Sri Lanka v Pakistan, 2nd Test, SSC, Colombo, 3rd day

Sri Lanka 70 for 1 (Dilshan 46*, Junaid 1-22) trail Pakistan 551 for 6 dec. (Hafeez 196, Ali 157, Misbah 66*, Herath 3-165) by 481 runs

Afternoon showers on day three put an outright result in serious doubt as only one session could be played out. In that session, Pakistan added 63 to their overnight 488 before declaring. In the next 70 minutes, Sri Lanka were put through a sterner test than the Pakistan openers, but they lost just one wicket.

Pakistan's quicks generated more response from the pitch than their Sri Lankan counterparts, but that didn't translate into too much success as Tillakaratne Dilshan rode his luck. An overnight declaration on 488 was a consideration because of the weather: 45 overs had already been lost on day two, and forecast for the rest of the Test wasn't the brightest either. However, Pakistan went for the scoreboard pressure, and declared only after they reached 550.

Pakistan didn't meander aimlessly, though: Misbah-ul-Haq went at a strike-rate of 82.50, much higher than his ODI career statistic, and Abdur Rehman hit two straight sixes in his 18 off 13. It took Pakistan little under an hour, and 12.4 overs, to score the 63 runs that took them past 550. In the process Misbah reached his 17th half-century, scoring 37 off 40 balls on the third morning. The fields were spread far out so he had to rely more on well-placed ones and twos as opposed to boundaries. Asad Shafiq and Adnan Akmal perished for the cause, but Rehman provided the required thrust with sixes off both spinners. Rangana Herath bowled one over fewer than a whole ODI innings.

Ten minutes later, with runs on board already, Pakistan made a spirited start with the ball. Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan bowled faster and hit the seam more often than the Sri Lankan bowlers. As a result, they bowled more threatening deliveries in one spell than Sri Lanka did in the whole innings. Cheema began with a short-of-a-length delivery that reared towards Tharanga Paranavitana's chest. Paranavitana never settled in, and was caught bat-pad to a Junaid delivery that seamed in. This was Paranavitana's seventh duck in his 28th Test, a high rate for a Test opener.

Tillakaratne Dilshan, at the other end, tried every trick in the book to get out, but the pitch and luck smiled on him benevolently. The seam movement in Junaid's first over seemed to have rattled him, and he hoicked at the last ball of that over; the leading edge fell straight of mid-on. Until lunch, Dilshan kept slashing and flashing, twice edging short of the cordon, once bisecting keeper and first slip. In Saeed Ajmal's first over, minutes before lunch, he survived a desperately close lbw shout when he was hit just above the knee roll bang in front and inside the crease. However, nothing stopped the aggressive Dilshan: he followed that lbw shout with two lofted fours, a response not too different to the rest of his innings. By lunch he had raced along to 46 off 54.

Kumar Sangakkara was much more reassuring for Sri Lanka, clipping the first ball he faced for four, and continuing to do so. The only moment of concern at Sangakkara's end arrived when he got a thick inside edge onto his pad, but it was too meaty for Azhar Ali at short leg to react in time.

West Indies v Australia, 2nd Test, Port-of-Spain, Day 4,Cricinfo

West Indies 257 and 73 for 3 (Ponting 32*,

 Clarke 3*) lead Australia 311 by 127 runs

Heavy rain on the fourth day in Port-of-Spain severely reduced the chances of a positive result as Australia closed 127 ahead following a hostile spell from Kemar Roach who removed the top of the visitors' batting. Ricky Ponting was threatening to play his first major innings of the series to keep West Indies at bay before the weather closed in early during the afternoon and did not allow the players back.

Roach has been the stand-out fast bowler during a match dominated by spin and added another impressive collection of scalps to his first-innings five-wicket haul. Australia had wrapped up West Indies' innings four balls into the day, to earn a 54-run cushion, and Roach had to wait for his opening spell when Shane Shillingford started the attack alongside Fidel Edwards. Roach, though, wasted no time in making an impact when his turn arrived.

Starting from round the wicket, a line that has troubled Australia's left-handers, he drew an edge from David Warner which carried low to Darren Bravo at first slip. Warner had flirted with the catching cordon during his stay although had started with three crisp boundaries. Then, three deliveries later, Roach beat Shane Watson for pace with a ball that perhaps kept a fraction low and took out the off stump to leave Australia 26 for 2.

It meant another head-to-head between Roach and Ponting which the former won in the first innings. Ponting did not find life easy and could have been run out by Edwards from mid-off when he had given up the chance of making his ground only for the throw to miss and Carlton Baugh had not reached the stumps. A second chance was offered an over later when he lunged at Shillingford and an inside edge carried low to Adrian Barath at short leg who could not hold on.

Ed Cowan had also been offered a life before he had scored and it was the simplest of the lot when he edged Edwards to Darren Sammy in the slips but it went to ground. He was made to battle for his runs, his one release coming when he swept Shillingford for four although the offspinner caused him, and Ponting, plenty of problems and unveiled his doosra during a probing unbroken 15-over spell.

At the start of the afternoon session West Indies spurned another opportunity for a run out, this time to remove Cowan, when Baugh could not produce a good throw to the bowler. Cowan, having once again forged a base for his innings, fell in very similar fashion to the first innings when Roach speared one into his pads from around the wicket which the batsman tried to work to leg. For the second time in the game Cowan tried the DRS but there was no escape.

Earlier in the same over West Indies had used up their first review when Roach jagged a delivery into Ponting which brought a massive appeal. Sammy trusted his paceman's instincts and asked for the TV umpire but, as has often been shown, the bowler is often the least reliable person to ask.

Although Ponting was far from fluent - few batsmen have been on this surface - he was beginning to tick over more comfortably and moments before the rain flicked Shillingford through midwicket with timing that has not often been seen during the match. The contest was at another fascinating stage but was not allowed to progress any further.

West Indies v Australia, 2nd Test, Port-of-Spain, Day1,Cricinfo

Australia 208 for 5 (Watson 56, Hussey 26*, Wade 11*) v West Indies

Fluent strokeplay has not been top of the agenda in this series and the opening day in Port-of-Spain was another where the batsmen had to grind for their rewards. With that in mind, Australia were better placed than 208 for 5 might imply but West Indies ensured they stayed within range with Shane Shillingford, the tall offspinner, impressive on his return to Test cricket.

The turn that Shillingford - and, to a lesser extent, Narsingh Deonarine - found on a first-day pitch suggested that anything around 300 would be a good total while Australia have two frontline spinners to exploit conditions after recalling Michael Beer to partner Nathan Lyon. Once the hardness had gone from the ball, which allowed Australia to reach 42 after 10 overs, the remaining 80 overs of the day brought 166 runs with West Indies opting not to take the second new ball.

Shane Watson was the mainstay of the innings for more than three hours as he ground his way to a half-century from 128 balls. Boundary opportunities had been rare for Watson, and mostly came when the quick bowlers offered width, before he got an inside edge to short leg where it was superbly held by Adrian Barath who had to reach upwards for the catch.

It was a deserved second wicket for Shillingford, who earlier struck fifth delivery playing his first Test since remodelling his bowling action, after he had twice been denied the opportunity to double his tally. Once that was by technology and another by the inconsistent glovework of Carlton Baugh, who dropped Michael Hussey when he had 5 from one which turned sharply to take the glove.

Shortly after tea Shillingford was awarded an lbw against Michael Clarke but the Australia captain reviewed, by the looks of it at the time more out of hope than expectation. However, the replays showed he had been struck outside off stump on the back pad so survived and even shared his slight surprise with the close fielders.

Clarke couldn't cash in on the reprieve when he managed to pull a long hop from Deonarine to deep square-leg having briefly provided the most fluent batting of the day when he took the attack to Kemar Roach at the start of the final session. Roach, who had earlier collected the important wickets of Ed Cowan and Ricky Ponting, was more than twice as expensive as any other of the bowlers and offered Clarke width to drive as the fourth-wicket stand with Watson grew to 84.

Soon, though. Australia had to rebuild again and without Ryan Harris or Peter Siddle in the lower order - the former surprisingly rested, the latter suffering a stiff back - there is a longer tail than in Barbados when they hauled the visitors out of trouble and into the ascendency. But with Michael Hussey still present West Indies could yet rue Baugh's mistake. Matthew Wade was also put down, on 2, although the chance to Kraigg Braithwaite at short leg was tough.

West Indies thought they had taken a wicket in the first over the day when David Warner was given out caught behind by the umpire Marais Erasmus before Darren Sammy indicated the ball had not carried to the keeper. That was clearly the case and replays also showed it was also nowhere near the edge but if Erasmus had given the decision as lbw on-field it would have stood.

After that early intrigue Australia moved along at a healthy rate as both Warner and Cowan latched onto anything short, although Warner also had to battle to survive against Roach when the fast bowler went round the wicket and probed the outside edge. It was Shillingford who provided the breakthrough with his fifth ball when he enticed Warner to drive at a full delivery which spun enough to find the edge and Sammy pocketed a simple catch at slip.

Shortly before lunch Cowan was extracted lbw from around the wicket by Roach, who then added Ponting in the sixth over of the afternoon session with a beauty to square up the batsman and find the outside edge. However, the wicket did not come easily as Baugh palmed the chance away but, fortunately for the home side, Sammy was alert at slip to collect the rebound.

West Indies v Australia, 2nd Test, Port of Spain,Cricinfo,Lance Gibbs

Lance Gibbs tells Lyon to develop vigorous follow-through

Lance Gibbs, the West Indies offspinner who once held the world record for Test wickets, has suggested a more vigorous follow-through after delivery as an area in which Australia's offspinner Nathan Lyon should develop after watching him in action during the first Test against the West Indies at Bridgetown.

Lyon and Gibbs spoke in St Lucia earlier in the tour, but at that point Gibbs had not yet seen the younger man ply his trade in a Test. Having observed the five days of the match at Kensington Oval, won so dramatically by Australia on the final afternoon, Gibbs told cricinfo a certain snap was missing from the conclusion of Lyon's action.

"In the finish of his action he needs to cut his body in half as much as he can, give it everything with each delivery," Gibbs said. "His line and length is quite good, I could not judge too much about how he varies his pace, but in the finish of his action he seemed to be lacking something.

"On the fifth day of the game you should see something as far as spin is concerned, but he didn't really beat the bat, though he should have been spinning the ball away from the left-handers. If you're really giving it everything with your whole body, then you're going to see more spin."

Lyon managed figures of 1 for 113 in 42 overs at Bridgetown, returning only the wicket of Kemar Roach for his efforts. However, his analysis was no worse than that of the West Indies legspinner Devendra Bishoo, who also claimed only one wicket for the match and was hit out of the attack on the final day, as the part-time finger spin of Narsingh Deonarine was preferred.

Mindful of Trinidad's tendency for sharp turn and variable bounce, the West Indies selectors have bolstered their spin options by recalling the offspin of Shane Shillingford, who Gibbs said would spin the ball harder than Lyon while also varying his pace. Australia must also consider the option of playing the left-arm orthodox Michael Beer as a second spinner, a ploy not resorted to even on the dustbowl of Galle against Sri Lanka last year when Lyon debuted.

At times in Barbados Lyon's front arm did not seem to be leading off his action as strongly as it has on earlier occasions, while other observers have wondered whether his approach to the wicket is too straight. Earlier in the summer, Arthur had said he was working with Lyon on bringing his point of delivery a little closer to the stumps, to accentuate his drift away from the bat.

Nevertheless, Arthur and the national selector John Inverarity have both expressed happiness about how Lyon is developing. Arthur said that there remain areas for Lyon to improve, but all would follow given time, offering the reminder that the Adelaide-based offspinner is still a novice in terms of first-class experience.

"I'm really happy with where Nathan's at, he's worked extremely hard," Arthur said. "There's little facets of his game he needs to keep developing, and like any player in our side they've all got little facets that we're continually working on. He needs to do that, but he's a very good finger spinner.

"We must also realise he's only played 20 first-class games and I think 12 of them have been Test matches, so he's still learning his art in the toughest form of the game. He's going to be a very good spinner. We just have to keep monitoring Nathan, but I'm very happy with where he's at."

Sri Lanka v England, 2nd Test, Colombo, Day5,Cricinfo

England 460 (Pietersen 151, Cook 94, Herath 6-133) and 97 for 2 beat Sri Lanka 275 (Mahela Jayawardene 105, Swann 4-75) and 278 (Mahela Jayawardene 64, Swann 6-106) by eight wickets

In the end it was a breeze. Whatever doubts England might have had about chasing 94 to win the second Test at the end of a tormented Asian winter did not manifest themselves as they gambolled to a victory that, for the moment at least, preserves their status as the No. 1-ranked side in the world.

Lurking memories of their collapse to 72 all out, in pursuit of 145, in Abu Dhabi barely two months ago were banished as Alastair Cook proceeded from the outset at a one-day rate and Kevin Pietersen added a lighthearted singalong to his majestic first-innings century. England had it all wrapped up within 20 overs, levelling the series at 1-1 and preventing Sri Lanka from achieving their own first Test series win for three years.

It was a steamy Colombo day - one reading showed 42C - so hot that holidaymakers along Sri Lanka's coast would be dragging sunbeds into the shade. England lost their captain, Andrew Strauss, for nought, bowled by Tillakaratne Dilshan as he met one that turned with ponderous footwork and an angled blade, and Jonathan Trott followed lbw to Rangana Herath as Sri Lanka successfully asked for a referral, but they were not about to wilt in the sun.

Sri Lanka, who had added another 60 in the morning session, relied entirely upon their spinners in recognition that the P Sara pitch had finally become the minefield that many had long forecast. Cook signalled his intent by driving and cutting Dilshan for successive boundaries and scored 30 of England's first 40 runs. When he cut three times in one over at Herath, and missed the lot, Sri Lanka must have realised there would be no miracle.

Then Pietersen came over all Frank Sinatra, confident again to do it his way, gliding down the pitch to loft Herath straight for six. Appropriately, the match ended with Pietersen v Dilshan, reviving memories of the contretemps over Pietersen's switch hit. Mahela Jayawardene brought the field in and challenged Pietersen to win it with a six and he did so, launching the ball over midwicket. What did he think of April Tests in Colombo when the climate was at its fiercest? "A joke," Pietersen said, ingenuously.

Sri Lanka, six down overnight, lost three wickets in a rush, but Angelo Mathews countered briefly to turn an overnight lead of 33 into something a little more substantial. Their chief tormenter was Graeme Swann who had rolled in, sunglasses not quite disguising a scampish intent, to turn the game with two wickets in the penultimate over of the fourth day. He spun the ball viciously at times on a pitch that, for him at least, finally had become the spin bowler's friend.

Samit Patel also chipped in with his first wicket of the match when Herath anticipated Swann-like turn, found Patel-like turn instead and offered the simplest of chances to James Anderson at slip.

For Sri Lanka, the onus rested once more on Jayawardene. Swann, who took 6 for 106 to finish with ten wickets in the match, finally removed him an excellent ball which turned and bounced to hit the glove and lob easily to Cook, plunging forward at short leg. It was the end of a polished defensive innings - 64 from 191 balls with only four boundaries.

Jayawardene made 354 runs in four innings with two centuries and his stock has rarely been higher. It was easy to carp that Sri Lanka had not helped themselves by a scoring rate not much above two an over, but only Pietersen, whose rapid century had created the time in which England could win the game, had played with any panache on this pitch and to try to ape Pietersen in that mood would be to fly too close to the sun.

Two overs later and another Jayawardene followed, this time Prasanna, coming in two places lower at No. 9 thanks to Sri Lanka's recourse to nightwatchmen on the previous two evenings. It was a briefly unimpressive stay, ended when he tried to sweep and was bowled around his legs.

Mathews' survival owed much to a calamitous morning for Cook at short leg. Three times in five overs Swann had expectations of dismissing Mathews to a nudge to short leg, but Cook failed to cling to two low chances and then a third fell wide of him as Swann looked as dangerous as at any time on England's winter tours.

There was further frustration for England, too, when Mahela Jayawardene, on 58, was adjudged lbw by umpire Asad Rauf only for the decision to be overturned on review when the TV umpire, Rod Tucker, spotted an inside edge.

As wickets fell, Mathews eventually had little choice but to formulate an attacking response, but eventually an erratic surface betrayed him as Steven Finn made one stick in the pitch and Mathews, intent upon advancing to drive, could only chip into the leg side. England's run of failures were soon to be put behind them.

Sri Lanka v England, 2nd Test, Colombo, Day3,cricinfo

Sri Lanka 4 for 0 and 275 (Jayawardene 105, Swann 4-75) trail England 352 for 4 (Pietersen 106*, Cook 94) by 181 runs

A century of great bravado, and not a little theatre, byKevin Pietersen sharpened England's anticipation of their first Test win of a troubled winter as they took a first-innings lead of 185 runs in the second Test in Colombo.

Pietersen brought chaos to Sri Lanka's ranks with a potent combination of imperious strokeplay and impatient slogs. His 151 came from 165 balls with 16 fours and six sixes and was a flamboyant contradiction of the suspicious, attritional cricket that had gone before. As he struck 88 runs between lunch and tea to transform the game, he batted pretty much as he pleased. "I probably played a bit one-day modish, but I feel as if I'm in very good form so why not," he said.

On a dead pitch that experts galore had agreed made strokeplay almost impossible, Pietersen batted as if such limitations were intended for lesser men, banishing the memories of a demoralising winter. He had been England's least successful batsman in four Tests in Asia, scoring only 100 runs at 13. To draw supreme confidence from that record was quite something. It does not take much to stir his self-belief.

He departed reluctantly, appealing to the DRS for clemency after Sri Lanka's left-arm spinner Rangana Herath defeated his paddle shot with a flatter delivery. As reviews go, it was based on little more than the fact that he fancied an encore or two, and replays predictably judged him plumb, but he had provided such flamboyant entertainment that he could be forgiven his indulgence.

Herath, who had 1 for 102 at one stage, recovered his poise once Pietersen's storm had blown out and finished with 6 for 133, his third six-for in successive innings, but there was none of the pleasure he had felt during Sri Lanka's 75-run win in Galle. There is enough treacherous bounce in this pitch to encourage England's stronger pace attack and Graeme Swann can expect substantial, if slow turn.

There was also a controversial element to Pietersen's innings when the umpires, Asad Rauf and Bruce Oxenford, clamped down on his unconventional switch hit when he was only two runs away from his 20th Test century, issuing a warning on the dubious grounds that he was changing his stance too early. "To bowl before the bowler delivers is unfair," Rauf said afterwards. "There is no intention to outlaw the stroke," Oxenford added.

Tillakaratne Dilshan objected to the switch hit, in which Pietersen changes his hands on the bat to become, in effect, a left-hander, and stopped twice in his run-up as he anticipated a repeat. Rauf intervened on the grounds of timewasting - not against Dilshan but Pietersen - and after a conversation with Oxenford warned Pietersen, informing him England would recieve a five-run penalty if he repeated the tactic.

Dilshan's protest came during an over in when Pietersen thrashed his way from 86 to 104. He had unveiled the switch hit in Dilshan's previous over to combat a defensive leg-stump line and when he was rewarded by a woeful long hop it was apparent that Dilshan, until then Sri Lanka's most effective bowler, had lost the psychological game.

After being told by the umpires that he risked a timewasting penalty, he bided his time, reverse swept again with Dilshan committed to the delivery, and reached his hundred to roars of approval from England's sizeable contingent of fans. "No dramas," he said. "They just told me to get my timing right."

Soon afterwards, Ian Bell fell for 18, mistiming a hook to midwicket as a ball from Dhammika Prasad did not get up. It was symptomatic of an innings in which he had rarely timed the ball and he walked off shaking his head at Pietersen's audacity. Batting alongside Pietersen has a tendency to make you feel inadequate. If Bell felt its full force, so did Matt Prior when he tried to hit Herath down the ground and paid the consequences.

For Pietersen, it was all plain sailing. He had been riddled by doubt against Pakistan's spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, in the Test series in the UAE, but Sri Lanka's slow bowlers - for all Herath's recovery - were a grade below that class. When Suraj Randiv attempted an Ajmal-style doosra it pitched halfway down. Pietersen had a life on 82, though, when Prasad deceived him with a slower ball but followed up with an even slower attempt to catch.

England produced their most authoritative batting of the winter. They resumed on 154 for 1 and their top three created the platform to enable Pietersen to strut his stuff.

Alastair Cook, six runs short of a century, was the only England batsman to fall before lunch. It was Dilshan who did the trick, finding modest turn to have Cook caught by Mahela Jayawardene at slip. Earlier, when Cook had 84 to his name, it was still a surprise to see him dust off a reverse sweep, especially as he had eschewed the conventional variety. The ball deflected off the pad to Jayawardene at leg slip, umpire Rauf showed no interest, and despite innumerable replays the third umpire could discern no sign of a flick of the glove for which Sri Lanka's captain had appealed.

Randiv's use of DRS for an lbw appeal against Trott, on 42, was even more wasteful. Replays showed an obvious inside edge. Trott communicated this to the umpire with a subtle quizzical look and a peaceful examination of his inside edge, his alibis presented with the tranquillity of his strokeplay. He fell soon after lunch, edging a turning delivery from Herath to slip.

Nothing was going right for Sri Lanka. Appeal began to follow appeal, each one of them increasingly absurd. Sri Lanka entered lunch with one more wicket and an urge to study TV replays that would have only brought more disappointment. Pietersen at his most disrespectful was about to inflame them even more.

Sri Lanka v England, 2nd Test, Colombo, Day1,cricinfo

Sri Lanka 238 for 6 (Jayawardene 105, Samaraweera 54, Anderson 3-52) v England

Mahela Jayawardene, an understated batsman in a world that long ago surrendered to overstatement, treated England to another gentle batting masterclass with a second successive Test century to ensure Sri Lanka maintained a position close to equilibrium at the close of the first day of the second Test.

Jayawardene exuded calm, recapturing the mood that brought him 180 in the first Test in Galle, with 105 stealthily assembled in more than five hours before Graeme Swann, straightening one from around the wicket, had him lbw, a decision upheld on review, and the slightest rustle of disbelief arose around the P Sara Oval at a rare misjudgement in an unblemished innings.

England dismissed Jayawardene with the second new ball imminent. They took it for the last nine overs and plucked out a sixth wicket when Steven Finn had Mahela's namesake, Prasanna Jayawardene, caught at the wicket.

It was a reward for another disciplined bowling display, in which an increasingly resilient Finn proved he can now share, but the pitch already has a mosaic of cracks and, even allowing for its stultifying lack of pace, there is already ample evidence of uneven bounce and turn for the spinners. That will be enough to keep England's sense of well-being in check.

Four successive Test defeats in Asia have encouraged ever-more defiant noises from England about how they must maintain their energy and trust their attacking instincts. Jayawardene showed them a different route, cajoling the Test gently towards him, displaying the virtues of patience and delicacy as his innings murmured along. He survived a drinks break on 99, removed his helmet to reveal his distinctive black head-covering and then clipped Samit Patel wristily wide of mid-on for his 31st Test century.

James Anderson gave England a flying start with three new-ball wickets in his first five overs, dismissing Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara in successive balls, but Jayawardene flicked the hat-trick ball to the fine leg boundary to get off the mark and, as determinedly as England tried to stem the flow of runs off his legs, settled in for the duration.

It was a sweltering day in Colombo with not as much relief from the gentle sea breezes that had been apparent in Galle; April, the month before the Yala monsoon finally breaks, when wealthier Colombo families head to the hills in search of relief and when to commit to any physical exertion was once regarded as akin to madness.

Smart stats Mahela Jayawardene's 105 is his 22nd Test century at home. Only Ricky Ponting, with 23, has more home hundreds. Thilan Samaraweera and Mahela Jayawardene have become only the third Sri Lankan pair to add more than 3000 partnership runs in Tests. Among the 32 pairs from all teams who've achieved this, Jayawardene and Samaraweera have the fifth-best average. In 11 home Tests against England, Jayawardene has scored six centuries and averages 90.66. In ten Tests in England, he averages 34.11. Jayawardene has now scored eight Test hundreds against England, which equals the record for a Sri Lankan   against an opposition - Aravinda de Silva has eight against Pakistan. In his last ten away Tests, James Anderson has taken 41 wickets at an average of 24.97. In his previous 19 away Tests, Anderson had taken 52 wickets at 43.84. Kumar Sangakkara has failed to score seven times in Tests, but Sri Lanka have won their last four Tests when Sangakkara hasn't scored. The last time Sangakkara got a duck and Sri Lanka lost the match was against Australia in Darwin in 2004.

There was a time in his career when Anderson would have melted into insignificance in such conditions, cursing a slow pitch and the hot, viscous air, but these days he is a connoisseur of fast bowling and once again he rhythmically dismantled Sri Lanka's top order. There was enough inconsistent bounce to sustain him and he caressed the new ball with the recognition that once it softened life would become much more onerous.

England had taken three Sri Lanka wickets for 15 and fewer in Galle and still lost, a statistic that it has been suggested is unique in Test history. It has been the same all winter for England: skilful, disciplined bowling followed by comedic batting. Anderson took his wickets with the air of a bowler who had come to understand that it guaranteed nothing.

Dilshan briefly flared, driving Anderson for successive offside boundaries. But Anderson compensated, yanked his length back a touch, Dilshan dabbled outside off stump and Matt Prior took a neat catch.

Sangakkara fell first ball, just as he had in the first innings in Galle, Anderson producing a perfect line and the edge flying to first slip where Strauss fumbled by his midriff but clawed the rebound back with his left hand. Strauss has entered the Test under the most pressure since he was appointed England's captain three years ago: it was not the day to drop it.

Anderson's third wicket, an ungainly leave-alone from Lahiru Thirimanne, with the decision, this time by the Australian Bruce Oxenford, again upheld on review, fleetingly took his average in his 68th Test below 30 for the first time since his debut summer nine years ago. By the close, it had crept beyond 30 once more, but it was a statistical reminder of his development.

Jayawardene peacefully rebuilt the innings, in partnership with Thilan Samaraweera, but England had a lucky mascot to sustain them. Tim Bresnan, playing his first Test of the winter after England omitted Monty Panesar, has been on the winning side in ten previous Tests and he found a hint of reverse swing to have Samaraweera lbw.

England made good use of the bouncer against Samaraweera, on a lifeless but uneven pitch. He was struck on the side of the helmet by Finn as he ducked a short ball that failed to get up. He looked briefly disorientated and England might have benefited from one of several ill-judged singles when Finn's shy from mid-on could have run him out.

But tension at the end of an unsuccessful winter had been evident in the response of Andy Flower, England's team director, when Samaraweera, on 34, survived a DRS appeal for a catch at short leg as a short ball from Steve Finn struck his thigh pad and found its way to Alastair Cook.

The not-out decision by umpire Asad Rauf was upheld after a lengthy delay, and innumerable replays, by the third umpire, Rod Tucker. There was no concrete evidence to overrule Rauf's decision, however much there might have been suspicions of a hint of glove, but that did not stop Flower visiting the TV umpire's room for an explanation and the cameras caught that, too, with his ill grace apparent.

Flower is not averse to a visit to the umpire's room during play to press his case, although perhaps not as blatantly as his predecessor, Duncan Fletcher, whose psychological gambits can occasionally be of a style that would even make Sir Alex Ferguson take note.

NZ v South Africa, 2nd Test, Hamilton, Day3,Cricinfo,Philander stars in resounding SA win

Innings South Africa 0 for 0 need 101 to beat New Zealand 185 and 168 (Williamson 77, Philander 6-44) 

Vernon Philander bagged his finest bowling figures in a sublime six-Test career, as South Africa set themselves 101 to win on day three in Hamilton. South Africa's seamers have been outstanding with the new ball so far on tour, but it was their command of reverse-swing bowling that demolished the hosts' lower order, and set New Zealand on course for a second successive three-day loss at Seddon Park. Philander finished with 6 for 44 from the innings, and 10 for 114 for the match, his Test average shrinking ever more impressively to 13.6.

Kane Williamson resisted South Africa for 193 deliveries, going past 50 for the first time in five Tests to finish on 77. Having resolutely seen out the first session, Philander needed only three balls to remove him in the second. The off-stump line had Williamson playing at the ball, and a hint of movement was enough to catch his outside edge. With New Zealand's last recognised batsman went their hopes of setting a challenging fourth innings target.

Morne Morkel found dramatic, late movement on his return to the crease and New Zealand's tail was clueless on how to counter it. Doug Bracewell was lucky to get an inside edge on one that struck him in front, but the rapid, tailing inswinger that sent his off stump cartwheeling might have got the better of most top-order batsmen. His dismissal was the second instance in the day where a New Zealand batsman had left a ball that moved in viciously to clip the stumps - Kruger van Wyk being the other.

Mark Gillespie swung wildly, hitting three boundaries off Philander's next over - but he was caught at slip on the last ball. Chris Martin didn't last long.

Williamson had begun the day watchfully, as Dale Steyn found the reverse swing that had undone Ross Taylor late on day two. Balls outside off stump were left alone, even those short and wide or overpitched, while the deliveries angled at the stumps were defended resolutely or worked towards the leg side. Williamson had ended the previous evening on 41, but took a further 43 balls to score the nine runs required for his half-century.

Daniel Vettori was almost as reticent, scoring significantly slower than his characteristic busy pace, despite a disposition to be more punishing on bad deliveries. A clipped boundary through the leg side had his innings under way, and though his vanquisher in the first innings, Vernon Philander, troubled him with the ball that darted back in, Vettori's hand-eye coordination was good enough to get bat on ball, even if his footwork was often muddled.

Graeme Smith moved methodically through his arsenal as he searched for a breakthrough, as the New Zealand pair saw out spells from the frontline seamers. But the hosts were reminded of the relentless threat in the opposition attack, when Jacques Kallis produced a terrific effort ball that reared sharply, and took Vettori's glove as he attempted to evade it.

Kruger van Wyk partnered Williamson astutely for his 20, negotiating Kallis and Imran Tahir with confidence, before surviving a short-ball barrage from Dale Steyn. But he could not see out the session against Philander, who reverse swung the ball significantly on his return to the crease, beating van Wyk's outside edge, before bringing one back in to take his off stump.

New Zealand v South Africa, 2nd Test, Hamilton, Day 2

New Zealand 185 & 65 for 4 (Williamson 41*, Steyn 2-10, Philander 2-21) trail South Africa 253 (de Villiers 83, Gillespie 5-59) by three runs 

New Zealand closed out day two in a state similar to their position the previous evening, struggling to compete with an opponent they had dominated in passages of play, but allowed to charge back emphatically in others. That the hosts are not yet doomed is thanks to Mark Gillespie, who at 32 and after three years in the wilderness was a vexing selection for Hamilton, but produced a staggering burst of pace, movement and luck to decimate South Africa's middle order and finish with 5 for 59. But AB de Villiers' 83, a cameo from Morne Morkel, and Vernon Philander's now vicious routine to New Zealand's top order undid all Gillespie's work, and left the hosts with four second-innings wickets down, still trailing by three, and a daunting climb to prevent their second successive loss inside three days at Seddon Park.

New Zealand had had South Africa reeling at 88 for 6 in reply to their own 185, but could not maintain the intensity, as de Villiers shepherded the lower order with an effortless innings that made the chaos that came before seem outlandish. The ease of his progress betrayed the flatness of the surface that had browned considerably - the tawny pitch appeared unrecognisable from the green tinged surface that had been unveiled on day one. de Villiers made 63 with Mark Boucher for the seventh wicket, before continuing the recovery alongside Philander and Morkel - the latter took charge following de Villers' ill-fortuned demise to add a further 34 with last man Imran Tahir, giving the visitors a 68-run head start in the second dig. The last four wickets had cost New Zealand 165.

The hosts then dug themselves further into the mire, when Rob Nicol, Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill fell in the first five overs of their second innings. Nicol, perhaps, was unlucky - a bunted short ball dribbled off the bat, down his leg and onto the stumps - but McCullum and Guptill were out to the same stroke, falling away to the off side as they attempted a clip off the pads. McCullum missed entirely and was caught in front, while Guptill couldn't control the shot and found short midwicket.

Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson attempted a recovery, blunting the new-ball movement and negotiating Tahir's first spell on a wearing pitch to add a sedate 57. But they were tested again, when the ball began to reverse late in the day, and Taylor could not dig out a hooping yorker from Dale Steyn that struck him in front.

Although New Zealand had dismissed Graeme Smith and nightwatchman Steyn the previous evening, South Africa's beginning to day two augured a day of toil, with Hashim Amla and Alviro Petersen settling gradually into their innings. Chris Martin and Doug Bracewell found a hint of movement in the air, but little off the pitch, and though their opening partnership was tight, it posed few penetrative threats to the overnight pair.

But just as Amla began to add attractive scoring strokes to solid defence, Gillespie stung South Africa in a four-over salvo and transformed the outlook of the visitors' innings, and for a while, the match.

Amla was removed first, a thick edge from an attempted square drive flying low to backward point. Jacques Kallis then experienced the extremes of fortune in Gillespie's next over. He top edged a short ball past fine leg for six, before glancing one down the leg side, only to turn around to see Kruger van Wyk celebrating his wicket. In the next over, Gillespie's movement off the seam trapped Petersen lbw. Jacques Rudolph completed the quartet with a regulation edge, ending a seven-over period that yielded four big scalps for 25 runs.

de Villiers meanwhile, had few issues timing the ball and working the field as New Zealand's supporting cast failed to match Gillespie's penetration. South Africa's recovery was slow at times, but assured, under de Villiers and Boucher, who helped the side through to lunch.

Boucher's dismissal completed Gillespie's five-wicket haul, but de Villiers was unfussed, as he called on one-day nous (shuffles across the crease to work the ball to the leg side, downward dabs to third man ...) to keep the larger share of the strike, and minimise his fast-bowling team-mates' exposure to tight New Zealand bowling. Ten boundaries, mostly through the off side, punctuated a steady stream of singles and twos, as de Villiers oversaw the eclipsing of the hosts' total, and edged his side ahead.

Morkel had hit three confident boundaries before de Villiers departed lucklessly - when a forward defence to Vettori spun back onto his stumps - and ratcheted up the tempo in the company of Imran Tahir, dispatching Gillespie for three successive fours upon the bowler's return to the crease. Tahir wasted little time in matching Morkel's ambition, though most of his 16 came from edges over or past the slips. The pair added an adventurous, and often fortuitous, 34 for the final wicket, before Williamson ended the innings with his third ball of the match.

At stumps Williamson was unbeaten on 41 - his first substantial batting contribution of the series - alongside Vettori, unbeaten on nought.

New Zealand v South Africa, 2nd Test, Hamilton, Day 1,Cricinfo

South Africa 27 for 2 (Smith 13, Martin 18-2) trail New Zealand 185 (McCullum 61, Philander 4-70, Steyn 3-49) by 158 runs 

A catastrophic collapse - that surrendered five wickets with score stuck on 133 - swung the match emphatically in favour of South Africa, as they dismissed New Zealand for 185 on a rain-shortened day one in Hamilton. But the hosts also struck with ball, dismissing Graeme Smith and nightwatchman Dale Steyn before stumps, to leave South Africa at 27 for 2. The rain delay, which came early in the second session, allowed only 72.2 overs to be bowled in the day.

New Zealand's capitulation came after an 89-run stand between Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor, during which the hosts progressed steadily on a pitch that offered little to seam bowlers. Dale Steyn led the mid-innings assault, ambushing McCullum with a short ball and a deep square leg, before taking the shoulder of Kane Williamson's bat with another sharp bouncer in the next over. Vernon Philander then charged through to flatten the middle order, felling Taylor, Daniel Vettori and Doug Bracewell in seven balls.

McCullum had brought up his half-century with a six over vacant square leg, but did not shelve the stroke when Graeme Smith appointed a fielder in the deep, with South Africa having persisted with the short length for much of the innings. Having chided himself for attempting to pull a short Steyn delivery in the previous over, McCullum attempted the stroke again - this time to one that had risen well over his head, taking the top edge. If he was disappointed at once again having squandered a start, his mood can't have been improved by the clatter of wickets that followed.

Taylor drove at one that was too short for the stroke, giving Graeme Smith a simple catch at second slip. In the first innings of the first Test, too, he'd departed soon after McCullum, after the pair had got themselves in. Williamson, Vettori and Bracewell then strolled in and were all on their way out again, without having scored a run - Williamson was caught at slip, Vettori was bowled by one that nipped back and Bracewell edged behind. After having been a healthy 133 for 2 in the 49th over, New Zealand had plunged to an appalling 133 for 7 in the 52nd.

Smart stats
From a position of 133 for 2, New Zealand lost five wickets on the same score. The aggregate of zero runs for wickets three through to seven is the joint-lowest in Tests. New Zealand, surprisingly, have the four lowest partnership aggregates in an innings for wickets three to seven.
Vernon Philander picked up his sixth haul of four wickets or more in just 11th innings. In the same period (since November 9, 2011), four players, including Dale Steyn, are joint-second on the list of bowlers with the most four-wicket hauls (4).
This is the 11th occasion that three or more New Zealand batsmen have scored ducks in an innings against South Africa.
Graeme Smith's poor run against Chris Martin continued when he fell to the New Zealand fast bowler for the eighth time. No other bowler has dismissed Smith as many times.
There have been only two previous occasions (batting first) when New Zealand have won scoring lower than the 185 they made in their first innings. Their most recent such victory came in the Hobart Test against Australia.
Steyn, who has 41 wickets in seven Tests against New Zealand, is third on the list of South Africa bowlers with the most wickets against New Zealand behind Makhaya Ntini (46) and Shaun Pollock (43). However, Steyn's average of 18.36 is the best among the top three bowlers.
Mark Gillespie and Kruger van Wyk played their shots following the slide, pushing their side quickly towards 200, but the pair could not maintain the resistance for long. Morne Morkel trapped van Wyk in front of the stumps, before Imran Tahir had Gillespie caught brilliantly by Alviro Petersen at midwicket. When Brent Arnel perished in Tahir's following over, New Zealand had gifted South Africa a mountain of momentum and the chance to bat on a quickly flattening pitch.

The pull stroke had been productive for McCullum before his demise, as South Africa seemed intent to attack via the short ball once the movement they'd anticipated at the toss failed to materialise past the first hour. He had been floored by Steyn earlier in the day, but held firm against the bounce thereafter - he blunted the bounce off the back foot when it rose to his chest, and picked up singles through a sparse on-side field when the ball was pitched slightly fuller.

Taylor favoured the cut meanwhile, climbing over the ball to hit it square, while also scoring straight when the change-up was delivered. Two commanding drives off Philander in the first over of a rain-curtailed second session betrayed the friendliness of the surface, as well as Taylor's own good form, as he and McCullum rebuilt steadily following the loss of the openers. The pair resumed in a similar vein following the weather interruption, and were rarely flustered by South Africa in the hour after the break, but both then fell in quick succession to leave the hosts tottering. South Africa then pounced to expose a long New Zealand tail.

Kruger van Wyk had to wait until his second match to bag his first dismissal, but when the chance came, his reactions were spectacular. Wrong footed by Smith who went for a booming cover drive to a wide Chris Martin delivery, van Wyk changed direction and dived low to his right to snaffle the inside edge, centimetres from the turf. van Wyk and Martin combined again to dismiss Steyn, and though South Africa's middle order will relish the prospect of batting on the flat surface on day two, the double-strike will keep New Zealand in the match - if only just.

New Zealand v South Africa, 2nd Test, Hamilton,Match facts

Teams start over after tough first Test

The tone for the series was set in Dunedin with a competitive match being cut short by rain. The result, or lack thereof, has left the series on a fairly even keel heading into the second round. Both sides insist they felt in with a chance of winning the first one. Although the experts believed South Africa were more likely to take eight wickets on the final day than New Zealand were to score 264 runs, both teams believe they had momentum on their side.

In sport, particularly a Test series, it's a clichéd but important thing to have the pendulum swinging your way because it dictates the mood of the camp. In this case, the two teams each think the advantage lies with them, which should provide a hard-fought Test.

For South Africa, an early downer will be that the chance to claim the No.1 ranking and the $175,000 payout that will be made on April 1 is gone. But the opportunity to win a series away from home remains. As the best travellers in the game over the last five years, building on that trend will be vital.

They admitted to a concern with starting slowly, with Alviro Petersen saying the first day of the Dunedin Test "wasn't ideal for us". Now that they have found their stride, they want to keep it there. South Africa's big guns fired with the bat in the second innings, the bowlers did it in the first innings but the collective effort did not come together as quickly as they would have liked. Ideally, South Africa would want to score the same amount of runs in the second innings as they did in the first and give themselves enough time to bowl their opposition out twice, which Graeme Smith believes they are capable of doing.

New Zealand have more general worries. The coach John Wright spoke about the importance of taking 20 wickets and Ross Taylor has emphasised that the top five need to score the bulk of the runs because of the balance of the side. They seem to have accepted that the gulf between them and South Africa is reflected in more than just rankings - with the former at No.2 and the latter No.8 - but their determination to close that is evident

In the spotlight

Having moved down the order, Brendon McCullum has taken on the key role of No.3 and appears to be enjoying it. He has shown his temperament can be suited to anchoring or being the aggressor. Having just come off a prolonged stint as captain during Ross Taylor's injury lay-off, McCullum has established his place as the senior statesman of the side, both on and off the field. If New Zealand are do to well, McCullum has to play a leading role.

Dale Steyn's lean patches are usually followed by destructive bursts. With more swing in the air than Dunedin and a pitch that looks like it could have something in it for the seamers, Steyn will have the conditions on his side in Hamilton. What will be interesting to see is whether he will have the mindset as well. Steyn bowled some unplayable spells in Dunedin, which remarkably didn't find the edge as often as he would have liked, a sign that his next blistering performance is not far away.

Team news

Rob Nicol will keep his place as one of the opening batsmen after a tough debut. McCullum will bat at No.3, where John Wright said he had been "pretty comfortable". The only question is who will replace Tim Southee and the choice seems to be between Brent Arnel and Mark Gillespie, who has not played Test cricket for New Zealand since 2008. Andrew Ellis, who could also bolster the batting, has the outside chance. Tarun Nethula, the legspinner who was also brought into the squad for this game, is unlikely to play.

New Zealand (probable) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Rob Nicol, 3 Brendon McCullum, 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Daniel Vettori, 7 Kruger van Wyk (wk), 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Trent Boult, 10 Mark Gillespie/Brent Arnel, 11 Chris Martin.

Injury may keep AB de Villiers out of the side after he sprained his ankle during practice on Tuesday, though he tweeted that he 'should be ready'. JP Duminy and Robin Peterson both batted in the nets on Wednesday and should de Villiers be unfit, Duminy is likely to make a return in the longest format. The rest of the line-up should be unchanged with Imran Tahir set to play, in anticipation of turn later on in the match, and Marchant de Lange to miss out, despite the green strip.

South Africa (probable) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Alviro Petersen, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers/JP Duminy, 6 Jacques Rudolph, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Dale Steyn, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Imran Tahir.

Pitch and conditions

A green pitch greeted the eye two days before the match and it remained that way on the eve of the game. The grass will likely be cut the morning of the Test, before the sun has had the opportunity to bake the surface too much. Talk is that it will be a traditional strip, with something in it for the bowlers on the first morning and friendly for the batsmen for the rest of the match. Heavy rain is forecast for the fifth day, Monday, which could mirror the first Test and the teams will want to secure a result before the heavens open.

Pakistan Win 2nd Test,Lead 2-0

                                            A victory fashioned by the unsung

It is surprising how even seasoned observers of the game keep underestimating the potential of the fourth innings for psycho-drama. A stentorian voice announces that a target of 145 could not possibly trouble the world's best side. Another concurs, noting that 145 would be a routine ask in a T20; the chasing team would hardly bat an eyelid. There are some rebuttals but they are muted. You can't compare the two, someone mutters under his breath, explaining that in Tests there are neither field restrictions nor a limit on the number of overs per bowler. But most of all there is the unique psychology.

As compellingly demonstrated by Pakistan's victory in Abu Dhabi, going down the order in a fourth-innings chase is like plumbing the depths of the ocean. Pressure mounts exponentially, and it gets dark very soon. Low-to-medium targets are the hardest, because they tempt you like a mirage, until you fall, thirsty and desperate, grabbing at nothing.

If you want precedents, you could go all the way back to The Oval in 1882, when England failed to chase 85. Granted that was another era, with a different culture and playing conditions, but it happens to be the match that gave birth to the Ashes, and so casts a very long shadow. Since then there have been 13 other occasions when England have failed to chase a target of under 200.

Pakistan's name now shows up three times as the opponent on this list. In 1954 they prevented England from chasing 168 at The Oval. That, too, may have been another era, but it stands out in Pakistan's cricket annals as their most important victory. The second was in November 2005, in Multan, during England's last tour to Pakistan, when England were set 198 and dismissed 22 short.

There are certain similarities between that match and now, although there is also a vital difference. That England side too was basking in fresh Ashes glory, and comprised a star-studded touring party, with names like Flintoff, Pietersen, Strauss, Bell, Collingwood, and Harmison. Yet Pakistan's 2-0 win never drew much international traction. Now England are top dog, which in a sense imprisons them. Now all contests and all playing conditions assume equal significance, be it the manicured turf of a teeming English ground under heavy cloud cover, or an outpost in the desert, whose empty stands are baking under the sun. When you are the frontrunner, it doesn't matter how or where you get knocked off your perch.

Pakistan's gains from this victory are plenty. Most heartening is that the win was not fashioned by the usual suspects but by unsung honest triers who have mostly been labouring in the shadows. The match turned in the second innings, when Asad Shafiq joinedAzhar Ali after Pakistan had lost four wickets without yet having erased England's lead. The stuffing had been knocked out of Pakistan's batting line-up, with both openers as well as Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq, the two middle-order mainstays, gone. Shafiq and Azhar rode their luck, as you have to in these situations, but they stuck it out. Their partnership of 88 proved the key difference, being modestly in excess of England's eventual margin of defeat.

The bowling hero, too, was unexpected. With left-arm orthodox spin ruling this match, Monty Panesar andAbdur Rehman usurped the arena that general consensus had already ceded to Graeme Swann and Saeed Ajmal. Panesar and Rehman's six-fors in the second innings were both almost equally crucial.

The distinction was that Rehman's batsmen had given him enough runs to bowl at. Rehman made his international debut over half a decade ago, but has played only 14 Tests and 21 ODIs. Abu Dhabi is his first five-wicket haul, and only his second Man-of-the-Match award. He has been an undervalued player, never really seen as a match-winner, but those deliveries that kicked and spat out from the rough are going to change that.

Pakistan now find themselves in the rare position of being within striking distance of a clean sweep. Having come so far so quickly, and from rock bottom, carries an overpowering significance. Criticisms of Misbah'sslow and steady approach should now be history, as should be any attempt to remove Mohsin Khan as the head coach, if the PCB has any sense. This series win has allowed us to better understand both men and their contributions. Misbah is the CEO, and Mohsin is the supportive and watchful chairman, standing steadfastly behind him. What they are doing together is not merely working, it is working wonders.

From here on, the challenge for Pakistan's cricket establishment is to create propitious circumstances that can help sustain such dramatic ascendancy. Far too often myopic administrators in Pakistan have unnecessarily fiddled with winning formulas, to the national side's unfortunate detriment. This Pakistan outfit is carving out a path in the sky. All that the PCB bosses need to do right now is to get out of the way. You really couldn't ask for a better deal.