Left-arm spinner Herath finished as the most successful bowler with four wickets for 106 Sri Lanka, who were playing the first match under new Test captain Dinesh Chandimal.BRIEF SCOREZimbabwe 344/8 in 90 overs (Ervine 151*, Herath 4/106)#Day1 - STUMPS: @ZimCricketv 344-8 in 90 overs (@Craig_Ervine77 151*, Donald Tiripano 24*; @HerathRSL 4/106). What a recovery, lads! #SLvZIM pic.twitter.com/PSG0iwZpvh
— Zimbabwe Cricket (@ZimCricketv) July 14, 2017
Craig Ervine hit an unbeaten 151 for his highest score as Zimbabwe recovered from a shaky start to reach 344 for eight at stumps against host Sri Lanka on the opening day of the one-off Test at R. Premadasa Stadium.
Sri Lanka's spin spearhead Rangana Herath struck early as Zimbabwe were reduced to 38-3 after winning the toss and electing to bat first.
But left-handed Ervine, who hit his second Test hundred, compiled two half-century partnerships with Sikandar Raza (36) and Malcolm Waller (36) to lead the fightback for Zimbabwe, who beat Sri Lanka 3-2 in the recent one-day international series.
