<img title="R Ashwin (right) celebrates the wicket of SL&rsquo;s Angelo Mathews with teammates on Saturday. Pic /AFP" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/aug/ashwinwkt.jpg" alt="R Ashwin (right) celebrates the wicket of SL&rsquo;s Angelo Mathews with teammates on Saturday. PIC/AFP" /> R Ashwin (right) celebrates the wicket of SL's Angelo Mathews with teammates on Saturday. Pic /AFP
Arjuna Ranatunga, the World Cup winning former Sri Lankan captain says he does not watch his country play cricket these days and instead spends upwards of 12 hours each day at the Petroleum Ministry. The former left-handed batsman might have burst a gasket if he had watch his team on the morning of the third day.
In a session of utter madness, Sri Lanka lost eight wickets for only 133 runs, crashing to 183 all out and being asked to follow on at the stroke of lunch. While the pitch was certainly challenging, providing significant turn and bounce for R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja the manner in which Sri Lanka's batsmen failed to apply themselves was disheartening.
Sweeps, reverse sweeps, hoicks, paddle shots, the cross bat was more in evidence in one session than in the entire duration of an IPL match. Suffice it to say the tactic did not work, Ashwin mopping up five for 69, his 26th five-wicket bag, going past Harbhajan Singh's tally. Anil Kumble, with 35 such hauls, is the only Indian ahead of Ashwin.
Thankfully for the match as a contest, Sri Lanka were a completely transformed team in the second innings. Kusal Mendis used the sweep judiciously and effectively to race to 110 off 135 and Dimuth Karunaratne played more conventional shots with a straight bat to be unbeaten on 92 as Sri Lanka reached 209 for two.
While the home team still trail by 230 runs, it is going to be a hard slog for India to pick up the remaining eight wickets. "I think this wicket will get slower and slower. It is not going to be easy work tomorrow for sure. We will have to be really disciplined. I thought we gave a few runs more than ideally we should have given today," said Ashwin.
"Tomorrow we can probably try and squeeze them out and try and nip a few wickets up early," the off-spinner added.

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Colombo Test: Sweet and sour at SSC for Virat Kohli and Co

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Colombo Test: Sweet and sour at SSC for Virat Kohli and Co

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