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INDvSL: Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja just created records that'll etch their names among all-time greats

As the hosts put in a solid performance to cruise towards a 2-0 lead in the series, the day was made even more memorable because of the incredible feats achieved by Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

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Ravichandran Ashwin (L) and Ravindra Jadeja
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Indian spinners made the most of the deteriorating wicket at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on Saturday. The Sri Lankans were blown away for a mere 183 with skipper Virat Kohli having little hesitation in enforcing the follow-on this time around. As the hosts put in a solid performance to cruise towards a 2-0 lead in the series, the day was made even more memorable because of the incredible feats achieved by Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

Ashwin registered his 26th five-wicket haul in Tests with an exemplary display of off-spin bowling. In doing so, the Tamil Nadu lad leapfrogged Harbhajan Singh to take second place in terms of Indian bowlers with most fifers. What's most astonishing is that Ashwin has taken just 51 matches to reach this milestone. Anil Kumble, of course, has the most five-wicket hauls in Tests for India - 35 in 132 matches.

Follow live coverage of the second Test between Indian and Sri Lanka HERE.

On the other hand, Jadeja picked up his 150th Test wicket as he clean-bowled Dhananjaya de Silva with a ripper. With that, he inked his name alongside former Indian cricketers like Kapil Dev and Anil Kumble. The 28-year-old managed to achieve the feat in just 32 Test matches, thereby edging past the above two names along with Harbhajan Singh. Anil Kumble had taken 34 Test matches, Harbhajan in 35, while Haryana Hurricane Kapil Dev in 39 Tests.

However, Jadeja is still behind his current teammate, Ashwin, who had scalped the similar in just 29 Test matches. Adding onto it, among the left-arm bowlers, he is the fastest to claim 150 Test wickets, breezing past Aussie paceman Mitchell Johnson.

 

Lanka surrender tamely yet again

Ashwin (5-69) and Jadeja shared seven wickets as Sri Lanka, resuming on 50-2, collapsed on a day three pitch that allowed for prodigious spin, with the ball often kicking up puffs of dust. Niroshan Dickwella top-scored with a desperate 51 as Sri Lanka lost their remaining eight wickets in an extended morning session to find themselves staring at a 439-run first-innings deficit and series loss with a match to spare.

India captain Kohli, who led his team to a crushing 304-run win in the first of the three tests, understandably began the day with spin and was almost rewarded with immediate success. Kusal Mendis guided Jadeja's fifth delivery tantalisingly close to Cheteshwar Pujara but the fielder was standing too close to grab the ball as it flew past him.

 

Kohli's field placement was right to a tee in Jadeja's third over when avid sweeper Dinesh Chandimal sent the spinner straight to Hardik Pandya, who had been stationed at square leg for exactly that shot. Sri Lanka had wanted something special from their skipper but Chandimal, who missed the Galle series opener with pneumonia, had managed only 10.

Jadeja was denied a second success in that over when Kohli, replacing Pujara at gully, dropped Angelo Mathews with the former Sri Lanka skipper having yet to score. Kohli soon made amends, running backwards to take a brilliant catch to send back Mendis, who had made 24 before Umesh Yadav induced the leading edge.

 

Mathews decided to hit his way out of the trouble and clobbered a couple of sixes off Jadeja but the ploy did not work for long. With a breezy 26 on the board, he flicked at an Ashwin delivery and Pujara took a spectacular left-handed catch at leg gully.

Jadeja dismissed Dhananjaya de Silva for a golden duck and Mohammed Shami came up with a two-wicket over to leave the Sri Lankan innings in tatters. Realising the futility of trying to hang around, Dickwella threw his bat at everything, hitting seven boundaries and a six before attempting an ugly scoop against Shami that deflected the ball onto his stumps.

Nuwan Pradeep came out to bat despite a hamstring injury which will rule him out of the remainder of the series and he faced six balls before falling for a duck to end the innings.

(Inputs from Reuters)

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