Sri Lanka and the search for 342 runs

Sangakkara played from 2000 till 2015 and scored 12,400 runs in 134 Tests with 38 Hundreds and 52 Fifties with the highest score at 319.

The great Sri Lankan batsman ended his journey in global cricket here at the P. Sara Oval ground as India clinched the second Test by 278 runs.

Ashwin finished with a match-haul of seven wickets to add to the 10 he took in the first Test in Galle where Sri Lanka fought back from the brink to win by 63 runs.

However, his side could not engineer much resistance in the face of some disciplined bowling from the tourists, who will go into next week’s third and final Test in Colombo with plenty of confidence.

The left-hander was dismissed for 18 on Sunday.

India won the second test match comprehensively on Day 5.

Sharma was charged with breaching provisions of the players’ code of conduct which relates to “using language, actions or gestures which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batsman upon his dismissal”, said the worldwide Cricket Council (ICC) in a statement.

“To all my past captains, to all my team-mates, the support, the inspiration, the drive you have shown, I value them very highly”. “Tomorrow we will take it one wicket at a time”.

On a slow pitch offering plenty for the spinners, Ashwin removed the key man Karunaratne as well as Thirimanne, who hit a massive six and looked in ominous form. “We need to do that and play at our best in the next game”. “To go out with a win is the best farewell anyone can get”.

Sangakkara, along with his close friend Mahela Jayawardene, has been synonymous with Lankan cricket for more than a decade now.

Sangakkara, set to retire from worldwide cricket after this Test, was given a guard of honour when he came in to bat at eight for one, but could not engineer a fairytale ending with Sri Lanka reaching stumps on day four at 72 for two. Sri Lanka never quite recovered from the wicket and from there onwards, it was all down hill for the home team. India made 393 in its first innings and Sri Lanka relied with 306. But the way they are shaping up for it, certainly makes you feel optimistic. Rahul, standing in for the injured Wriddhiman Saha, dived to his left to complete a superb catch, thus proving his multidimensional utility.