Murali on top of the world; Sri Lanka in charge

Muttiah Muralitharan finally became Test cricket's most successful bowler on Monday, marking a new high for one of the most controversial players in the modern game. The off-spinner bowled Paul Collingwood on the third morning of the first Test to claim his 709th wicket and surpass retired fellow spin great Shane Warne's world record tally of 708.
Muttiah Muralitharan shattered the Test bowling mark and Sanath Jayasuriya exploded with the bat as Sri Lanka took charge of the first Test against England here on Monday. Sri Lanka, trailing by 93 runs on the first innings, easily wiped off the deficit and ended the third day's play on 167-2 in their second knock, a lead of 74 runs with eight wickets in hand.
Muralitharan, 35, took 6-55 to surpass retired Australian Shane Warne's world record of 708 wickets as England, resuming at their overnight score of 186-6, were bowled out for 281 just before lunch. Jayasuriya, 38, then made a spectacular 78 - including six boundaries in one over from James Anderson - in what turned out to be his last Test innings.
The left-hander, Sri Lanka's top scorer in both forms of the game, said later he was retiring from Test cricket after this match, but would continue to play one-day internationals. Jayasuriya's 78 on Monday was his highest Test score in 16 Tests since the last of his 14 centuries in Karachi in 2005 and was reportedly under pressure to call it a day or be axed.
Muralitharan, who took four wickets on Sunday to equal Warne's record, bowled Some 6,000 fans at the Asgiriya stadium, including his Indian wife Madhimalan and former Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga, rose to applaud the off-spinner as fire crackers burst in the stands.
Muralitharan had previously held the record briefly in 2004 when he overtook West Indian fast bowler Courtney Walsh's 519-wicket mark, before Warne surpassed him. The Sri Lankan claimed his 61st five-wicket haul in an innings, already the highest by any bowler with Warne trailing a distant second with 37 such feats. Muralitharan removed Collingwood and had Hoggard stumped for his 710th wicket before Chaminda Vaas ended the innings by trapping Anderson leg-before.
Scoreboard:
-- Sri Lanka 1st innings: 188 (K. Sangakkara 92, P. Jayawardene 51, M. Hoggard 4-29, M. Panesar 3-46)
-- England 1st innings (overnight 186-6)

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A. Cook lbw b Vaas                           0

M. Vaughan c Silva b Muralitharan           37

I. Bell c Silva b Muralitharan              83

K. Pietersen lbw b Muralitharan             31

P Collingwood b Muralitharan                45

R. Bopara c P. Jayawardene b Murali          8

M. Prior c Mubarak b Fernando                0

R. Sidebottom c P Jayawardene b Malinga     31

M. Hoggard st Jayawardene b Murali          15

J. Anderson lbw b Vaas                       9

M. Panesar not out                           2

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Extras: (b6, lb1, nb11, w2)                 20

Total:                                     281

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Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Cook), 2-107 (Vaughan), 3-132 (Bell), 4-170 (Pietersen), 5-182 (Bopara), 6-185 (Prior), 7-242 (Sidebottom), 8-266 (Collingwood), 9-272 (Hoggard).
Bowling: Vaas 18.1-3-76-2 (nb2), Malinga 20-2-86-1 (nb9, w2), Muralitharan 35-14-55-6, Jayasuriya 2-0-9-0, Fernando 18-2-48-1
Overs: 93.1
Sri Lanka 2nd innings:

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M. Vandort c Bell b Anderson                49

S. Jayasuriya lbw b Hoggard                 78

K. Sangakkara not out                       30

M. Jayawardene not out                       0

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Extras: (b5, lb5)                           10

Total: (for two wickets)                   167

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