Thursday, July 31 2008 -- The first test between India and Sri Lanka was played on July 23 in Colombo at the Sinhalese Sports Club grounds. Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka captain won the toss and elected to bat.

The Indian test team comprised of Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma. Their Sri Lankan counterparts were Michael Vandort, Malinda Warnapura, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Kulasekera, Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis. Spinner Ajantha Mendis was making his debut in test cricket after a successful Asia Cup and Sachin Tendulkar was on the verge to become the world’s leading test match scorer. He was 172 runs away from exceeding the 11,953 scored by retired West Indies captain Brian Lara at the beginning of the series.

Sri Lanka posted a first innings total of 600 for 6. India started to bat towards the end of the third day and was 223 all out in the first innings. Sri Lankans who declared at the score of 600 asked India to bat again. India however, crumbled to spin wizards Muttiah Muralitharan who picked up 6 wickets and Ajanta Mendis who took the rest. The Indians were all out for 138 runs and handed over an innings win to the Sri Lankans which was also Sri Lanka's biggest win in Test matches at home.

Muttiah Muralidharan who claimed 11 wickets in 42 overs was declared as the Man of the Match while Mendis claimed 8 wickets giving away just 132 runs in 45.5 overs.

After the humiliating defeat the former captain of the Sri Lankan team, Arjuna Ranatunga said, “The way that the Indians have played this Test is an eye-opener not just for us but for all cricket-playing countries. They dealt with this like a Twenty20 game. I think they were not prepared for Test cricket,” Ranatunga who also believes that test cricket is the best way to judge the caliber of any cricketer said, “If the Indians keep getting their priorities wrong, they will go down ranking-wise. Ultimately, it is the rank that is very important. And it is this performance that will determine the future of the game in your country. Focus on the Twenty20 game is a short-term thing. If the game is not protected, we are in for a major disaster,”

Sri Lankan captain Jayawardene said he was looking forward to the second test match set to begin on 31st July.

He said, "I am sure they are very disappointed after the first Test, but we know how good they are. They will definitely come very strong at us and we have to be prepared for that,"

Commenting on the new spin sensation, Mendis, the captain said, "We just want him (Mendis) to continue to do that. He is a guy who likes to challenge himself and we have given him the freedom,"
"With Mendis bowling, Murali is much more comfortable because he does not have to do all the work by himself."

The second test match will be played at the Galle International Stadium where Sri Lanka has had commendable success loosing just one of their last nine tests.

Jayawardene also said, "I have enjoyed batting in all conditions. It is always a challenge for me, but I have a particular liking for SSC (Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo) and Galle because of the fans and atmosphere”

"Yes, I have a good track record here, but it does not give you anything on the morning of the match. It is all about how you perform on the day against the opposition. That's how I go about it."