 Three centuries give Sri Lanka control of first Test
24th Jul 2008 23:00 IST
Agencies
But the script could have unfolded a little differently had the buttered-fingered Indians latched on to all the three chances that came their way, Jayawardene being the beneficiary on two occasions.
Wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik, a replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has skipped the Test series because of exhaustion, was guilty of spilling two catches offered by Jayawardene while Gautam Gambhir dropped one at forward short leg.
It turned out to be a frustrating day for the Indians as they toiled to get the wickets on a track, which provided little assistance to the bowlers, except for a brief period with the second new ball, and some sloppy ground fielding only compounded their misery.
The Indian bowling lacked the bite to pose much problems for the hosts who scored at a relatively brisk pace right through the day.
With the islanders heading for a huge first innings total, the pressure will be on the Indian batsmen to keep the team afloat in the remaining three days of the match.
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