17 November,2009 12:24 PM IST | | Agencies
Sri Lanka fought back to terminate India's first innings for 426 before making 37 runs for no loss at lunch on the second day of the first Test on Tuesday.
Left arm swing bowler Chanaka Welegedara got the important breakthrough early on Tuesday morning by getting rid of the well-set and ominous-looking Rahul Dravid at his overnight score of 177.
| u00a0 |
| Chanaka Welegedara |
The Indian innings folded up an hour and 10 minutes after play commenced on Tuesday, with the home team losing their remaining four wickets for the addition of 41 runs to their overnight total of 385 for six.
In the remaining time to lunch, Lanka made 37 for no loss in reply with openers Tilekaratne Dilshan (18 in 22 balls) and Tharanga Paranavitana (18 in 26 balls) at the crease.
Dravid, looking all set to score his sixth double hundred, fell to the 10th ball he faced without any addition to his overnight score. He dragged a ball from Welegedara on to his stumps while trying to drive on the front foot.
In all, the Bangalore stalwart batted for 19 minutes over six hours, faced 261 balls and struck 26 fours and a six. Dravid's departure just a quarter hour into day two dashed India's hopes of taking the score to the 500 mark.
Harbhajan Singh (22), not out 2 last evening, and Zaheer Khan (12) put on a brief stand worth 25 runs, but it was just a matter of time before they fell.
Zaheer, who was felled by a beamer from fast medium bowler Dhammika Prasad after having struck two successive fours with slashes off the right-arm bowler, was trapped leg before when he played back to left arm spinner Rangana Herath.
The pace bowler's dismissal came soon after India crossed the 400-mark in the 96th over just past the half hour.
Harbhajan, who played some good drives off the pace bowlers, was castled by Muthiah Muralitharan while trying to reverse sweep the wily off spinner who then accounted for last man Ishant Sharma in the same over to bring down curtains on the Indian innings.
Harbhajan's stay of 83 minutes yielded him two fours in 64 balls. Amit Mishra remained unbeaten on 7.
For Lanka, left armer Welegedara deservedly grabbed the bowling honours, grabbing 4 for 87 - the prized scalps being those of Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, all on Monday, and Dravid.
Murali, snapped up three for 97, taking two wickets on Tuesday for seven runs in 23 balls, while Prasad, who was not shy of using bumpers and got a warning for the beamer bowled at Zaheer, picked up 2 for 106.
Herath took the remaining wicket. Lankan openers Dilshan and Paranavitana then prevented the home team from creating an early breakthrough before lunch to leave Lanka 389 runs behind the hosts' first innings total.
