Virender Sehwag smashed a scintillating unbeaten double-century as India turned the tables on Sri Lanka in the third and final Test yesterday.
Sehwag made 284 not out to lift the hosts to 443-1 by stumps on the second day at the Brabourne Stadium in reply to Sri Lanka’s first innings total of 393.
The Delhi opener has so far hit 40 boundaries and seven sixes in his 239-ball innings, his sixth knock of 200 or more, two of which were converted into triple hundreds.
PHOTO: AFP
If he makes 16 more runs today to reach 300, Sehwag will become the first batsman in history to score three triple-centuries. Australian legend Don Bradman and West Indies great Brian Lara have two each.
Sehwag made light of the bounce and turn on the Brabourne Stadium pitch to share two double-century partnerships during the run-riot, cheered by 15,000 boisterous home fans.
He put on 221 for the first wicket with Murali Vijay (87) and 222 in an unbroken second-wicket stand with Rahul Dravid, whose share in the partnership was 62.
Vijay, only playing because Gautam Gambhir was unavailable because of his sister’s wedding, matched his partner’s audacious stroke play with 10 boundaries and a six.
Vijay became Sri Lanka’s lone success of the day when he was trapped leg before wicket by left-arm spinner Rangana Herath before tea when he missed an attempted sweep.
India scored 168 runs from 27 overs in the post-lunch session and 183 more in 34 overs in the final two hours to increase Sri Lanka’s misery.
Off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, the world’s leading bowler with 788 wickets, conceded 119 runs from 20 wicketless overs, while Herath went for 112 runs in his 22 overs.
Sehwag appeared to carry on from his 131 in the second Test in Kanpur last week, which India won by an innings and 144 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the series.
When he reached 48 by lofting Herath for a six over long-off, Sehwag went past the 6,000-run mark in his 72nd Test.
He reached his double-century with four boundaries in one over from seamer Nuwan Kulasekara after tea.
Earlier, Sri Lanka were dismissed 25 minutes after the start when they resumed their first innings at the overnight total of 366-8.
All-rounder Angelo Mathews was run out on 99 as he attempted a second run to reach his maiden Test century after playing a shot to deep square-leg.
Sachin Tendulkar swooped on the ball and rifled in a return to wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who broke the stumps a split second before Mathews made his ground.
Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was India’s most successful bowler with 4-112, while left-arm slow bowler Pragyan Ojha took 3-101.
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