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Sidhu hits his eighth hundred

Solid start for Indians
I. COLOMBO. Aug 2->.
1 Nayjot Sidhu hit his eighth Tekt century as India made an impressive start in the first cricket Test against Sri Lanka here today, report agencies.
His 111. supported by a dazzling unbeaten 65 by skipper Sachin Tendulkar and a typically sedate 69 from Rahul Dravid lifted India to 280 for three at close of the opening day's play.
Sidhu, 34. playing only his 41st Test in an International career spanning 14 years, took advantage of a slow wicket at the Premadasa Stadium.
He followed his unbeaten hundred in a drawn three-day match with his second tour century, made with the help of 13 fours and two sixes.
Displaying tremendous confidence. Sidhu hit the first of two sixes when off-splnner Muttiah Muralltharan came on to bowl his first over. He sent the ball out of the ground at long-on and picked the second six off the same bowler over mld-off.
The opener stayed at the crease for 260 minutes and was out edging a Chaminda Vaas delivery for wicket keeper Romesh Kaluwitharana to take the catch in front of first slip.
Dravid batted impressively to 69 before losing his wicket in the most unusual of circumstances.
Dravid played a delivery from left-arm spinner Sanath Jayasuriya hard on the back foot but the ball hit the ankle of silly point fielder Marvan Ata ettu to rebound to the bower a return catch.
It was Dravid's ninth half-century in 23 innings since his debut in England last year and provided the Indians the ideal launching pad for a big first innings score.
Tendulkar hogged the limelight in the final session with a
i flunvef ahots that fna4dxi»4or the slow progress of SidhiAhd Dravid earlier in the day.
The dapper batsman contributed 34 in a 47-run stand for the third wicket with Dravid and then saw out the day with 13 boundaries against his name.
Mohammad Azharuddin. Tendulkar's predecessor as In-dlan captain, was unbeaten on
18 at stumps as the tourists hammered 106 in the last two hours of play.
Sidhu and Dravid came together in the first hour after the early dismissal of Nayan Mon-gla and batted through the afternoon session to take Indian to 174 for one by tea.
Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga rotated his six
i bCwlSrs in WlSrt spells to ^eat ■ the heat and unhelpful wicket.
but failed to cut snort India’s* top order
The Indians went to lunch at 75 for the loss of Mongia. the Indian wicketkeeper, who made seven before edging an off-drive against seamer Ravindra Push-pakumara to the slips.
The barren wicket offered np help to the new ball attack of Vaas and Pushpakumara in the morning, forcing Ranatunga to Introduce spin in the seventh over.
Barely 300 spectators watched the game at the same venue where a full house of 32.000 had turned up for the Asia Cup one-day final between these two teams a week ago.
The hosts even failed to find a sponsor for the series despite the match being telecast live to millions of viewers in India and Sri Lanka.
Lanky left-arm spinner Nllesh Kulkarni made his Test debut for India, while Sri Lanka blooded promising middle-order batsman Mahela Jayawar-dena.