Dhananjaya de Silva ton headlines eventful opening day

Sri Lanka were bowled out for 308 on the opening day of the first Test against West Indies in Antigua, with skipper Dhananjaya de Silva's 13th Test century the highlight. Only 72.5 overs were bowled, and West Indies' openers saw off six deliveries without scoring.

West Indies' decision to bowl first paid off early as Kemar Roach used extra bounce to dismiss Pathum Nissanka in the opening over. Nishan Madushka received an early reprieve and hit a six off Alzarri Joseph, but the bowler trapped him lbw in the same over before claiming Kamindu Mendis off the very next ball. Alzarri missed his hat-trick but helped West Indies take early control.

Dinesh Chandimal and de Silva shared a 68-run stand to bail Sri Lanka out of trouble. Chandimal kept the scoreboard ticking with regular boundaries, while de Silva hit Shamar Joseph for two boundaries in an over. The momentum shifted by lunch, but after the break, Shamar bowled Chandimal for a half-century and dismissed Kusal Mendis in the same over, leaving Sri Lanka at 110/5.

Dhananjaya then found an able partner in Sonal Dinusha, playing his second Test. They rebuilt the innings with regular boundaries, dragging Sri Lanka past 200 as another topsy-turvy session ended well for the visitors.

The final session began with a jolt when Roach trapped Dinusha lbw, breaking the 99-run partnership. But Milan Rathnayake forged another useful stand with Dhananjaya, who hit a boundary off Jayden Seales to bring up a stunning century. A leading edge finally gave West Indies the breakthrough, with Dhananjaya departing for 120. Handy boundaries from the lower order helped Sri Lanka breach 300 before being bowled out.

Brief scores: West Indies 0/0 trail Sri Lanka 308 (Dhananjaya de Silva 120, Dinesh Chandimal 54; Justin Greaves 3/39, Kemar Roach 2/32) by 308 runs