India closing in on a resounding victory

S S Ramaswamy
Mumbai, Dec 5 (PTI) India were on the threshold of
becoming the number one cricket team in Test rankings as they
closed in on an emphatic victory in the third and final Test
against Sri Lanka despite captain Kumar Sangakkara's gritty
unbeaten century in India's financial hub of Mumbai Saturday.

After conceding a mammoth 333-run first innings lead, the
visitors were struggling at 274 for six at close on the
penultimate day which was marked by Sangakkara's resillient
unbeaten 133 under immense pressure.
The Lankans are still trailing by 59 runs at the end of
the day and will have to bat out of their skins to achieve the
near-impossible task of saving the game on a last-day
Brabourne track which was expected to assist the bowlers.
The Indians, on the other hand, will look to wrap up the
remaining four wickets quickly Sunday and clinch the
three-match Test series with a 2-0 margin.
Sangakkara and Nuwan Kulasekara (9) were at the crease at
stumps on an absorbing fourth day's play which saw a keen
contest between the bat and the ball.
The Sri Lankan captain Sangakkara notched up his 21st
Test century, his maiden one in India, to anchor the innings
brilliantly but none of the other top order batsmen could
stitch a substantial partnership with him to save the
visitors. More PTI SSR
ANU


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