MUMBAI, MARCH 1: Sunil Vishwanath, playing his first big game of his fledgling cricketing career, made it an occasion to remember at the Wankhede Stadium this afternoon. The Chennai southpaw crafted a fine 137 to guide the Indian Colts to a safer terrain against their Sri Lankan adversaries.Vishwanath's heroics, coupled with tailender Rajesh Pawar's quickfire 51, ensured a hefty 165-run lead for the Indians, who were eyeing victory when stumps were drawn for the day.Reeling from medium-pacer Swapnil Hazare's low incutter that claimed opener Ian Daniels, without a run on the board, the Lankan lads were struggling in their second essay at 33 for two.Earlier, resuming the day at the overnight score of 204 for four, the home team suffered early reverses with the departure of Mohammad Kaif (46) and wicket-keeper Pallav Vora (0) for the addition of 14 runs. It was a period when the Lankan captain (Upeka Fernando) and his deputy (wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardena) were in the dressing room with upsetstomachs. Malintha Gajanayake, who kept wickets, made light of the setbacks by affecting the dismissals of Kaif and Vora.However, Vishwanath, who was involved in a 96-run association with Kaif for the fifth wicket, found in Bengal's Wrichik Majumdar (19) a willing partner and the duo mended the damage by stringing 58 runs.Vishwanath, who impressed with elegant drives, showed admirable maturity in grounding his heels despite attaining the three-figure mark. The application exhibited by the second year B Com student of Guru Nanak College appeared to have rubbed on Mumbai lad Pawar during their 87-run alliance for the eight wicket.The Sri Lankans attack, which had the Indians on a tight leash earlier in the day, wilted under the influence of the eighth-wicket pair.Though the innings didn't last long once Vishwanath departed to a tired looking shot, the Indians returned with guns blazing. Hazare ignited the fuse by claiming Daniels with his second delivery and the Lankans were pushed on to theirbackfoot from thereon.Sri Lankan manager Asantha de Mel foresaw a day of reckoning for his team on the morrow. ``Occupation of the crease is of utmost importance,'' he opined. The Lankan lads, however, aren't used to such situations as competitons back home last no longer than two days. In such a scenario, the Indian lads have their tasks cut out for the concluding day.SCOREBOARDSri Lanka Colts (1st innings): 231India Colts (1st innings; overnight 204-4): Anshu Jain c Kandambi b Senevirathne 58 (107b, 180m, 9x4), Reetinder Sodhi c Jayawardena b Nissanka 6 (18b, 22m, 1x4), Mohd Kaif c Gajanayake b Nissanka 38 (94b, 140m, 7x4), Neeraj Patel b Bandara 20 (54b, 88m, 1x4), Venugopal Rao c Nissanka b Kalum 12 (15b, 16m, 3x4), Sunil Vishwanath c Jayawardena b Kalum 137 (328b, 403m, 15x4), Pallav Vora st Gajanayake b Dhammika 0 (19b, 24m), Wrichik Majumdar c Fernando b Nissanka 19 (61b, 102m, 3x4), Rajesh Pawar run out 51 (67b, 137m, 5x4), Salab Shrivastava c Fernando b Kalum 9 (24b, 27m), SwapnilHazare not out 1 (4b, 6m); Extras (4b, 12lb, 1w, 20nb): 37. Total (all out in 135 overs, 600 mins): 396Fall of wickets: 1-17 (Sodhi), 2-89 (Patel), 3-104 (Rao), 4-122 (Jain), 5-218 (Kaif), 6-224 (Vora), 7-282 (Mujumdar), 8-369 (Vishwanath), 9-393 (Shrivastava), 10-396 (Pawar)Bowling: Nissanka 30-8-72-3 (8nb, 1w), Kalum 37-12-98-3 (1nb), Fernando 6-3-9-0, Dhammika 23-7-78-1 (9nb), Bandara 19-2-69-1 (2nb), Senevirathne 13-3-47-1Sri Lanka Colts (2nd innings): Upeka Fernando batting 16 (64b, 88m, 3x4), Ian Daniels b Hazare 0 (2b, 5m), Malintha Gajanayake lbw b Pawar 13, Malinga Bandara batting 0 (2b, 8m); Extras: (2lb, 2nb) 4. Total: (for two wickets in 21 overs; 88 mins) 33Fall of wickets: Srivastava 5-1-12-0 (2nb), Hazare 4-1-9-1, Sodhi 4-3-1-0, Pawar 6-4-8-1, Mujumdar 2-1-1-0
