Niroshan Dickwella, Roshan Silva deny a India win in New Delhi

Niroshan Dickwella remained unbeaten at 44. (Source: AP)

Niroshan Dickwella and Roshan Silva were clinical with their batting display as their unbeaten stand of 152 for the sixth wicket denied India a win in New Delhi. Sri Lanka were left tottering at 5/147 when Dickwella and Silva came in for their rescue. Earlier, Sri Lanka were reduced to 3/31 on day 4 before Dhananjaya de Silva stepped up to take the responsibility. He scored a ton but unfortunately was retired hurt at Feroz Shah Kotla. The third Test might have ended in a draw but India clinched the series 1-0 and continued their dominance at home.

India vs Sri Lanka 3rd Test Day 5: As it happened 

1600 hrs IST: STUMPS…Players shake hands as the third Test ends in a draw…Sri Lanka fought back well to deny what could have been their second defeat in the series. 

So 1-0 fair result. Weather didn’t allow a result in Kolkata and Sri Lanka earned a draw here. An innings and 239 in Nagpur, the huge difference between the sides though

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) 6 December 2017

1545 hrs IST: That was in the air for sometime but short of the fielder at POINT…Ashwin is disappointed as Dickwella survives again

1530 hrs IST: Indian bowlers are working hard to get the breakthrough but Dickwella and Roshan have steadied the ship for the visitors

1515 hrs IST: MISSED! Wriddhiman Saha misses a stumping chance in the middle…Jadeja tossed up that delivery and pulled the length back that invited Dickwella to come down the track but the left-hander missed it…But he survives in the end

1500 hrs IST: 90 overs have been bowled in the second innings and the visitors are 5/261 with Roshen and Dickwella at the crease.

1450 hrs IST: Roshen Silva gets to a fifty…Hewas dismissed for a duck in first innings. Sri Lanka are steady in 410-run chase

1430 hrs IST: Final session underway. Sri Lanka continue from 226/5 with Roshen, Dickwella in the middle. Shami gets the ball rolling. Update on Dhananjaya who walked back with fatigue has glute muscle tightness but will definitely bat. He can come back to bat and looks like he will – should India get a wicket first, though

1410 hrs IST: TEA! Sri Lanka go into the tea break at 226/5 and needing 184 more. The pitch has provided little to either side and it has become even worse today. Hasn’t helped India that Sri Lankan haven’t thrown things away

1405 hrs IST: 80 overs up. Sri Lanka are 222/5. And India take the new ball. Ishant Sharma will hope to make the most of it.

1350 hrs IST: Dhananjaya can’t continue. Fatigue bothering him significantly now. Walks back alongside the physio. SL 205/5, need 205 more. He retires hurt at 119. This could be a big moment. Niroshan Dickwella is the new man in

1345 hrs IST: India need a breakthrough. Murali Vijay and Virat Kohli take over with the ball in attempt at breaking the rhythm of the set Sri Lanka batsmen

1340 hrs IST: Dhananjaya is clearly struggling. Fatigue settling in. Physio comes out to tend to him

1325 hrs IST: Dropped? Harsh. Dhananjaya comes down the track to Ashwin, bowling from round the stumps, tries to thump it back down but plays it close to the spinner. He tries to catch it with both hands but fails to hold on. Was a tough chance

1320 hrs IST: HUNDRED! Dhananjaya brings up his 3rd Test hundred. Battling knock from him here and gets the appreciation from the Sri Lankan balcony

1235 hrs IST: BOWLED! Ashwin gets the big one. Chandimal walks back. He goes for 36 after being looped into Ashwin’s off spin. Bowling from over the wicket, Ashwin tossed the ball nicely and invited the Sri Lankan batsman to come forward and he duly obliged. He wanted to send it through mid-wicket but misses. Ball goes past the inside edge and rattles the off stump

1210 hrs IST: Underway in the second session. Can Sri Lanka survive two more sessions of play? They’ve looked decent so far but if first innings is any indication, all it takes is a wicket or two.

1130 hrs IST: At lunch, Sri Lanka are 119/4 and need 291 for the win. Dhananjaya de Silva on 72 and Dinesh Chandimal on 27.

1120 hrs IST: Jadeja gets Chandimal bowled to an absolute beauty but it is a no ball. Tough call for the third umpire there too. Chandimal survives as Jadeja’s front foot is ahead of the line. Ripper of a delivery though. Pitched up on off, drew Chandimal forward to go for a defensive stroke, expected a straightener but it spins away to take the off stump.

1110 hrs IST: Meanwhile, in Adelaide, Australia have won the second Test by 120 runs and taken a 2-0 lead. Read what transpired there.

1035 hrs IST: Chandimal and Dhananjaya have Sri Lanka moving. Gingerly. Slowly. But that would be the objective to be fair.

0957 hrs IST: Oh.. that one was a no ball from Jadeja. He had overstepped but Joel Wilson failed to spot that. India wouldn’t mind. As it shows on the big screen, crowd lets out a little cheer

0955 hrs IST: Amid all talk of India letting chance go in the slips, worth pointing out when they do hold on – like Rahane there. One of the best slip fielders in the side and he provides an example of that. Takes a sharp catch after moving to his right. That was travelling after taking the edge and he made it look so easy

0950 hrs IST: GONE! Angelo Mathews departs and Ravindra Jadeja picks his third of the inning. That’s the big wicket right there. Gets the ball to pitch outside off, it spins away from him and Mathews expects it to maintain its line. Takes the outside edge and taken by Rahane at first slip. 

0930 hrs IST: Right here we go. Mathews and de Silva walk down to the middle for the fifth day’s play. Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja share the ball…

0915 hrs IST: Pitch report: It looks good for a Day 5 pitch, there are some footmarks which can be exploited by Ashwin and Co. It is still a very good batting surface. Play each ball on its merits, do not plan too far ahead, suggest Sunil Gavaskar and Russel Arnold

0900 hrs IST: Hello and good morning in our live coverage of the India-Sri Lanka Test series. We’ve reached the last day of the Test series and India have a real chance of making it 2-0 today and rounding off the domestic season in the longest format with yet another series win. Unless protagonists from the first innings – Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews produce something similar.