Sri Lankan seamers dominate but rain intervenes

After the dramatic and quite remarkable scenes in Kandy it was back to normality at the Sinhalese Sports Club today. The first day's play of this deciding test match was dominated by some determined batting by the South Africans and by the honest toil of an often unrecognised fast bowler. However, like it was in Kandy, the match is being keenly contested and remains evenly poised.

In the 62 overs that were possible before rain prematurely finished play, South Africa, who had been asked to bat first, progressed cautiously to 194 for 7 having fought back from a precarious 117 for 6.

Lance Klusner (50*) continued his fine form of the second test with a combative half-century that rescued his side after the top order had failed in overcast conditions. In partnership with Shaun Pollock (33), who has batted so wretchedly throughout the series, he added 69 runs for the seventh wicket.

Workmanlike rather than explosive, he reached his half century off just 63 balls and hit five boundaries, but has batted for nearly two hours now.

It was though Chaminda Vaas who stole the show. The most consistent fast bowler in the Sri Lankan side since making his debut in 1994/5 he has a thankless role on such slow pitches. Nevertheless he never seems to tire from duties, his quiet exploits providing a perfect foil for the more potent Muralitharan.

He is not seriously quick nor does he jag the ball around extravagantly. He bowls stump to stump with sufficient movement to trouble the batsmen. On the SSC wicket which traditional favours the faster bowlers in the first two hours of the morning he opened with a probing nine over spell that included the prized wicket of Jacques Kallis (19); caught behind off a delivery that seamed away and bounced.

Recalled after the luncheon interval he reeled off another ten overs on the trott. This time snaffling the wickets of Darryl Cullinan (38), brilliantly caught by a diving Attapattu at deep square, and Mark Boucher (4), caught inches off the ground at cover point by the athletic Upul Chandana, to leave South Africa under pressure on 117 for 6.

In all he bowled 21 miserly overs in effectively two sessions of play. A testament to his fitness and honest commitment to his sides cause. He was aided by Ruchira Perera, who picked up two wickets in his second test match after replacing Nuwan Zoysa.

A brisk left arm fast bowler he has been dogged by back troubles in the last 15 months and returns to test cricket with scant first class experience in the past months. In his first test match against India in the Asian test championship last year he toiled long and hard for his solitary wicket, conceding 185 runs in total.

However he took no time at all to make an impression here, taking a wicket with his very first delivery. Neil McKenzie (0), a man who had dealt with him so harshly in the first practice game, flashed outside the off stump and was well caught by Russel Arnold at second slip. Then, after Vaas had sent back Kallis, he tempted Gary Kirsten into a forcing back foot drive that he couldn't control, and the ball was confidently pouched by Arjuna Ranatunga in the gully to leave South Africa on 57 for three.

Muttiah Muralitharan had a relatively quiet day by his standards. Naturally of course he bamboozled most of the batsmen with his variation and spun the ball like spinning top, but he didn't make the inroads that are expected. Much credit for this goes to the South African batsmen who reacted to their humiliation in Galle with in-depth video analysis of Muralitharan, courtesy of their computer programmers, and the development of individual strategies.

Even on a quiet day though Muralitharan makes his mark and he dealt with both Jonty Rhodes (21) and Shaun Pollock (33), both batsmen bowled off an inside edge and both crucial wickets that prevented the full blooming of promising partnerships.

Earlier in the day Sanath Jayasuriya had won the toss for the sixth match in succession and elected to field first. It was a bold option on a surface that is usually very amenable to the batsmen after the first two hours of play and has not yet been fully justified.

With nearly two hundred on the board the Sri Lankans need to wrap up the innings quickly tomorrow morning. The mental scars created in Kandy will not yet have healed fully and a substantial run chase in the final innings will surely cause a few hearts to flutter.