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Summary
Rangana Herath skittled Pakistan with his left-arm spin to hand Sri Lanka a dramatic, 50-run victory in the first cricket Test. Herath grabbed 4-15 as Pakistan, chasing a modest target of 168, collapsed from a seemingly impregnable 71-2 to 117 all out in their second innings before lunch on the fourth day. Fast bowler Thilan Thushara and spinner Ajantha Mendis chipped in with two wickets each as a jittery Pakistan lost their last eight batsmen for 46 runs at the Galle International Stadium. The brilliant win gave Sri Lanka a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series, the first between the two nations since gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan team bus in the Pakistani city of Lahore on March 3. Pakistan, who beat Sri Lanka in the World Twenty20 final in London last month, now have four days to ponder the loss before the second Test starts at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo on July 12. Kumar Sangakkara, leading Sri Lanka for the first time in a Test series, was delighted with the win, but said he was worried by the team's modest totals of 292 and 217 in the two innings. It was a great win by the side because, until today, Pakistan had outplayed us in the match, said Sangakkara.
