Kumar Sangakkara hit an unbeaten 133 in his lone bid to save the third and final cricket test against India yesterday. Sri Lanka was badly placed at 274 for six at close yesterday. Sri Lanka needs another 59 runs to avert the innings defeat.

Sangakkara did not bother much to celebrate his 21st test century as his team is in a precarious situation. Instead, after hitting a four through mid wicket, he simply acknowledged the hundred, took a new guard and settled down. His century came off 225 balls in 309 minutes, with 12 fours and a six.
Sangakkara lifted the score from 208 to 274 while Nuwan Kulasekara contributed nine runs. The sixth wicket pair, Kumar Sangakkara and Prasanna Jayawardane, tried their best to keep the Indians at bay with a 64 runs stand. Sri Lanka took lunch at 84 for one with Tharanga Paranavithana and Kumar Sangakkara in the middle. They added 90 runs for the second wicket, before being separated by a top class delivery from Sreesanth.

Sri Lanka's captain Kumar Sangakkara (R) plays a shot, as Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni watches, on the fourth day of their third test cricket match in Mumbai December 5, 2009. REUTERS

Paranavithana, took 165 minutes and faced 134 balls, to reach his second half century of the match.

The Kerala Express trapped Paranavithana in front of the wicket to trigger a middle order collapse. The baton was taken by Zaheer Khan to claim two wickets for three runs as Sri Lanka lost their way, by losing four of the top five batsmen for 25 runs, just before the tea break.

Mahela Jayawardane gave the faintest of edges to wicket keeper Dhoni after spending 40 minutes at the crease. Twenty five balls later Tilan Samaraweera diverted a ball from Zaheer into the safe hands of Luxman at second slip.

Inform opener, T.M. Dilshan was a victim of poor umpiring for the second time in the same test. He was adjudged LBW by umpire Darryl Harper, for a delivery which looked going yards out side the leg stump. Hawk-eye suggested that it was never going to hit stumps, with the bounce.

Senior most cricketer of the team, Muttiah Muralitharan said that they haven't got many wickets in this series as a bowling unit, including himself.

Muralitharan had two ligaments of his middle finger and the ring finger injured, while playing Volley football. (A different kind of a foot game, played usually after day's play or practices)

Murali is not too sure whether he will be able to play in the couple of T20's but is confident that he will be okay for One Day Internationals.