India equal biggest ever Test win with inns & 239-run victory over SL

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja ran through the Sri Lankan batting order as the visitors folded for 166 in their second innings handing India a victory by an innings and 239 runs – their joint biggest in Test match cricket at Nagpur and with that a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The victory equaled India’s biggest ever Test win in Bangladesh in 2007. India’s R Ashwin took the last wicket to become the quickest to 300 Test wickets in 54 matches bettering Australia’s Denis Lillee’s feat in 56 Tests. Ashiwn returned with an eight wicket haul in the match. He took 4 for 63 in the second innings. The manner of abject surrender in this Test match would certainly hurt the island nation, which till few years back was a force to reckon in international cricket. Just like the Test matches in Sri Lanka, they lost the Test match well inside three and half days. Resuming the day at 21 for 1, Sri Lanka had to play for survival but their batsman had other ideas as a number of their top order batsmen played reckless shots to hand easy wickets to India. The pair of Lakmal of Chandimal did annoy the Indians with a 58-run ninth wicket stand but the main damage was done before lunch. Dimuth Karunaratne (18) was the first to get out when he tried to flick Jadeja and Murali Vijay standing at short leg had the ball jam into him. The Tamil Nadu player showed good reflexes as Karunaratne was left stunned. Lahiru Thirimanne (23), currently a senior player in the team stunned one and all when he chased a wide delivery from Umesh Yadav to hand Jadeja at point the simplest of catches. It was a shocking dismissal as the ball was on the imaginary sixth stump and should have been left alone. Former captain Angelo Mathews (10) was expected to show some responsibility while batting alongside Chandimal but his choice of shot also left a lot to be desired. Having hit Jadeja for a six over long-on, he tried the same shot over long-off but failed to clear Rohit Sharma at mid-off. The former skipper is a pale shadow of his self and questions have been raised about his form and commitment which has been hurting Lankan cricket for some time now. Niroshan Dickwella (4) got a snorter from Ishant which he awkwardly fended off to Virat Kohli at third slip, who gobbled it on second attempt. It was then Ashwin, who joined the party after Shanaka hit him across the line for a boundary and a six. But it was an act of desperation that was for a brief period of time before he was holed out at long-on by KL Rahul giving the off-spinner his 297th victim. Dilruwan Perera and Rangana Herath were then dismissed in quick succession as he closed in on is world record. For Chandimal, it was all about being helpless watching the manner of dismissals with none of the batsmen showing any stomach for fight. More than the technique, it was the temperament that was questionable considering that the pitch and conditions weren't the most difficult to bat on.