Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara frustrated India with a superb century to keep his side's slim hopes of saving the third Test going into the final day tomorrow.
Sangakkara hit an undefeated 133, his century coming late in the final session yesterday after Sri Lanka had slipped to 208 for six.
Nuwan Kulasekara, who contributed nine in a 66-run partnership for the seventh wicket, was also unbeaten as the visitors ended the day on 274 for six, still needing 59 to pull level with India's first-innings total of 726 for nine declared.
Sri Lanka realistically need to bat for two sessions today if they are to save the match, which would not be enough to prevent them losing the Test series 1-0 but would deny India the victory they require to go on top of the ICC Test rankings.
The tourists started yesterday at 11 without loss in their second innings but got off to a poor start as Tillakaratne Dilshan was harshly adjudged out lbw after playing no shot to a Harbhajan Singh delivery.
Tharanga Paranavitana was joined by Sangakkara and the pair batted patiently to help Sri Lanka regroup, before Shanthakumaran Sreesanth had the opener out lbw for 53.
The wicket triggered a collapse as Sri Lanka's middle order caved in for the third time in two matches.
Mahela Jayawardene (12) pushed forward to a delivery from Zaheer Khan and feathered an edge to MS Dhoni, while Thilan Samaraweera departed for a duck when he edged to VVS Laxman at second slip.
A busy afternoon session ended with the wicket of Angelo Mathews, the all-rounder flicking the ball with his glove to present Dhoni with his 100th catch in Test cricket. Sangakkara had by then reached his half-century as he continued to wage a lone battle.
Prasanna Jayawardene, the last recognised batsman, lent assistance to Sangakkara for an hour in the final session, the pair putting on 64 for the sixth wicket. That stand was broken by Pragyan Ojha, the left-arm spinner trapping Jayawardene in front for 32.
Sangakkara batted on and after crawling through the 90s and eventually reached his 21st century with a boundary off Zaheer.
Gary Kirsten, the India coach, said he had targeted the top spot since he replaced Greg Chappell. Although he toured Australia with India from December 2007 he did not become coach until March 2008.
"It is certainly something we aspired to, we wanted to become the best Test team in the world," he said. "That will be a great achievement for this team."
India are third behind South Africa and Sri Lanka in the rankings but close enough to leapfrog both if they win the series 2-0. India have recorded series victories over Australia, England and New Zealand and drawn with South Africa during Kirsten's reign.
"A lot of credit goes to the players in this team," he said. "They have all stood up to be counted, we have a very powerful top-seven batting line-up and the bowlers have done the job."
Kirsten said his players tired in the final session yesterday, but he was happy with the position his team are in. "When you have a world-class batsman like Kumar Sangakkara around they don't give it away too easily," he said.
"We thought if we can get six wickets we'd be happy. The second session was a big one for us with four wickets and the third session wasn't good enough as the guys were a little tired."
* With agencies
Sri Lanka (first innings): 393
India (first innings): 726/9 declared
Sri Lanka (second innings, overnight 11 for no loss):
Tharanga Paranavitana lbw b Sreesanth 54
Tillekaratne Dilshan lbw b Harbhajan Singh 16
Kumar Sangakkara batting 133
Mahela Jayawardene c Dhoni b Khan 12
Thilan Samaraweera c Laxman b Khan 0
Angelo Mathews c Dhoni b Ojha 5
Prasanna Jayawardene lbw b Ojha 32
Nuwan Kulasekara not out 9
Extras:(b-8, lb-1, w-1, nb-3) 13
Total: (For six wickets in 93 overs) 274
Bowling:
Harbhajan Singh 31-5-70-1
Pragyan Ojha 23-4-84-2
Zaheer Khan 17-4-51-2
S Sreesanth 13-4-36-1
Virender Sehwag 9-2-24-0
The biog
Occupation: Key marker and auto electrician
Hometown: Ghazala, Syria
Date of arrival in Abu Dhabi: May 15, 1978
Family: 11 siblings, a wife, three sons and one daughter
Favourite place in UAE: Abu Dhabi
Favourite hobby: I like to do a mix of things, like listening to poetry for example.
Favourite Syrian artist: Sabah Fakhri, a tenor from Aleppo
Favourite food: fresh fish
The specs: 2018 Dodge Durango SRT
Price, base / as tested: Dh259,000
Engine: 6.4-litre V8
Power: 475hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 640Nm @ 4,300rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Fasset%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2019%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mohammad%20Raafi%20Hossain%2C%20Daniel%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%242.45%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2086%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-series%20B%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Investcorp%2C%20Liberty%20City%20Ventures%2C%20Fatima%20Gobi%20Ventures%2C%20Primal%20Capital%2C%20Wealthwell%20Ventures%2C%20FHS%20Capital%2C%20VN2%20Capital%2C%20local%20family%20offices%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Getting%20there
%3Cp%3EGiven%20its%20remote%20location%2C%20getting%20to%20Borneo%20can%20feel%20daunting%20even%20for%20the%20most%20seasoned%20traveller.%20But%20you%20can%20fly%20directly%20from%20Kuala%20Lumpur%20to%20Sandakan%20and%20Sepilok%20is%20only%20half%20an%20hour%20away%20by%20taxi.%20Sandakan%20has%20plenty%20of%20accommodation%20options%2C%20while%20Sepilok%20has%20a%20few%20nature%20lodges%20close%20to%20the%20main%20attractions.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Results
1. New Zealand Daniel Meech – Fine (name of horse), Richard Gardner – Calisto, Bruce Goodin - Backatorps Danny V, Samantha McIntosh – Check In. Team total First round: 200.22; Second round: 201.75 – Penalties 12 (jump-off 40.16 seconds) Prize €64,000
2. Ireland Cameron Hanley – Aiyetoro, David Simpson – Keoki, Paul Kennedy – Cartown Danger Mouse, Shane Breen – Laith. Team total 200.25/202.84 – P 12 (jump-off 51.79 – P17) Prize €40,000
3. Italy Luca Maria Moneta – Connery, Luca Coata – Crandessa, Simone Coata – Dardonge, Natale Chiaudani – Almero. Team total 130.82/198.-4 – P20. Prize €32,000
Players Selected for La Liga Trials
U18 Age Group
Name: Ahmed Salam (Malaga)
Position: Right Wing
Nationality: Jordanian
Name: Yahia Iraqi (Malaga)
Position: Left Wing
Nationality: Morocco
Name: Mohammed Bouherrafa (Almeria)
Position: Centre-Midfield
Nationality: French
Name: Mohammed Rajeh (Cadiz)
Position: Striker
Nationality: Jordanian
U16 Age Group
Name: Mehdi Elkhamlichi (Malaga)
Position: Lead Striker
Nationality: Morocco
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The specs: 2018 Honda City
Price, base: From Dh57,000
Engine: 1.5L, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 118hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 146Nm @ 4,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.8L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)