Murali, Kumble put spin on Delhi Test

NEW DELHI—Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan and India’s Anil Kumble produced masterly displays of spin bowling to leave the second test balanced on a knife’s edge on Sunday. Off spinner Muralitharan tore into the Indian innings in the morning in a devastating five-wicket spell to restrict the hosts to 290 all out before lunch. Muralitharan claimed 7-100, his 48th five-wicket innings haul. Leg spinner Kumble responded brilliantly with four strikes in the final overs to reduce Sri Lanka to 198 for six at stumps on day two on a firm Ferozeshah Kotla pitch. The 35-year-old bowler took his first three wickets in seven deliveries and was on a hat-trick. He then claimed the crucial wicket of Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu for 88 off the last delivery of the day. The visitors were still 92 runs behind India’s first innings total.
Atapattu added 113 runs for the third wicket with Mahela Jayawardene, who made a breezy 60, after being reduced to 62 for two. He hit 11 fours in his 203-ball knock lasting over four and a half hours. After Sachin Tendulkar stroked a world record 35t test hundred on the opening day, two of the game’s top bowlers took over. Tendulkar top-scored with 109 and dominated a 121-run fourth wicket partnership with ex-captain Saurav Ganguly (40). However, Muralitharan, the second highest test wicket-taker with 575 scalps, trapped Tendulkar leg before after he added only nine runs to his overnight 100 not out. Muralitharan said discipline was the key on the good batting pitch. “Whoever puts a lot of pressure on the batsman will perform on this pitch,” he said. “It’s not just a matter of how well you bowl”. He felt Sri Lanka could go on to claim their first test victory in India.
“It’s evenly poised. We still have got two all-rounders to come in Chaminda Vaas and Malinga Bandara,” he said. “We hope to close down the lead and bowl well again”. Muralitharan, 33, first trapped Ganguly leg before after he had added just one run to his overnight score of 39. Tendulkar fell in the very next over, beaten attempting to sweep a straight delivery. He batted for over five hours, hitting 14 fours and a six in his 196-ball effort. Muralitharan then dismissed Irfan Pathan caught in the close cordon for nought for his 48th five-wicket innings haul.
His best, however, was a lethal “doosra” delivery, which pitched on middle and hit off-stump, to bowl wicketkeeper Mahendra Dhoni (5). India’s last seven wickets tumbled for 36 after the first five of these had gone for a meagre six runs. Sri Lanka reached 103 for two at tea after left-arm paceman Pathan struck off successive overs to dismiss opener Avishka Gunawardene (25) and Kumar Sangakkara (3). Jayawardene joined his captain to play a string of classic shots either side of the pitch, particularly against off spinner Harbhajan Singh and paceman Ajit Agarkar. He completed his second fifty of the series before Kumble struck with his unerring line and length to trap him leg before. Kumble was on a hat-trick in the next over after removing Thilan Samaraweera (1) and Tillakaratne Dilshan, for a first ball duck, off successive balls.—Agencies