England begin rearguard action

With victory thoughts long gone, after a 13-and-a-half-hour marathon in the field at the SSC England openers Michael Vaughan and Alastair Cook took the tourists to 48 without loss.

Bad light halted play half an hour before the scheduled close of 5pm and with storm clouds brewing there appeared little chance of any more play. Sri Lanka declared on 548 for nine, shortly after tea, having opened up a 197-run lead thanks to a major kick from the tail.

Despite taking four wickets inside the first 28 overs, some stubborn late-order resistance, culminating in a 98-run stand for the ninth wicket between Prasanna Jayawardene and Dilhara Fernando, satisfied Sri Lanka's aim to keep the tourists flagging in the heat.

Wicketkeeper Jayawardene's dismissal for 79, after not getting enough on an upper-cut at Steve Harmison, was the signal for Mahela Jayawardene to call an end to the innings.

Things began on a much more positive note, however, as Sri Lanka eventually lost captain Jayawardene during a spell of three wickets in 10 overs before lunch.

Jayawardene became the middle victim of three when he toe-ended a slog-sweep at left-arm spinner Monty Panesar, which spiralled the ball high to Paul Collingwood at slip for 195.

Harmison doubled his wicket haul for the innings as he was rewarded for bending his back in the ninth over of the day, a short ball reared towards Jehan Mubarak's throat and looped to gully off the bat handle.

Left-hander Chaminda Vaas then became 21-year-old Stuart Broad's maiden Test victim when he gloved to second slip, aiming to hook to fine-leg.

Although Lasith Malinga was given a life when he edged between two slips off Panesar in the first over after the interval, it was a brief reprieve as he perished leg before in the spinner's next over.