Muralitharan took seven wickets to put Sri Lanka in charge before the England spinners struck blows of their own.
Chasing a target of 268, Africa XI finished at 250 against Asia XI to level the three-match series.
Enthused by his team going past the 400-run mark, Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said though he hasn't set a target, he is looking to put India under pressure by piling enough runs.
MI need to grab crunch moments: Tendulkar
Sri Lanka, 2-0 down in the series, closed on 239 for two in reply to Australia's first innings total of 401
Spinner Brad Hogg was adjudged man of the match for his career-best figures of five for 41.
Muttiah Muralitharan took 3 for 38 as England reached 259 for 8 at close on day 1 of the deciding third and final Test against Sri Lanka.
Mumbai Indians's record signing Ishan Kishan has registered scores of 14, 26, 3, 13, 0 and 8 in his last six innings at a lowly strike rate of 62.
The first Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand appeared heading for a draw.
Kohli is enduring his worst slump in form and has not scored a century in international cricket since November 2019.
Jerome Jayaratne will be Sri Lanka's interim coach for the home series against West Indies beginning next month, the country's cricket board announced.
Rohit Sharma knows that Mumbai Indians are one of the title contenders and enter any tourney with a baggage of hype and hoopla.
Sri Lanka's ex-Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage on June 18 made the allegation but later backtracked, saying it was just his suspicion.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has expressed disappointment at former captain Mahela Jayawardene taking up the role of consultant with the England team for the upcoming ICC World T20.
With the T20 World Cup underway, let us takes a look at interesting facts and trivia about the tournament from its previous editions.
For MI's top-scorer Kieron Pollard, it was Jasprit Bumrah and Lasith Malinga's 19th and 20th overs that made the difference.
England spinners Dom Bess and Jack Leach must have gained a lot by bowling in Sri Lanka in a just-concluded series but a bigger challenge awaits them against India in the four-Test series, starting from February 5, said former Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene.
Ravindra Jadeja's absence due to injury is a 'massive loss' but Virat Kohli's return to form and Jasprit Bumrah's comeback would still make India a force to reckon with in the T20 World Cup, said Sri Lanka legend Mahela Jayawardene.
Botham is the latest among the illustrious bandwagon of cricketers led by current India captain Virat Kohli, the iconic Sachin Tendulkar and Australian master batsman Ricky Ponting who have spoken against the proposed change for the 2023-2031 cycle.
India's newly-forged coach-captain combination of Gautam Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav will look to make instant impact against a Sri Lankan team in disarray.
Mumbai Indians owner Aakash Ambani revealed the plan to sign Jofra Archer was more of an investment point of view.
Mumbai Indians' head coach Mahela Jayawardene backed out-of-form openers Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan despite their poor run with the bat in IPL 2022, saying he is not concerned as the duo are hitting the ball really well.
The five-time champions posted a series of tweets and shared the travel plans of its players and support staff.
Mark Boucher's appointment comes after Mahela Jayawardene stepped down as head coach to take on a bigger role at the franchise due to its increasing international presence.
India's stand-in skipper Virat Kohli on Sunday credited his bowlers for the series clinching six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the third ODI, and said the home team's bowling unit dished out a 'brilliant performance' to restrict the visitors to 242 in Hyderabad.
Royal Challengers Bangalore announced that Sri Lankan duo of Wanindu Hasaranga and Dushmantha Chameera have been released from the team's bio bubble ahead of the IPL Eliminator match against Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday.
Varma has been the leading run-getter for Mumbai Indians this season, with 307 runs under his belt.
The Sri Lankan selectors, on Sunday, dropped batsman Kusal Mendis from their 15-member squad while Angelo Mathews returned to lead the side in the upcoming tour of India.
Sri Lankan veteran Kumar Sangakkara has been asked to review his retirement plans after he had told national selectors in April of hanging up his boots post the 2015 World Cup in Australia.
The International Cricket Council released the provisional squads of the 12 teams for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Friday. However, co-hosts Australia and minnows Ireland decided against releasing the provisional list although they submitted 30 names to the parent body within the stipulated deadline.
According to Mahela Jayawardene, it was good to go into the break with three consecutive wins.
Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews has said the challenge of performance against India in their own backyard was never beyond doubt and that not many teams have won against India in India.
Ambitious English county Somerset snapped up formidable Sri Lankan batsman Mahela Jayawardede on Thursday to partner explosive West Indian opener Chris Gayle for the domestic Twenty20 season. Jayawardene, the 38-year-old former test skipper, has scored 1,493 runs in 55 Twenty20 internationals and will feature in 12 of 14 domestic matches for the English county. "To have the top two run-scorers in the history of the World T20 walking out into the middle at Taunton is something that I hope the members and supporters will be looking forward to," Somerset director of cricket Matt Maynard said in a statement. Gayle, 36, who will play in the World Twenty20 semi-final against India later on Thursday, said in January, he would return for six Somerset matches this year after scoring 328 runs in three appearances for them last term.
A responsible half-century from captain Angelo Mathews and some big hitting by Thisara Perera set up a comprehensive 77-run win for Sri Lanka against Pakistan in the second ODI on Tuesday and helped the hosts level the series at 1-1.
All about IPL 2025 which kicks off on March 22, Saturday.
