Second Test update: Joe Root ton sets up England victory charge

Second Test
Resumes 4.30am Saturday, Sky Sports Cricket

Day three analysis

Ben Foakes hit the final ball of the day for six to bring up his fifty before bad light forced an early close and that shot epitomised England's excellent progress.

Having started the day as 6-4 shots to seal the series in Pallekele, the tourists ended it as 4-11 favourites thanks to a century from captain Joe Root and another impressive innings from wicketkeeper Foakes.

England were in trouble at 109-4, a lead of just 63, after Rory Burns was dismissed for 59 – his maiden Test half-century – and Ben Stokes was out for a second-ball duck.

However, Root rose to the occasion and England were in a powerful position by the time he was the seventh man out for 124. Jos Buttler (34) and Foakes (51 not out) played useful supporting roles as the visitors extended their lead to 278 with one wicket remaining at stumps.

Akila Dananjaya was the most successful of Sri Lanka's bowlers, claiming 6-106, although the spinner is likely to miss the third Test after being reported for an illegal bowling action in Galle.

Star of the day

Root has often been criticised for not converting his starts but he was ruthless when his team needed him in Pallekele.

On a turning pitch, he struck the right balance between positivity and recklessness, scoring his runs at an excellent strike-rate of 84.93.

Weather

Scattered thunderstorms are forecast to disrupt the last two scheduled days of the match, with temperatures reaching 28C on Saturday.

Best bet for day four

Both teams' tails wagged in the first innings and England would love another 20 or so runs from Foakes and James Anderson to take their lead beyond 300.

That would represent a daunting fourth-innings task for Sri Lanka, especially given the fine performances of England's spinners on this tour, and opener Dimuth Karunaratne will have a key role to play.

He was batting serenely in the first innings before being brilliantly run out by Stokes for 63 and he has the defensive technique and battling mentality to delay England's victory charge.

Karunaratne has scored three centuries in his last 20 second innings, as well as scores of 85, 88 and 97, and the Lankans require another epic effort from the dependable opener.

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