Galle test : Mahela Jayawardene resists England propulsion

Two self-inflicted blows from Sri Lankan batsmen helped England tighten their grip on the first day of the first Test in Galle.

If England go on to win this Test, Sri Lanka may well come to rue a couple of moments in the afternoon session. First Thilan Samarawerra and then Dinesh Chandimal played more than a small part in their own downfall with moments of carelessness that could cost their side dearly.

Samarawerra was run out backing up after the bowler, James Anderson, managed to lay a hand on a fierce return drive from Mahela Jayawardene only to see the ball deflect on to the stumps at the bowler's end. It was, some might say, an unfortunate end to a promising innings, though Samarawerra - backing up unnecessarily far and unable to regain his ground - had only himself to blame for finding himself stranded.

Chandimal, meanwhile, presented Samit Patel with a maiden Test wicket as he attempted an ugly slow-sweep to a delivery outside off stump and succeeded only in miscuing the ball to cover.

To deepen Sri Lankan frustration, each wicket came just as it appeared that the hosts were digging themselves out of trouble. Samarawerra had added 52 for the fourth wicket, overcoming a sticky start, taking 31 deliveries to get off the mark, to provide solid resistance, while Chandimal had looked untroubled in adding 61 runs for the fifth wicket.

Only Mahela Jayawardene, with a patient half-century, offered meaningful defiance for Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka captain, anxious to see his side take advantage of winning the toss in conditions where it should have offered a substantial advantage, provided the perfect example with his patience, shot selection, concentration and technique. But he lacked support as the Sri Lanka top-order fell victim to a fine spell of bowling from England's seamers and the middle-order gifted their wickets rather too casually.

It could have been even better for England. Had Jayawardene been caught on 64 - a desperately tough chance offered to Anderson at first slip off Graeme Swann - then Sri Lanka would have been 138 for six.

As it was, the two unrelated Jayawardenes saw Sri Lanka through to tea without further loss. But with a somewhat brittle tail to follow they have a great deal of work ahead of them if they are to rescue their side from a precarious position.

There was, perhaps, some encouragement for Sri Lanka in the pitch. It is already providing a surprising amount of assistance for the spinners and, bearing in mind England's struggles against Pakistan's spinners in the UAE, Sri Lanka may feel that a total of 300 or so might prove highly competitive.

Earlier Sri Lanka slipped to 15 for three inside the first four overs. James Anderson, maintaining a full length outside the off stump and finding just a little swing, accounted for two left-handed batsmen in two deliveries in his second over as first Lahiru Thirimanne and then Kumar Sangakkara edged to the slips and keeper respectively. Thirimanne became Anderson's 250th Test wicket in the bowler's 67th Test - he is just the sixth England bowler to reach the milestone - as he prodded at one angled across him, before Sangakkara suffered the third first-ball dismissal of his Test career after he was drawn into a loose drive.

Stuart Broad then took the edge of Tillakaratne Dilshan's bat with a beauty that bounced and left the batsmen off the seam. While there were no surprises in the Sri Lanka side - Chandimal was named in place of the injured Angelo Mathews - England opted to include a third spin option in the form of Patel. Patel, who is making his Test debut, was preferred to Ravi Bopara, whose side strain would have prohibited him from bowling, and Tim Bresnan, who could have batted at seven and filled the role of a third seamer. While there were concerns that England may miss a third quick, the polished performance of their frontline bowlers - and the fragility of the Sri Lankan batting - suggested the selectors' gamble had been vindicated.

Instead the early signs were that Sri Lanka's hectic schedule - they have barely had time to catch breath after returning from tours of South Africa, Australia and Bangladesh - may have left them a little underprepared for their return to Test duty.