NORTH SOUND, Antigua and Barbuda (AFP) — Suranga Lakmal struck twice for Sri Lanka in the middle of the afternoon on Monday but could not prevent the West Indies reaching tea on the second day of the first Test in Antigua on 163 for five, just six runs short of drawing level on first innings.

Replying to the Sri Lankans’ modest first-day effort of 169, the hosts had to work hard to get close to parity and will rely on former captain and first day bowling hero Jason Holder, 18 not out, and Joshua da Silva, 12 not out, to bat on through the evening.

They have so far featured in a sixth-wicket stand of 30, which partially steadied a listing Caribbean ship after Lakmal removed Jermaine Blackwood and Kyle Mayers within the space of 13 runs to give the beleaguered visitors hope of minimising the West Indies first innings advantage.

Lakmal, who had earlier prised out West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite without any addition to the overnight total, returned on a scorching afternoon to bowl Blackwood through the gate off the inside-edge for two and then account for the dangerous Mayers via a second slip catch by Dhananjaya de Silva.

Lakmal’s figures at the interval were an impressive three for 32 off 18 overs.

Mayers punctuated long periods of virtual strokelessness with exciting power-hitting, striking six fours and two sixes in his innings of 45 before the experienced seamer got the better of him.

As in the morning session, Sri Lanka were thwarted by the unusually obdurate John Campbell, the left-handed opening batsman grinding his way to 42 from 148 deliveries before the extra pace of Dushmantha Chameera induced an edge to wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella.

It was Chameera’s first wicket of the innings although he should have dismissed Nkrumah Bonner in the pre-lunch period when the batsman’s edge to third slip was negated by a no-ball.

Campbell and Bonner put on 56 for the second wicket following Brathwaite’s demise, but they needed other moments of good fortune to survive against a persistent and varied bowling attack.

“Man of the Series” in his debut campaign in Bangladesh last month, Bonner eventually fell for 31 just before lunch, adjudged leg-before when he missed an attempted pull to a short ball from left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya.