AHMEDABAD, 22 December 2005 — India leg spinner Anil Kumble took three quick wickets on the fourth day to leave Sri Lanka struggling to save the final Test yesterday.
Chasing 509 for victory, Sri Lanka, who trail the three-match series 1-0, were 235 for six at close of play. Jehan Mubarak (18) and Farveez Maharoof (two) were at the wicket.
Kumble, playing in his 100th test, dismissed Kumar Sangakkara (17), debutant Upul Tharanga (47) and Thilan Samaraweera (five) after the visitors were 39-1 at lunch.
In-form batsman Mahela Jayawardene made 57, his fourth half century of the series, and led a brief fight back with Tillekaratne Dilshan. The pair focused on survival, displaying sound defense on a Motera pitch where the ball bounced awkwardly.
They put on 105 for the fifth wicket before pace bowler Ajit Agarkar provided the breakthrough when he had Jayawardene caught and bowled, off a near-yorker length delivery.
Dilshan was dismissed on 65 for the second time in the match, caught behind by Mahendra Dhoni off left-arm paceman Irfan Pathan.
“When Mahela and I were in the middle, we thought we could draw this match,” Dilshan told reporters. “Unfortunately we both got out. But we have one recognized batsman left in Mubarak, so we’ll take it session by session tomorrow.” Off spinner Harbhajan Singh, who took 7-62 in the first innings to give India a first innings lead of 192, opened the attack with Pathan. He dismissed Sri Lanka skipper Marvan Atapattu in the last over before lunch, caught at forward short leg by Mohammad Kaif.
Sangakkara’s exit, lbw to Kumble, triggered a collapse and three wickets fell for just 12 runs. Tharanga, playing with three fielders around the bat, was caught at leg slip by Gautam Gambhir five runs later on a pitch that was increasingly aiding bounce and turn. He had struck eight boundaries off 117 balls for his 47, including a splendid cover drive off Kumble. Two overs later, Samaraweera was snaffled at short-leg by Kaif.
India had resumed their second innings at 287-9 after heavy dew delayed the start of play by half an hour. They declared 20 minutes into the morning session. The hosts’ last wicket pair of Anil Kumble (29) and Harbhajan (40) put on another 29 runs to extend their stand to 69.
Sri Lanka have not won a test on Indian soil in five previous trips.
Benaud Calls on Warne
to Keep Spinning
In London, former Australia captain Richie Benaud has urged Shane Warne to prolong his Test career until the next Ashes series in England in 2009. Warne, the most successful bowler in Test history with 651 wickets in 133 games, will turn 40 during that tour.
“I was talking to him the other day and said to him ‘You can do this’,” Benaud told BBC TV.
“He is bowling better now than I’ve seen him for years and years.
It’s been wonderful to watch.” Warne took 40 wickets in a losing cause during this summer’s Ashes series and earlier this week established a new record for the most Test wickets in a calendar year when he surpassed Dennis Lillee’s total of 85 in 1981.
Benaud believes if Warne continues his policy of not playing One-Day Internationals, despite pressure for him to relent in time for next year’s World Cup, he will still be a force to be reckoned with when they next visit England.
