Tea West Indies 238 for 1 (Gayle 145*, Darren Bravo 32*) v Sri Lanka
Runs continued to flow freely from the blade of Chris Gayle in the afternoon session of the first day at Galle, as the West Indies opener creamed a blistering century off just 116 deliveries to take his team to 238 for 1 at the tea break. Gayle brought up his century, his first in the subcontinent and 13th overall, with a six over long off to complete an astounding seven-ball burst in which he plundered 25 runs. The batsman then went on to celebrate the landmark in a most unusual fashion: with a casual lie-down in the middle of the pitch, while teammates and opposition alike watched on with bemused grins.
The Sri Lanka bowlers had little response to the rampant Gayle, with Sangakkara forced to defend the boundaries when the left-hander was on strike. Suraj Randiv was on the receiving end of the onslaught with one of his overs going for 18 runs, but the remainder of the Sri Lankan attack didn't escape lightly either. Ajantha Mendis was muscled over mid wicket for six and any short deliveries from the medium pacemen were dispatched to the boundary with disdainful ease by Gayle, who hit nineteen fours and six sixes in his unbeaten innings of 145.
Darren Bravo went into the break on 32 on his debut, having played sidekick to Gayle for much of the session. Bravo played a chanceless innings, safely negotiating the Sri Lanka bowlers and regularly turning the strike over to his more bloody-minded partner at the other end. Sangakkara found respite with a packed off side field for the seamers later on in the session, as both batsmen struggled to pierce the infield - but the lack of genuine chances will trouble the Sri Lanka skipper who finds his side firmly on the back foot heading into the final session of the day.
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