Second Test, SSC Colombo: (day three, close)
Sri Lanka 379-4 v England 351
| By Jamie Lillywhite |
Mahela Jayawardene became the first Sri Lankan to score 7,000 Test runs as his team closed day three of the second Test 28 runs ahead of England on 379-4.
Sri Lanka began on 105-2 but skipper Jayawardene shared 227 in 71 overs with Michael Vandort, who thwarted England with a battling fourth Test century.
Vandort finally fell to Ryan Sidebottom with the second new ball after lunch.
Jayawardene remained on 167 and added 128 in 44 overs with Chamara Silva who fell late on to Steve Harmison for 49.
England, who are 1-0 down in the best-of-three series, resumed with justifiable hopes of taking a first-innings lead, having dismissed the world's number one ranked batsman Kumar Sangakkara on day two.
However, the bowling attack looked short of penetration on a benign pitch and Jayawardene was in control for the vast majority of a commanding innings on his home ground.
The 30-year-old charged past Sanath Jayasuriya's career tally of 6,974 to become the most prolific Sri Lankan batsman in Test history.
He had scored 501 runs in his two most recent innings at the Sinhalese Sports Club, and duly added another record to his collection when he surpassed Graham Gooch's total of 2,015 at Lord's to become the highest individual scorer at any one Test ground.
England initially tried to target Vandort with short deliveries, Harmison trying to get the left-hander to fend to short-leg, but the placid pitch gave the batsman too much time to adjust.
Stuart Broad replaced the persevering but luckless Sidebottom after half an hour.
The debutant bowled from the end governed by Aleem Dar, the official who on Monday warned him twice for running too close to the stumps on his follow-through, but bowled only one over before he was replaced by Monty Panesar.
The spinner's opening delivery was beautifully flighted and spun extravagantly past the bat on off-stump before being taken by slip, but too often he fired down short of a length and failed to trouble the batsmen.
Kevin Pietersen was introduced in his dark sunglasses to bowl his under-used off-spin shortly before lunch and although inconsistent, he looked the most likely to take a wicket, producing the ball of the morning with one that pitched on middle stump and zipped sharply past Vandort's bat above off.
Pietersen continued after lunch and found more sharp spin to force an edge from Vandort but again the edge dropped short of Collingwood at slip.
While the compact, correct Jayawardene barely played a false stroke, Vandort, the rangy left-hander, enjoyed moments of good fortune with controlled edges through the slips, although he too appeared to be booked in for the day.
England captain Michael Vaughan took the new ball immediately it became available and Sidebottom struck in the first over with it.
Much-maligned umpire Daryl Harper correctly adjudged that the ball had moved back in sufficiently to trap Vandort on leg-stump for 138.
The wicket revived flagging morale, particularly as it brought to the crease Silva, the man who had incensed England by claiming a catch to dismiss Pietersen when replays showed it had been grassed, and he was subjected to some choice remarks from the tourists.
Even with the aid of the shiny new cherry the chances failed to carry.
Jayawardene, having made his century, edged Broad, handed the ball ahead of Harmison who seemed to be experiencing injury niggles, but the ball dipped in front of Collingwood at second slip.
After tea Panesar resorted to his own form of bodyline by bowling into the rough outside leg-stump to the right-handers from around the wicket, and the ball regularly spat out of the rough up to chest height.
But it was more Harold Lloyd than Harold Larwood in terms of danger to the batsmen and Jayawardene merely continued to put together another sizeable partnership.
Panesar did manage to tempt Jayawardene to give a catch that found English hands, but it was those of a spectator in the stand beyond long-off and the captain's six took him to 150 in fine style.
Harmison returned for a final burst and found some lift to dislodge Silva, who fended to point, but another dominant Sri Lankan centurion ensured that the Durham paceman would be unlikely to be bowling for a victory in the second innings.
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