Ind vs SL, 2nd Test | Mendis, Karunaratne show fight before India reduce Sri Lanka to 151/4 at tea on Day 3

The visitors are chasing a mammoth target of 447

Sri Lanka enjoyed a rare productive batting session in the series before India removed three batters to inch towards a comprehensive victory on the third day of the second Test at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru on Monday.

Resuming at 28 for one in pursuit of an improbable 447-run target, Sri Lankan batters Kusal Mendis (54 off 60 balls) and Dimuth Karunaratne (67 batting) showed stomach for fight and their intent resulted in visitors getting 123 runs.

At the tea break, Sri Lanka were 151 for four with Karunaratne and Niroshan Dickwella (10) at the crease.

With sun beating down on a pitch that has been assisting the spinners from day one, surviving against Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja’s guile was an onerous task for the visitors.

Yet, adopting a positive approach, both Mendis (54 off 60 balls) and his Karunaratne used their feet with confidence to counter the Indian spinners.

Mendis was impressive on both front and back foot as he pulled and cut the short-pitched stuff and used his feet to cut down the spin.