A comic cameo by Mutiah Muralitharan at the death may have temporarily raised the spirits of his side but it could not prevent an emphatic defeat by Pakistan at Galle International Stadium today. Pakistan have dominated this match throughout and deservedly won this match by an innings and 163 runs. By doing so they won the series and secured sweet revenge for Sri Lanka’s victorious tour of Pakistan in March.

Whilst Sri Lanka’s batting throughout these two test matches may have been woeful and their bowling ordinary to say the least, Pakistan deserve huge credit for a team performance of astonishing allround brilliance. They may well have lost the last three series prior to this one but they have rebounded with a velocity that only they could.

Speaking afterwards to the media Moin Khan was a very proud and contented man: “I am very much pleased with the performance that the team gave today, it was a splendid performance.”

Asked about the difference between Pakistan now and in last March when they lost to Sri Lanka: “What I believe is that everyone is now focused and are very concerned about what they are doing right now. In Pakistan, Sri Lanka were a very good side but maybe they are not as focused now.”

With the next test match due in just four days Sri Lanka will find it extremely difficult to now regroup and compete with Pakistan. There is a shell-shocked feel to the side at the moment. They realised that Pakistan would be tough but they never expected such sustained brilliance.

Sanath Jayasuriya tried to explain just how difficult it was facing these Pakistan fast bowlers: “Those four fast bowlers are bowling superbly at the moment. With the new ball and then with the old ball they do everything. Our batsmen can never relax and our finding it very hard when we go into bat. There is not a single over in which you can relax. I think the Pakistanis are bowling superbly at the moment.”

The Sri Lankan selectors will be meeting over the weekend to find a solution but they too will probably acknowledge that few sides could compete with this current Pakistan side. Changes may be necessary, but they should be tempered with realism of the daunting task they face.

With the pitch still playing well after three days, Sri Lanka’s immediate goal today was to survive to the close and then pray that the monsoon clouds built up overnight. They started well and both Russell Arnold (26) and Marvan Attapattu (59) survived the first hour. Arnold visibly grew in confidence after striking four boundaries.

Unfortunately for him he was dismissed when Waqar Younis replaced Wasim Akram from the Fort end. Getting the ball to swing late, Younis had nearly bowled Arnold on a couple of occasions, before eventually trapping him in front in the 42nd over of the innings.

From the Press Box end Moin Khan relied on Azhar Mohmood and Arshad Khan. It was the later, with his accurate off breaks, who took the third wicket. He was unlucky to have a bat pad appeal turned down in the 47th over but nevertheless got his man when Marvan Attapattu was caught behind soon after.

Three overs later De Silva (11), who had got off the mark with a sweetly timed boundary but had struggled thereafter for 50 deliveries, tried to pad up to Arshad Khan, was surprised by the bounce and caught at bat pad off his glove.

Mahela Jayawardena (9) faced a torrid time in his opening overs and was dropped both at slip and bat pad before being harshly adjudged to have been LBW by Russel Tiffen. The ball looked to have been missing leg-stump.

One man who would have certainly been jettisoned if he had not scored runs in this match, then took the attack to the Pakistan bowlers in an entertaining 58 ball half century. Arjuna Ranatunga (65) was back to his best after an indifferent performance in the centenary test match. Cutting and driving with a freedom that belied his age he is truly a doughty cricketer. Alas for Sri Lanka he found no sturdy partner.

Romesh Kaluwitharana (9) played like a man with too much pressure on his small shoulders and never looked settled. Playing missing regularly, he was eventually put out of his misery when a Waqar Younis produced an indipping special.

When Ramatunga missed an inswinging low full toss from Wasim Akram, Sri Lanka were all but finished. There was though time for yet another amusing cameo from Sri Lanka’s greatest ever fast bowler. With an umbrella of six slips and two gullies Muralitharan (22) attacked from the start. Displaying some peculiarly unique shots he brightened the mood of the crowd but even he could not brighten the mood of his side.

© CricInfo