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Dinesh Chandimal‘s dismissal on Day 1 of the first Test against England at Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester was a critical moment for Sri Lanka. Facing Shoaib Bashir, Chandimal was trapped LBW (leg before wicket) on the third ball of the 23rd over.
Dinesh Chandimal’s unusual dismissal
Bashir was bowling his second over of the match. The delivery that got Chandimal out was a back-of-a-length ball pitched just outside the off-stump. What made this delivery particularly challenging was its lack of bounce – a characteristic that caught Chandimal off guard.
Chandimal, a seasoned campaigner, initially moved his front foot slightly across, intending to work the ball to the leg side. However, the ball stayed lower than expected after pitching. As a result, instead of bouncing over or around his pads, it skidded off the surface and struck him low on the pads, near the ankle. This lack of bounce, combined with Chandimal’s slight shuffle across the stumps, left him in a vulnerable position. His attempt to play the ball to the leg side failed, as the bat could not make contact with the ball before it struck his pads.
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The umpire’s decision
The on-field umpire immediately raised his finger, signaling Chandimal out LBW. Despite the confidence of the appeal, Chandimal opted for a DRS review, perhaps hoping the ball might have missed the stumps or bounced too high. Nevertheless, the ball-tracking technology showed that the delivery was hitting the stumps in line with all three reds—confirming that the ball would have struck the middle and leg stumps.
The review upheld the umpire’s original decision, and Chandimal had to walk back to the pavilion. Chandimal’s dismissal left Sri Lanka struggling at 72/5 after 22.3 overs, putting them in a precarious position early in their innings. His loss was significant as Chandimal was one of Sri Lanka’s more experienced middle-order batters, and his wicket further compounded the pressure on the remaining batters.
Here’s the video:
Bashir strikes in only his second over 😲💥 pic.twitter.com/evWunci70P
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 21, 2024
Sri Lanka’s gritty lower-order fightback
Sri Lanka’s top order faltered dramatically, collapsing to 113/7. Nonetheless, captain Dhananjaya de Silva and debutant Milan Rathnayake stabilized the innings with a vital 66-run stand for the eighth wicket, with De Silva scoring a resilient 74. After his dismissal, Rathnayake, alongside Viswa Fernando, added another 50 runs for the ninth wicket, with Rathnayake making a valuable 72. Sri Lanka were eventually all out for 236. England, with all wickets intact, trails by 214 runs and reached 22/0 before bad light halted play.
