Sreesanth wrecks Lanka

S Sreesanth looked a different man on his return to international cricket, and his subdued presence on the field was not the only heartening feature about it. It was more the way in which he made the ball dance around with splendid use of the seam to put India in a winning position on Day Three of the second Test here.

The ‘Kerala Express’, who had become known for glaring at, rather than scaring batsmen, was all concentration through the day. Wickets were celebrated with a silent prayer and folded hands rather than overt fist-pumping and mouthfuls of abuse.

Sreesanth returned a first innings analysis of 5-75 and had already started the count in the second with Tillekaratne Dilshan’s early dismissal as Sri Lanka fell to 57-4 in their second innings after being asked to follow on with a 413-run deficit, and the match seeing a fifth day seems highly unlikely.

Sreesanth, on a “final warning” from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for his on-field conduct, seemed to divert his energies to the art that has made him an international cricketer. Somewhat of a prodigy at moving the ball away from the right-hander, he adjusted well this morning to tease the overnight left-handed pair of Kumar Sangakkara and Tharanga Paranavitana outside the off stump.

The effort of moving the ball the other way paid dividends when Paranavitana edged one to wicketkeeper MS Dhoni. Sreesanth also induced an edge from new-man Mahela Jayawardene with the very next delivery, but the chance was not lapped up this time. Sreesanth’s deliveries also missed the outside edge on several occasions during the day, but he certainly had no case for bad luck. The important scalps of Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera came as the batsmen played away from the body and inside-edged the ball onto the stumps, while Prasanna Jayawardene fished well outside the off-stump to be his fourth victim in the first innings.

Rangana Herath’s dismissal completed his second five-wicket haul in15 Tests and the Sri Lankan first innings, which had resumed at an overnight 66 for one, wrapped up for a mere 229 in reply to India’s mammoth 642. With wickets falling regularly at the other end, all hopes rested on last match’s double-centurion Mahela, but his fortuitous knock could not stretch even to a half-century.

With Dhoni failing to react to the early chance off Sreesanth to let the ball go between him and Sachin Tendulkar at first slip, and Rahul Dravid letting him off at slip off Harbhajan Singh when on 25, Mahela could not make the most of the opportunities. He jumped out to a miserly Pragyan Ojha, and Tendulkar stretched to take the high catch at mid on.

Debutant Ojha and Harbhajan Singh finished with two wickets each in the first innings, the latter’s dismissal of Angelo Mathews giving a glimpse of a more prolific ‘Bhajji’ of the past. Mathews played the wrong line to a delivery that never turned and went on to clip the bails. With Dhoni’s instinctive stumping confusing the umpires a little, the television umpire’s help was sought for clarity. 

The Sri Lankan second innings saw a paucity of intent as wickets fell quickly. Skipper Sangakkara ‘played on’ for the second time in the match after Jayawardene was run out to a throw from Yuvraj Singh.

Earlier, Dilshan had edged one off Sreesanth while Paranavitana was trapped lbw by Sehwag.