Murali nears 800th wicket in Test swansong
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Muttiah-Muralitharan-c78157 has moved within two wickets of reaching his 800th Test wicket as he plays in the final Test of his career, against India at Galle.
A five-wicket haul by Test cricket’s most prolific wicket-taker, who finished with figures of 5-63 for the innings, was integral to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 for 276 in their first innings. And when Sri Lanka (who made 520 before declaring in their first innings) enforced the follow-on Murali added one more scalp before stumps on day four to edge closer to the milestone.
It was perhaps fitting that Murali’s first scalp for the match was none other than Test cricket’s run-scoring record holder, Sachin Tendulkar, who fell lbw to Murali after unsuccessfully attempting a sweep shot.
It may have been a delivery that held it’s line that ended the Little Master’s innings on just eight in the final session on day three, but it was a sharply turning ball that found its way through to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MS-Dhoni-c2028’s stumps to give the off-spinner his first wicket on day four.
Next to fall to some Murali magic was Yuvraj Singh, who sent an edge to Mahela Jayawardene at first slip to become the bowler’s 795th Test scalp.
Muralitharan then proceeded to wrap up the India tail, as Pragyan Ojha handed Jayawardene another catch at slips and dislodged Abhimanyu Mithun’s bails to bring up the 67th five-wicket haul of his Test career and end India’s chase 244 runs short of the target.
With the follow-on enforced, India began their second innings poorly, with Lasith Malinga inducing the edge from http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Virender-Sehwag-c95429 was dismissed courtesy of a fine overhead catch by Jayawardene.
Tendulkar’s arrival at the crease to partner http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Rahul-c83321 Dravid, however, proved to be the steadying influence as they constructed a 119-run partnership before Malinga struck for his second wicket of the innings to dismiss Dravid for 44.
The slinger followed that with the big wicket of Tendulkar when he sent an 87.1mph yorker careening into the batsman’s pads to send him on his way for 85.
It was Murali though who struck on what would prove to be the final ball of the day, as Yuvraj once again delivered the catch to Jayawardene in the slip cordon to leave India at 181-5 at stumps and the man of the moment just two wickets away from becoming the first bowler in Test history to reach the 800-wicket mark.
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