West Indies have been fined ten percent of their match fee and penalised two World Test Championship (WTC) points for maintaining a slow over-rate in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Antigua.

Match referee Javagal Srinath imposed the sanction after the hosts were found to be two overs short of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration.

As per to the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, players are fined five percent of their match fee for each over their team fails to bowl within the allotted time, with the maximum penalty capped at 50 percent of the match fee. Additionally, a side is penalised one point in the WTC points table for each over short as per the ICC WTC playing conditions.

India’s top-order batter Pratika Rawal has been ruled out of the Lord’s Test against England starting Friday. Priya Punia has been drafted in as a replacement and is available for selection immediately.

Rawal sustained the injury while fielding during last week’s second one-dayer against England A in Taunton. She didn’t subsequently come out to bat in India A’s chase of 300.

Head coach Amol Muzumdar said Rawal had a “cut on her knee which required some stitches” while also confirming Punia’s addition to the squad. Uncapped in Test cricket, Punia struck two half-centuries in the three-match A series.

Punia will likely be in a three-way race, along with Harleen Deol and Yastika Bhatia for the No. 3 spot that Rawal occupied in India’s most recent Test outing, in March against Australia. Rawal’s half-century in the second innings had been among the more notable contributions for India in a Test they lost by 295 runs.

The knee injury is the latest mishap in Rawal’s fledgling career, which hit high notes during India’s run to their maiden World Cup title at home last November. After twisting her ankle while fielding against Bangladesh in India’s final league game, she was forced to miss the semi-final and final. Rawal also missed the subsequent WPL season with UP Warriorz.

The one-off Test, India’s second this year, also marks the first time Lord’s hosts a women’s Test. Having been knocked out from the group stages of the T20 World Cup, the Indian team had five days off, before they underwent a five-day prep camp in Wormsley in the lead-up to this Test.

India squad :    Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), Shafali Varma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sree Charani, Yastika Bhatia (wk), Nandni Sharma, Harleen Deol, Renuka Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, Sneh Rana, Priya Punia

[Cricinfo]

After 1408 runs and 28 wickets, and even some rain delays over five days, the result that had long been telegraphed came to pass as West Indies and Sri Lanka and played out a draw in the second and final Test in North Sound. The stalemate means a first Test series victory in 11 attempts for West Indies, their last coming in 2023. For their last home Test series win, one would have to go back to June 2022.

And it was perhaps the significance – and rarity – of this achievement that informed the hosts’ approach over the course of this Test, which was also the first in 2026 to end in a draw. Following Sri Lanka’s imposing first-innings effort, West Indies’ response – on a good batting surface – never really appeared to be in search of a victory.

Set a target of 302 John Campbell and Brandon King never threatened to take it on. Even so, both scoring fifties – Campbell for the second time this Test – will have given the pair and the West Indies dressing room cause for optimism after their recent batting travails in the longest format.

Moreover, with WTC points of less importance since they have already been eliminated from contention for a final berth, the series win was all that mattered for West Indies. And in that context, it was incumbent on Sri Lanka to do most of the running, though on a true surface that scarcely deteriorated over the course of the Test, the visiting bowlers were always facing an uphill challenge in picking up 20 wickets to win the game and level the series.

They did come out on the final morning with belief – however implausible – that they might be able to manifest a miracle. The first part of the plan was quick runs, and in that they excelled. Dinesh Chandimal and Kamindu Mendis were the overnight pair, and it was clear from the outset that they would look to take on the bowling.

West Indies, however, weren’t in any mood to make it easy, as they stuck to defensive fields and lines – stacking a 2-7 field to the seamers, while the spinners lived on leg-stump lines. Despite this, Sri Lanka galloped along at a scoring rate of 5.79 in the session, one where they struck 139 runs in 24 overs.

The risks they were forced to take also meant that six wickets fell in the first two hours of play – comfortably the most in a single session all Test. But a closer look at each and it was clear why Sri Lanka were not totally at ease with a lunch-time declaration.

Kamindu spliced a top edge looking to crash an off-side length ball from Jayden Seales, Dhananjaya de Silva holed out to long-off, while both Chandimal and Kusal Mendis carved chances straight to gully. Sonal Dinusha, meanwhile, was run out courtesy a direct hit from deep point as he strained to make it back for an ambitious second run, while Isitha Wijesundara missed with a wild heave.

After days of obdurate Test cricket, this period resembled the later overs of an ODI, as Sri Lanka scrambled desperately for every run on offer, but it was more batter errors than any demons in the surface.

At lunch, the lead had swelled to 281 and many speculated an imminent declaration, but Sri Lanka made the surprise call to continue batting. The target, it seems, was a lead of at least 300, and this was achieved in three overs after lunch, after which the declaration was promptly signalled.

Considering the relative ease with which Campbell and King proceeded for the remainder of the session – and the day – there was perhaps merit in padding the target – and in turn eating into roughly 25 minutes of play in the second session that would otherwise have been afforded West Indies to chase.

Scores:

Sri Lanka

549 for 9 dec 139.3 overs (Lahiru Udara 188, Kamindu Mendis 84, Kusal Mendis 69, Dinusha 92; Jayden Seales 2-98, Shamar Joseph 2-98) and 251 for 9 dec in 49 overs (Dinesh Chandimal 71, Kamindu Mendis 44; Alzarri Joseph 2-44) drew with West Indies 499 in 165.5overs (John Campbell 72, Shai Hope 112, Justin Greaves 180; Asitha Fernando 5-130, Prabath Jayasuriya 3-131) and 109 for 0 in 40 overs (John Campbell 51*, Brandon King 51*)

(Cricinfo)