Galle (Sri Lanka) (AFP) - West Indies were 65 for two at lunch on the final day of the second Test against Sri Lanka on Friday in Galle, chasing a near impossible target of 297 runs to record a first ever Test win on the island.

The tourists required a further 232 runs while the Sri Lankans needed eight wickets in two sessions to wrap up the series 2-0.

Ramesh Mendis dismissed Kraigg Brathwaite early on for just six when the West Indies captain played for turn but the ball went straight on to his back pad to have him plumb leg before wicket.

Sri Lanka could have claimed a second wicket soon after but Jermaine Blackwood was dropped by Dimuth Karunaratne at short mid-wicket off Ramesh Mendis.

The very next ball, there was a half-chance but Oshada Fernando at short leg was not able to hold onto the bat pad catch.

Blackwood added 50 runs for the second wicket with Nkrumah Bonner before being dismissed in the last over before lunch.

The batsman attempted a booming drive to a tossed up delivery from Lasith Embuldeniya but ended up getting a faint tickle and the ball carried to first slip, where centurion Dhananjaya de Silva completed the catch.

The hosts had declared on 345 for nine, having added just 17 runs to their overnight total, when Embuldeniya was dismissed in the third over of the day by Jason Holder, leaving de Silva unbeaten on 155.

West Indies have never won a Test match in Sri Lanka, a streak that looked likely to continue with the highest-ever successful run chase in Galle 268 by the home side against New Zealand in 2019.

The highest successful run chase in Sri Lanka is Pakistan’s 382 in 2015 in Kandy.

De Silva’s marathon innings lasted for over six hours and put Sri Lanka in a commanding position, after he walked to the crease on day four with the hosts tottering on 73 for 3 and only 24 runs ahead.

His ninth-wicket partnership with Embuldeniya produced 124 runs, a record for Sri Lanka, overtaking the 118 run stand Tilan Samaraweera and Ajantha Mendis put up against India in 2010 in Colombo.

Sri Lanka lead the two match series 1-0 and a draw will be sufficient for them to secure number seven position in the ICC Test rankings.