Muttiah Muralitharan shattered the world Test bowling mark and Sanath Jayasuriya excelled with the bat as Sri Lanka took charge of the first Test against England in Kandy yesterday.
Sri Lanka, trailing by 93 runs on the first innings, easily cleared the deficit and ended the third day's play on 167-2 in their second knock, a lead of 74 runs with eight wickets in hand.
Muralitharan, 35, took 6-55 to surpass retired Australian Shane Warne's world record of 708 wickets as England, resuming at their overnight score of 186-6, were bowled out for 281 just before lunch.
Jayasuriya, 38, then made a spectacular 78 -- including six boundaries in one over from James Anderson -- in what local media is speculating could be the left-hander's last Test match.
It was Jayasuriya's highest Test score in 16 Tests since the last of his 14 centuries in Karachi in 2005 and he is reportedly under pressure to call it a day or be axed.
Michael Vandort, who watched Jayasuriya blaze away at the other end, contributed 31 in an opening stand of 113 for the first wicket -- ?Sri Lanka's best.
Jayasuriya was trapped leg-before-wicket by Matthew Hoggard and Vandort (49) was caught in the slips off Anderson, but Kumar Sangakkara (30 not out) and captain Mahela Jayawardene (zero not out) played out the day.
RSS