Brathwaite looking for 300 plus score

West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite said that anything above 300 runs would be a good score batting first for his side, this after the right-hander led from the front and scored an unbeaten 99 on day one of the second Test against Sri Lanka, to leave the host on 287 for seven.

Brathwaite batted the entire opening day after Sri Lanka sent the West Indies in to bat, and the Barbadian played virtually a captain's knock to see his side share the opening day honours.

The captain shared in three half-century partnerships, first with Kyle Mayers, then with Jason Holder and Rahkeem Cornwall.

The third-wicket partnership with Mayers yielded 71 runs, after which Mayers fell right after lunch for 49.

He and Holder added 51 for the fifth wicket before Holder fell for 30 with the score 171 for five.

Brathwaite then found another useful partner in Rahkeem Cornwall in the last session, and they have so far added an unbeaten 65 runs to take the score to 287 for seven.

Brathwaite has so far faced 239 balls in his unbeaten 99 with 11 fours, while Cornwall is not out on 43 with six fours and a six in his 54-ball knock.

Lengthy knock

Pacer Suranga Lakmal has so far bagged three for 71.

During his lengthy knock, Brathwaite became the 16th West Indian to score 4,000 Test runs, but for him, the key was to bat as long as possible and anchor the innings.

"For me, it was the discipline of letting the ball come to me for the entire day and that was what worked. Sri Lanka are a disciplined bowling unit, so you have to cash in on the bad balls and play the ball as late as possible, "said Brathwaite.

The captain needs just a single on today's second day to get to his ninth Test hundred, and he knows all too well how crucial the first hour of play will be.

"I feel good with the score that we have, we probably lost two wickets too many, but I am still happy with the position, and tomorrow (today) is a very crucial day and anything above 300 plus will be good," added Brathwaite.