Muttiah Muralitharan left in the shade as batsmen star for Sri Lanka

Muttiah Muralitharan found himself out of the spotlight on the first day of his final Test as Sri Lanka elected to bat and then compiled a score of 256 for two at the end of the first day in Galle. Having won the toss the Sri Lanka captain, Kumar Sangakkara, scored a century – as did Tharanga Paranavitana, his first in Test cricket – to put his team in control. Sangakkara, having scored his 100th run just before tea, was out shortly afterwards after adding three more, while Paranavitana ended the day unbeaten on 110. Sangakkara was caught at mid-wicket off the bowling of Virender Sehwag to end a 181-run second-wicket partnership, but Mahela Jayawardene (eight not out) had to face only 14 balls before rain brought an early end to the day's play. India gave a debut to 20-year-old Abhhimanyu Mithun, but it was his senior partner Ishant Sharma whom the Sri Lanka batsman took to in the early stages. Tillakaratne Dilshan thrashed three boundaries in the ninth over of the day as Sharma's opening five overs cost him 41 runs. Mithun kept things far tighter at the other end and claimed his first Test wicket with a well-aimed bouncer that caught the gloves of Dilshan, who had raced to 25 from 24 balls, as he attempted to maintain his early attack. Paranavitana offered a tough chance when a leading edge gave Gautam Gambhir little time to react at silly point just before lunch, but he and Sangakkara were hardly troubled thereafter. They reached their half-centuries off successive balls, before Sangakkara survived a scare as the India captain and wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni uncharacteristically spilled a straightforward chance when Sehwag found the edge of Sangakkara's bat when he was on 65. The left-hander made India pay as he reached his century from 136 balls and Paranavitana wasted little time in following suit by bringing up his ton from 201 balls when play resumed after tea. Sangakkara then went as Tendulkar took the catch at mid-wicket, but there was little time for India to test new batsman Jayawardene before bad light stopped play with Sri Lanka on course for a significant first-innings total at a ground where the average opening score is 412.