Sri Lanka beat Zimbabwe by four wickets after chasing a record 388 on the fifth and final day of the one-off Test on Tuesday.

The hosts rode on a crucial 121-run sixth-wicket stand between Asela Gunaratne (80*) and Niroshan Dickwella (81) to pull off the team’s best-ever run chase.

The win in Colombo was a boost for new Test captain Dinesh Chandimal and eased Sri Lanka’s pain after a shock defeat in the one-day series against the minnows. Sri Lanka were 270 for five at lunch.

Man-of-the-Match Gunaratne then anchored the chase to perfection after Dickwella’s departure, putting on an unbeaten 67-run partnership with Dilruwan Perera (29*).

Advertisement

Zimbabwe skipper Graeme Cremer claimed four wickets with his leg-spin to return overall figures of 9/275. Gunaratne, who played most of the Test as a batsman after injuring his hamstring in the first innings, tackled the Zimbabwe spinners with ease during his 151-ball stay.

Cremer, who had taken two wickets in the final session on day four, struck again with his leg-spin to have Angelo Mathews caught and bowled for 25.

Dickwella got lucky on 37 after wicketkeeper Regis Chakabva clipped the bails on Sikandar Raza’s off-spin, sending the stumping decision to the third umpire.

Advertisement

Repeated replays showed the left-handed batsman had his toe on the crease – a case where the batsman should be given out, but India’s C Shamshuddin let Dickwella stay, much to the dismay of the Zimbabwe dressing room.

Sri Lanka’s previous highest successful run chase was against South Africa in 2006, when a 352-run target didn’t stop them from winning in Colombo. The previous fifth highest chase was set by India in 2008, when Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag fashioned an improbable 387-run chase in Chennai against England.

Lankan veteran Rangana Herath was adjudged the Man-of-the-Series for his match haul of 11/249. The left-armer walked away with his eighth 10 wicket haul, and is now the joint fourth highest in the all-time charts.

Brief score:

  • Zimbabwe 356 (Craig Ervine 160, Malcolm Waller 36; Rangana Herath 5/116) & 377 (Sikandar Raza 127, Malcolm Waller 68; Rangana Herath 6/133, Dilruwan Perera 3/95) lost to Sri Lanka (Upul Tharanga 71, Dinesh Chandimal 55; Graeme Cremer 5/125) & 391/6 (Niroshan Dickwella 81, Asela Gunaratne 80*; Graeme Cremer 4/150) by 4 wickets.