AHMEDABAD, India (AFP) – Former captain Mahela Jayawardene scored his sixth double-century as Sri Lanka seized control of the first Test against India here yesterday.

Jayawardene was unbeaten on 204 as the tourists closed the third day at 591-5 in their first innings, a lead of 165 runs over India’s 426 with five wickets in hand at the Motera stadium.

Sri Lanka, who have never won a Test on Indian soil, have two days to force victory with a bowling attack led by world record holder Muttiah Muralitharan and take the lead in the three-match series.

The batting-friendly pitch helped Sri Lanka record their highest total in India, surpassing the 420 all out in Kanpur during the 1986 series.

Wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardene joined the run-riot with an unbeaten knock of 84, helping his senior partner compile a record 216-run partnership.

It was Sri Lanka’s best sixth-wicket stand, eclipsing the 189 by Aravinda de Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga against Zimbabwe in Colombo

in 1997.

Jayawardene, who quit as captain earlier this year to concentrate on his batting, has kept vigil for eight hours and hit 17 boundaries and a six in his 27th three-figure knock.

During the day, Jayawardene overtook Pakistanis Inzamam-ul Haq and Javed Miandad, and Graham Gooch of England, to become the ninth highest scorer in Test cricket with 8,951 runs from 108 matches.

His double-century brought him at par with his present captain Kumar Sangakkara, former teammate Marvan Atapattu and Miandad,

who all have six scores of 200 or more.

Only Australian legend Don Bradman (12), West Indian Brian Lara (nine) and Englishman Wally Hammond (seven) have crossed 200 more times. The Indian bowlers toiled in vain under the hot sun as the barren pitch offered no assistance to either the fast bowlers or the spinners.

Scoreboard

India 1st innings 426 (R Dravid 177, Y Singh 68, M Dhoni 110,

C Welegedara 4-87, M Muralitharan 3-97)

Sri Lanka 1st innings (overnight 275-3)

T Dilshan c Dravid b Zaheer 112

T Paranavitana c Dhoni

b Sharma 35

K Sangakkara c Tendulkar

b Zaheer 31

M Jayawardene not out 204

T Samaraweeraa c Yuvraj

b Sharma 70

A Mathews c Gambhir

b Harbhajan 17

P Jayawardene not out 84

Extras: (b5, lb13, w3, nb17) 38

Total (for 5 wkts, 160 overs) 591

To bat: Chanaka Welegedara,

Muttiah Muralitharan, Dammika

Prasad, Rangana Herath.

Fall of wickets: 1-74 (Paranavitana),

2-189 (Dilshan), 3-194 (Sangakkara),

4-332 (Samaraweera), 5-375 (Mathews).

Bowling: Zaheer 30-4-93-2 (nb8, w2), Sharma 28-0-108-2 (nb3, w1), Harbhajan 39-3-151-1, Mishra 43-6-152-0 (nb6), Yuvraj 13-1-49-0, Tendulkar 7-0-20-0.

Toss: India

Umpires: Tony Hill (NZL) and

Daryl Harper (AUS)

TV umpire: Amish Saheba (IND)

Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL)