Galle: Advantage Lanka•Sri Lanka have won six, lost two and drawn four in 12 Test matches played at the Galle International Stadium, where the second Test of the series between India and Sri Lanka starts on Thursday.• The only Test match played between India and Sri Lanka here, in 2001, was won by the home team by 10 wickets.• With the Indian ocean visible on two sides of the ground, and the famous clocktower of the 16th-century Dutch fort towering over the venue, Galle’s international stadium was one of the most scenic venues in the world until it was devastated — along with the entire Southern coast of Sri Lanka — by the tsunami that struck on December 26, 2004. • For a while, the future of the venue was in some doubt — especially given the political schisms that had formed at boardroom level in Sri Lanka’s cricket administration — but thanks to international support from the likes of Ian Botham and Shane Warne, who had taken his 500th Test wicket here earlier that year, a pledge was made to rebuild the ground from scratch. Work was completed in time for England’s visit in 2007-08. • Galle had been something of a Sri Lankan stronghold, with six wins and two defeats in 12 matches, the majority of these engineered by Muttiah Muralitharan, who has taken 91wickets in those games.• It’s also been a happy hunting ground for skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who has scored 1389 runs at an average of almost 100 with four centuries and six fifties in 17 innings of 12 Test matches here.india vs lanka at gallePlayed August 14-17, 2001 I Toss: LankaINDIA: 187 (Sadagoppan Ramesh 42, Dilhara Fernando five for 42) and 180 (Rahul Dravid 61 not out, Muttiah Muralitharan five for 49)SRI LANKA: 362 (Sanath Jayasuriya 111, Kumar Sangakkara 105 not out, Javagal Srinath five for 114) and 6 for no loss Result: Sri Lanka won by 10 wicketsMan of the Match: Sanath Jayasuriya
