Colombo, Aug. 29 :    Colombo, Aug. 29:  INDIA 234 SRI LANKA 13/0 The ever-smiling Muttiah Muralidharan won't talk about it openly, but catch him in a relaxed mood and the Emerald Isle Wizard will let you on to his only ambition: 500 Test wickets. At the SSC today, on Day-I of the third and final Test, Murali took another big step towards realising his goal - he returned exceptional figures of eight for 87, taking his already impressive career haul to 337. 'My second-most satisfying effort, after the one at The Oval (nine for 65, in 1998),' Murali pointed out with palpable pride. Amazingly, the off-spinner was both strike and stock bowler, sending down 34.1 overs unchanged. Murali's spell began just when the first hour was to close and continued till the innings' end. Incidentally, Murali has now claimed 20 victims in this series. This afternoon, at least, he didn't attempt anything out of the ordinary and it would be fair to say his reputation alone fetched a couple of wickets. That Murali struck gold on a batting track, though some turn was afforded, does raise the profile of his achievement. Equally, it means very poor marks for the Indian batsmen. Perhaps, only the Indians can crash from 97 for no loss to 234 all out. The series is, of course, tied 1-1. Being positive in a calculated manner is one thing; seeking to pass off rank unprofessionalism as being that, quite another. Ironically, India's terribly below-par performance (after Sourav Ganguly had done well to win the toss) came in the presence of chief selector Chandu Borde. 'I can only say I'm very disappointed... There was nothing in the wicket, yet...' remarked a somewhat embarrassed Borde, speaking exclusively. Livid was the captain, himself a victim of a horrendous leg-before decision by South Africa's Dave Orchard. Indeed, within minutes of the team returning to the Taj Samudra, Sourav summoned the batsmen (to his suite) for both a post-mortem and a bit of tongue-lashing. Later, talking to The Telegraph, he said: 'A couple of early wickets tomorrow and even 234 could be more than just competitive... There is turn and I'm confident Bhajji (Harbhajan Singh) won't disappoint. Believe me, there is much cricket still left...' That certainly is so, but India have meekly surrendered the initiative. After one of the most positive starts in the post-Navjyot Singh Sidhu era, one which saw the lunch total read 91 for no loss, India lost three wickets for 31 runs in the third hour and, really, the procession never stopped. As it turned out, culprit No.1 was highest scorer Shiv Sundar Das (59 in 134 minutes, 111 balls, 10x4), who otherwise authored a refreshingly strokeful knock. Instead of playing the waiting game against Murali, Shiv Sundar was tempted by one well tossed up and gave the charge. He ended up playing inside the off-break which spun prodigiously to clip the leg-bail. By Murali's own admission, he had been a trifle rattled at lunch, taken aback by the openers' positive play. On resumption, though, Murali got those three (third-hour) wickets in 26 deliveries. Sadagopan Ramesh, who reached the 40s for the third time in this series, again undid all the creditable work. The attempted square-drive finished in the hands of Mahela Jayawardene and India were quickly two down for 115. Ramesh may not feel it now, but it will hurt when he ends his career. After all, in 19 Tests, he has been dismissed in the 40s as many as seven times. Not much later, it became three for 119 when Orchard adjudged Sourav leg-before. Even though Sourav eventually didn't offer a stroke, he was struck on the pad well outside the off-line and, moreover, the ball would have carried away from him. Sourav briefly stood his ground and appeared to say 'no way' before returning to the dressing room and watching the TV replays. Upset, he didn't take his pads off for quite a while. Fortunately, this time, Match Referee Cammie Smith chose not to discipline Sourav. It's possible, even he felt outraged by Orchard's verdict. [Relieved was manager Anant Mate, who quipped: 'When my cell rang soon after stumps, I dreaded answering, thinking it would be Smith's call informing me about a hearing... Accha hua ki kuch nahin hua...'] Actually, to be fair to Sourav, two bad decisions in five innings is sure to test anybody's patience. The captain's exit brought Mohammed Kaif to the crease and, for almost an hour, the loss of wickets was arrested. However, Kaif departed to a soft dismissal (though he felt aggrieved) and it was left to Rahul Dravid and Hemang Badani to stitch a partnership of sorts. They added 46 for the fifth-wicket, the innings' second highest partnership. It ended when Dravid, who looked set for a big score, was deceived by Murali and taken gleefully by Hashan Tillekeratne. He didn't exactly get to the pitch of the delivery and turning it off his legs proved fatal. Two balls later, Samir Dighe went plumb leg-before. Foolishly not offering a stroke, he found Murali hit his back pad. Clearly, Murali can't be tackled in such tentative fashion and with just one innings in the series remaining, the Indians have little time to re-draw strategy. For a while it seemed Badani, who has been backed to the hilt by Sourav and coach John Wright, would help reclaim some of the initiative - besides justifying the faith reposed. Only, after 73 minutes and some sparkling shots, even he exited. Poorly, one felt. If heroics were expected from Harbhajan, he didn't oblige. In fact, it's not in order to keep banking on him for significant contributions. Zaheer Khan followed and it was left to Sairaj Bahutule, playing his second Test, and senior pro Venkatesh Prasad to collect whatever runs could be had. Bahutule, who when young survived a car crash which killed ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh's son Vivek, did look determined but his inexperience showed when he allowed himself to be stumped. It would have been a different story had most of the specialist batsmen produced the same determination. 'Discipline' is what Sourav has been harping on. 'Minimum errors with the basics' has been Wright's favourite mantra. After lunch, however, both went for a huge toss. Sri Lanka had to survive six overs till stumps. That was done sans hiccups. The Sanath Jayasuriyas, though, must watch out for Harbhajan. Belatedly, but his time appears to have arrived.