India edge slightly ahead on day three at PSS
The third day of the third Test match between http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 ended on Thursday with both the sides wanting to grab ascendancy but without much to choose from between the two. The Indians gained a small, 11-run lead over the Sri Lankan side by the time their innings had ended and then sent back both their openers by the time the play ended on the third day. However, with a weak bowling attack at their disposal, it is very difficult to see the Indians running through the opposition in a hurry, and this makes the game even more interestingly poised.
The day began with the Indians at 180/2 and looking good with their top two batsmen in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Virender-Sehwag-c95429 and Sachin Tendulkar on the crease. Both had looked quite settled and had they got a start this morning, one could have been rest assured that the lead would have been plentiful.
Fortunately for the Lankans, the pair decided to play strokes which led to their downfall. First it was a rather uncharacteristic effort to reach out to the ball that was wide outside the off-stump from Lasith Malinga that got Tendulkar into trouble. He managed to nick the ball and the wicket-keeper http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Prasanna-Jayawardene-c82537 took a rather simple catch. Soon after, Sehwag, after having reached his century off a pull-stroke off the bowling of Suraj Randiv, decided to go inside-out off the same bowler. The ball stopped on the batsman, and spun back into him, which meant that the timing went hopelessly awry for the batsman and he could only spoon it to the fielder at mid-off.
From 180/2, the Indians had slumped to 199/4 and looked like they were in deep trouble.
It was here that the pair of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/VVS-Laxman-c2772 and Suresh Raina saved India from embarassment. Both scored half centuries and added a century for the fifth wicket to take India out of trouble. Three quick wickets fell within a few deliveries, but the Indian tail wagged well thanks to Abhimanyu Mithun (46) and Amit Mishra (40) and by the time they were dislodged, India had taken an 11-run lead over the opposition.
Sri Lanka knew that they needed a good start to their innings in order to see off the 16 overs of play that had to be completed. The lead was wiped out without the loss of any wicket, and despite getting close to getting a wicket, none of the frontline bowlers actually managed one. It was only after the captain http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MS-Dhoni-c2028 introduced the part-time off-spin of Sehwag that things began to happen for the Indians.
The ball gripped on the surface and turned, and off the last ball of his first over, he managed to induce an edge out of Tharanga Paranavitana’s bat that Dhoni held gleefully. In his very next over, Tillakaratne Dilshan edged one onto his pads and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Murali-Vijay-c78035, who was at the short-leg, dived forward to snap it up.
After surviving some tense moments, the Lankans ended the day without further loss and at 45/2 – a lead of 34, but with two important wickets lost. Tomorrow beckons to be the most exciting day of the Test series so far.
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