Captains commend Sara wicket

COMMENDATION: Both Sri Lanka and South Africa cricket captains commended the pitch that was prepared for the second Test between the two countries, concluded at Sara Stadium yesterday.

Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardena and his South African counterpart Ashwell Prince had high praise for the strip that was offered for the second and final Test, which the hosts won in a one-wicket thriller.

"It was a good wicket to host a Test match. Everybody had some thing for them - the fast bowlers had speed and bounce, the slow bowlers the spin and bounce and the batsmen had runs for them," Jayawardena said in a post-match interview.

His opposite number Prince too endorsed those views and said the wicket they got to play in the second Test was an ideal one for the established game. "Obviously it was a good Test match wicket," he said.

The match was the closest ever in Tests played here as Sri Lanka had a nail-biting one-wicket win. In the first Test at the SSC grounds, won by the hosts by an innings and 153 runs, skipper Mahela Jaywardena (374) and his deputy Kumara Sangakkara (287) shared a world record 624 runs, the highest ever for any wicket.

Both the SSC wicket and Sara Stadium wickets for the Janashakthi Test series were prepared by former Sri Lanka cricketer and ex chairman of selectors Anuruddha Polonowita, one of the most experienced curators here.