjay de Silva remained unbeaten on 84.
Australia's bowlers had earlier taken three wickets in the morning session, but Sri Lanka's batsmen dug deep in the afternoon to rebuild their innings.
The tourists had resumed on 321-6, and they added 31 runs before they were bowled out for 352.
Mitchell Starc finished with 4-66, while Nathan Lyon took 3-66.
Sri Lanka then lost Dimuth Karunaratne (1), Kusal Mendis (21) and Angelo Mathews (19) cheaply, but Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis steadied the innings.
The pair played cautiously at first, but they gradually began to open up and score more freely.
Dhananjaya de Silva reached his fifty off 107 balls, while Kamindu Mendis reached his off 122 balls.
The partnership was broken when Kamindu Mendis was caught by Steve Smith at slip off the bowling of Lyon.
However, Dhananjaya de Silva continued to play positively and he reached his highest Test score of 84 not out off 185 balls.
Sri Lanka will resume on day three trailing Australia by 63 runs.
Related articles:
- Sri Lanka vs Australia, 2nd Test, Day 2: Dhananjaya de Silva, Kamindu Mendis and bowlers help Sri Lanka hit back
- Sri Lanka fight back on day two of second Test against Australia
- Dhananjaya de Silva, Kamindu Mendis help Sri Lanka respond to Australia in second Test in Galle
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