England Revive Hopes After Murali' Magic

Five second-innings Sri Lankan wickets went down after tea to restrict the hosts' advantage to 195 runs when bad light ended proceedings.

Muralitharan had registered his 39th five-wicket haul in just 83 appearances at the highest level to polish off England for 235, the 31-year-old spinner ending with incredible figures of 31.4-15-46-7.

The turning pitch also encouraged England's slow-bowling duo of Ashley Giles and Gareth Batty who both picked up two wickets on the slow, worn surface to help leave Sri Lanka on 99 for five at stumps.

Sanath Jayasuriya became Ashley Giles' fifth victim of the match when he sliced to a juggling Marcus Trescothick at slip - and the same combination accounted for Thilan Samaraweera shortly before the close.

Between those dismissals, England collected three wickets in a five-over spell - starting with a mix-up between Kumar Sangakkara and Marvan Atapattu which resulted in the former being run out.

Atapattu drove on to the boot of Paul Collingwood at silly point and called for a run; Sangakkara hesitated and was short of his ground as Collingwood retrieved and threw to wicketkeeper Chris Read.

Worcestershire off-spinner Batty then dismissed experienced duo Atapattu and Hashan Tillekeratne, the Sri Lanka captain - the former stumped after charging an arm ball and the latter leg before padding up to a delivery which pitched on off-stump.

Murali set the tone for the spinners, during a morning session in which the temperatures climbed beyond 40c, by decimating England's middle order with three quick wickets.

It was not until the 25th over of the morning that the overnight pair of Mark Butcher and Graham Thorpe were separated, as Thorpe walked across his stumps and was adjudged leg before to a delivery from Chaminda Vaas slanted in towards leg-stump.

As soon as that 75-run partnership was broken, Murali was brought on and accounted for Paul Collingwood, who lasted just seven minutes before edging Murali's wrong 'un to Jayasuriya who held a one-handed, diving catch low to his left.

Andrew Flintoff was then pinned leg before by a sharply-turning off-break - and England had lost four wickets for the 13 runs in 11 overs when Chris Read jabbed a catch off pad and bat to silly-point.

Such was the control exerted by the hosts that when Butcher drove Murali through the covers for four shortly before lunch, it was the first boundary for 156 deliveries.

Butcher reached a dogged half-century, his first of the winter, from his 200th ball. But he departed almost immediately as he attempted to cut a fullish delivery from Jayasuriya and edged behind.

Batty, who signalled the lower order's intent by sweeping Kumar Dharmasena for six, fell to the same bowler when he flicked to leg-slip.

Two hefty blows from Giles cleared the ropes as the tail counter-attacked. But he succeeded only in picking out Marvan Atapattu at deep square-leg in going for a third, to provide Murali with a sixth success.

However, Richard Johnson swung Murali over midwicket for another maximum and short-arm jabbed Jayasuriya's left-arm spin for a four and six in the following over to reduce England's deficit to 96 before holing out in exactly the same manner as Giles.

Sri Lanka had earlier fluffed two simple chances to dismiss Butcher, either side of Thorpe being let off when - on 29 - he edged Jayasuriya to slip and survived because umpire Daryl Harper thought the ball was hit into the ground first before arriving in Samaraweera's hands.

Butcher had danced down the track to offer a return catch to Muralitharan, which the off-spinner dropped. He then edged Murali only for wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara to spill that chance too.

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