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Cricket
By Ted Corbett
England 265 Sri Lanka 264 for two
There will not be much justice in that since it has fought bravely but no side can expect to shell four good opportunities and win a Test. Marcus Trescothick, the 6ft 3in loner in the slips as England concentrated more and more on defence, put down Thilan Samaraweera when he was 12, and again four runs before that slow coach of a batsman reached fifty off 172 balls. Mark Butcher paused so long over a throw from mid-off to the batsman's end that Samaraweera dived in long before the ball arrived and Graham Thorpe, normally the safest of catchers, got a hand to a diving chance but could not hold on as Sanath Jayasuriya, then 38, tried a heavy cut shot off Andrew Flintoff. Oddly enough, Trescothick also held on to sharp slip catches to get rid of Kumar Sangakkara for 31 and Jayasuriya for an 86 that would have been his 10th Test hundred if he had not got caught up in the uninspiring cricket between lunch and tea. Once Jayasuriya was gone, the Sri Lankans made it clear they were prepared to sacrifice everything to build a big first innings score and a victory that will wipe out the memories of those frustrating afternoons, trying to extract the last of the England tailenders in Galle and Kandy. For an England side that fields with an intensity designed to cover up the shortcomings in the bowling attack it was an embarrassing day. After a bright start, Sri Lanka came close to a full stop even when it was clear that England's attack had tired to the point that Trescothick was called up to bowl his medium pace mixture for the first time in two years. Mind you, Michael Vaughan's men have contrived to get into a losing position in each Test so far and wriggle away from defeat and, as they have batted for at least 100 overs in each of their five innings in Sri Lanka, there is still a chance they may repeat The Great Escape. At close, Sri Lanka was 264 for two — only one run behind — which suggests that it need not a bat for a second time and, as the SSC pitch shows no sign of wear, the side will want to leave the maximum time to push for victory. Samaraweera and Jayawardene have put on 126 for the third wicket in humid conditions that made the England fielders look with envy at the adverts for fridges around the ground and cause Ashley Giles to take rehydration tablets. It was too hot for the Barmy Army to sing until two overs from the end. Yes, that hot!
Blazing start
Marvan Atapattu missed the start of the Sri Lankan innings to protect the webbing of his right hand which was split when he caught Gareth Batty on Thursday. Sangakkara went in with Jayasuriya instead and we knew straightaway he would be aggressive. Perhaps it was the incentive Jayasuriya needed. The first 10 overs went for 53, a replica of the England start, but unlike Michael Vaughan who went into his shell when Marcus Trescothick opened his shoulders, Jayasuriya matched Sangakkara shot for shot. At 71 in the 12th over, Trescothick snatched a neat low catch at slip off James Kirtley in his second spell already, but at lunch, Sri Lanka was 88 for one in 83 minutes. Jayasuriya had completed his 50 in 44 balls — nine fours and a six — and we supposed the afternoon would not be dull either. We were as wrong as it is possible to be: 73 runs off 29 overs was agonisingly dull.
Memories rekindled
As both Trescothick and Flintoff have been in sight of a hundred in this match and been dismissed unexpectedly he was right to walk on tiptoe. I came to Sri Lanka hoping to see another big innings from one of my all-time favourites. Memories of his 213 at The Oval in 1998 flood back easily for every boundary seemed to hit the concrete with a thunderous thwack. Five years later he is past his zenith but the cover drive, the pull and the square cut are still working. Today, he was taking longer over his set-up and clearly concerned that his concentration might let him down. When it did, he turned away from the jubilation shown by Trescothick at slip and Flintoff, the bowler, and headed very slowly for the pavilion as if he knew his farewell might be in sight. Jayasuriya has been a superb craftsman for Sri Lanka and it will need him for the Australian series in February but the selectors must also be thinking that the days of their greatest left-handed opener are rapidly coming to an end. At the start of the day, England added 16 runs in 30 minutes even though the wicketkeeper Chris Read turned down half a dozen singles to protect the No. 11 James Anderson. When it came to the vexed question of appeals, England was oddly silent. Chaminda Vaas was given lbw decisions against James Kirtley and Anderson that would have been severely questioned in the two previous Tests. Today there was not a squeak. My guess is that the towering presence of West Indies umpire Steve Bucknor made all the difference. This 6ft 6in former World Cup football referee does not invite argument whether he is slowly making up his mind on the field or heading to the front of the queue at breakfast. Allied to the calm Aleem Dar and two tired teams, Bucknor's arrival has turned a match with overtones of tigerish confrontation into a sleeping pussy cat.
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