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Lankans fall prey in pace shoot out
Callistus Davy reporting from Darwin
Australia's bowlers had the final say in a pace shoot-out as Sri Lanka's experienced top order batsmen caved in without a fight unable to come to terms with the quickness of the pitch to lose the first cricket Test by a humiliating 149 runs on the third day here at the Marrara oval in Darwin yesterday.

It was a case of playing and edging the ball in what looked like continuous replays as Australian paceman Michael Kasprowicz became the star performer on the day and there was nothing to hide the undignified looks on the faces of the Sri Lankans who could only congratulate their hosts before seeking the solace of the dressing room.

But Sri Lankan coach John Dyson defended his batsmen and charged that the pitch was unsuitable for a five-day Test after a 312 target became a bridge too far."It was a difficult wicket to bat on. The game finished in three days and that tells you something, the pitch seamed a heck of a lot. Both sides had seven batsmen and the highest total was 207. You can draw your conclusions (on the pitch)", said a fuming Dyson.

Australian stand-in captain Adam Gilhrist also directed his guns at the pitch maker lambasting the track as substandard. "I don't think the pitch was up to Test standard. It was pretty obvious with the quality of batsmen in both sides", said Gilchrist who top-scored in the match with 80.

But pitch curator Tony Ware had on the second day defended his formula by attributing the batting debacles in the first innings to outstanding bowling by the pacemen.

Kasprowicz hounded the Sri Lankan batsmen with devastating pace as he claimed seven wickets of which six were taken in his second 10.5-over spell. Five of his victims were caught behind at lightning speed, while one was picked up in the slips and the other bowled, giving a ringside view of the pace and swing the pitch offered.

Contrary to what Dyson and Gilchrist thought of the pitch, Kasprowicz put down his bounty to perseverance in hitting the deck."It was not a dangerous pitch. True it provided seam and turned as well, but you have to put the ball in the right area and maintain consistency to get wickets", said Kasprowicz.

Except for Mahela Jayawardena who top-scored with 44 and Kumar Sangakkara who was run-out without scoring, none of the Sri Lankan batsmen were able to challenge the speed of Kasprowicz and McGrath.

They were mere sitting ducks while the most experienced batsman Sanath Jayasuriya was not only guilty of running-out Sangakkara, after playing the ball and calling for a cheeky single, but also failed to make contact with a full toss from McGrath to be ruled out leg-before for 16 runs that he scratched for in 73 minutes.

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