England beat Sri Lanka by two wickets in a tense day-night match to take a 2-1 lead in the one-day series.

Spinner Graeme Swann took 4-34 as Sri Lanka were bowled out in 41.1 overs and England then had to chase 164 in 48 overs after rain shortened the match.

England were reduced to 47-4 by Farveez Maharoof (3-34) and continued to toil despite a stand of 47 from Paul Collingwood and Owais Shah.

But Swann (25) and Stuart Broad put on 40 before England scraped home.

Interview: Man of the match Graeme Swann

Interview: Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene

Interview: England captain Paul Collingwood

By Pranav Soneji

606: DEBATE Discuss the day's play on 606

e-mail tms@bbc.co.uk (with 'For Pranav Soneji' in the subject), text 81111 (start your message with the word "CRICKET") or use 606

46.3 overs - Eng 164-8 ENGLAND WIN BY TWO WICKETS
Sidey nurdles a leg glance for one, handing the strike back to Broady. Six runs needed. A few choice Malinga yorkers ensures the lofty left-hander is pinned to his crease. However Broad has just hit the shot of the day through extra cover, a little too full from Malinga. Two runs needed. The next ball is flailed over square leg's boundary and the pair run for two. Siders is celebrating while Broad ain't so sure. Sidebottom has to dive for the second run at the non-striker's end but even though England have won the game, umpire Rudi Koertzen calls for the third umpire, who confirms Sidebottom was in his ground and England celebrate a series-leading victory. The jamboree carries on to Colombo.

46th over - Eng 155-8
Tilkeratne Dilshan and his off-spinners are back on. Siders and Broady fashion two from the over. Seven runs needed from 12 balls. Ooooh I could crush a grape.

"I know, it's the excitement, but you've done it again - the score has gone from 147-8 in the 43rd over to 151-7 in the 44th over!"
Susan Raven, singer/songwriter extraordinaire

45th over - Eng 155-8
Siders steals a single from the first ball of Lasith Malinga's new spell. Broady returns the compliment with a nice flick off his legs. The pair pick up another single with a swiftly run leg-bye. Malinga pleads with Rudi Koertzen to give Broad out lbw, but his slower ball would have missed the top of the stumps. Nine to win off 18 balls.

44th over - Eng 151-8
Ryan Sidebottom, the England number 10, plays a shot usually reserved for the England number one, unleashing a lovely cover drive for three. Top fielding from Chamara Silva ensures a single isn't stolen off the penultimate ball of the over. That's Jayasuriya's 10 gone, with excellent figures of 2-23. 13 runs needed off 24 balls.

43rd over - Eng 147-8 WICKET! Swann bowled Fernando 25
Fernando comes round the wicket to left-hander Broad and goes for another one of his lung-busting appeals which again is turned down (going down leg side). He bowls a front foot no-ball and Swann flails the freehit over mid-on for two. However Fernando gets his revenge a ball later, knocking the leg stump out of the ground. Ooooooh this is tense, not too dissimilar to the dying moments of the rugby between England and Australia yesterday. More firecrackers are lit in the crowd, the Sri Lankan crowd safety laws not as stringent as they are in Blighty. Eng 148-8

42nd over - Eng 143-7
A horrendous misfield from Chaminda Vaas gifts Stuart Broad a vital second run - and bowler Jayasuriya is livid. Two more runs from that over. 21 runs needed off 36 balls.

41st over - Eng 139-7
Another half appeal from Fernando, who's getting plenty of reverse swing - and that's with a ball that's only six overs old after the change in the 35th over. But the pair run through for more valuable runs, it's getting tight though. 25 off 42 balls.

"More Sri Lankan name meanings:
Jaya - Win, victory
Sooriya - The Sun
Wardene - Develop, enhance
Ratne - Gem
Guna - Good, Kindness
Ran, rana - Gold
Sanga - Buddhist Monk
Pushpa - Flower
Kumara - Prince
Wickreme - Heroic deed, special deed
Singhe - Lion
Rupa - Pictures"
Mahasen Gunawardena

So Kumara Sangakkara is 'Prince Buddhist Monkkara'. Brilliant.

40th over - Eng 136-7
Crazy scenes in Jayasuriya's eighth over. He bowls one down leg-side but Swann is halfway down the pitch at the non-striker's end. Sangakkara launches the ball down to SJ but the former skipper fails to get hold of the ball. And at the end of all that. Asoka de Silva signals a wide. But the pair are picking up the crucial singles. 28 runs from 48 balls.

39th over - Eng 132-7
Moment of panic as my computer crashed, but fortunately I'm back up and running. Good over for England, five more runs added to Fernando's runs column. Dilhara unleashes another caveman appeal for lbw, but the ball is leg-side bound and the pair run through for a leg bye.

38th over - Eng 127-7
Jayasuriya bowls a maiden, tempting Stu Broad with a few nice flighters, but Broady is having none of it.

37th over - Eng 127-7
Swann gets a huge thick edge which evades Kumar Sangakkara and merrily rolls its way down to the boundary for four very handy runs. And the all-rounder smacks another four, this time with a savage aerial cut to deep point. Not the best ball from Malinga, but still, someone's gotta put it away. Good over for England. 37 runs needed from 66 balls.

36th over - Eng 119-7
He's a canny operator is our Sanath, he hardly gives anything away when he's bowling. Swanny dances down the wicket and hits SJ over mid-on into space, two more important runs to the total. 45 runs from 72 balls.

"The introduction of the dog was a brave tactic by Sri Lanka after it failed in the last game to swing the result. But all credit to the captain for sticking with it and having faith that it would bring England wickets."
Mark Airey, Rochdale

35th over - Eng 115-7
Intelligent batting from the Notts pair, who push the ball into gaps to pick up the singles off Malinga. Swanny misses out on the last delivery though, a juicy full-toss outside off stump begging to be dispatched to the boundary.

"David in Russia (23rd over) - Vladimir, about 100 miles (180 kms?) East of Mosva, Moscow. Near? Friend-only old chap, cricket lover though."
B>Paul Russia

34th over - Eng 109-7
Swann gets a swipe at Jayasuriya, which only just evades mid-on's hands, for two runs. Pressure? Eat it for breakfast says our Grae.

"Barry (27th over) - Jaya means 'win; wardene means 'developing' or 'growing'; Ratne means 'gem'.
B>Upali

33rd over - Eng 107-7 WICKET! Bopara lbw Malinga 6
Malinga has a shout for lbw turned down, the ball would have missed leg stump. Bopara then plays a crisp front-foot leg glance through mid-wicket for three but Malinga gets his man two balls later with a slower ball, which beats Bopara all ends up and hits him dead on and up goes the slowest arm in Dambulla. In comes Stuart Broad. 57 needed from 89 balls.

32nd over - Eng 101-6 WICKET! Collingwood lbw Jayasuriya 32
Jayasuriya loops up a well-flighted ball which hits Collingwood on the front pad. Wicket-keeper Sangakkara and Jayasuriya both go up, as does Asoka de Silva's finger. Colly is not impressed, he stands there for a good few seconds before trudging off to the sidelines. It looks as if he thinks he has an inside edge on to his front pad but replays suggest Colly had hit his pad with his bat rather than the ball. Graeme Swann is the new man and he gets beaten all ends up with a beauty from SJ. Squeaky-bottom time for England. Come on, spirit of Marseille and all that. Eng 102-6

"Paul Collingwood is most definitely not a tactical genius, as the Twenty20 showed. He has though, coincidentally or not, presided over an upturn in England's ODI fortunes (although the 20-20, where quick thinking captaincy was a prerequisite, turned into another shambles). The jury is still out but, if we keep winning, no one will complain.
Cricketing_stargazer on 606

31st over - Eng 101-5
Bopara nurdles a single down to third man for the England 100. If you have just joined in the frolics, you're not mistaken - you have read correctly, 100 in the 31st over.

30th over - Eng 98-5
Tedious, but I guess when overs are on your side, it's hardly a Twenty20 smashfest. Jayasuriya bowls another good over, squaring Colly up with a couple of deliveries turning from leg stump. Just a single from the over.

29th over - Eng 97-5
Colly has to scramble back into his crease when Ravi Bopara turns down a second run from a single off Fernando. Luckily Jayawardene's throw had no power or accuracy, otherwise it was curtains for the England captain. Fernando lets rip an mighty roar for a leg before appeal, but is turned down by umpire Koertzen.

28th over - WICKET! Eng 94-5 Shah bowled Jayasuriya 19
Just when you think it's all OK... Shah has a rush of blood to the head and saunters down the pitch to hit Jayasuriya over the top, but completely misses the ball, which hits leg stump. Silly shot. Out comes Ravi Bopara. Eng 95-5

27th over - Eng 94-4
It's hardly pulling teeth but this isn't pretty viewing. Colly mistimes a cover drive for two more runs as England close in on the 100.

"Lots of Sri Lankan surnames seem to share elements like 'Jaya-', -'wardene', '-karatne', and so on. Can someone tell me what these actually mean - in other words are they like 'Mac-' in Scottish names or '-son' in English ones? Thanks!
Barry Crofts

26th over - Eng 92-4
Sanath Jayasuriya comes in for his first spell of the night, conceding three singles from his first six balls.

25th over - Eng 89-4 Four more runs from that Fernando over. England are rebuilding - albeit slowly.

"Shah and Colly need to continue rebuilding if England are to win. Get to 100-4 and England will move into the favourites category."
iceklan10 on 606

24th over - Eng 85-4
A much-needed run injection as both men fashion four runs from Dilshan's over, including a well-run two.

23rd over - Eng 81-4
Text-book drive from Shah off Malinga, who plays one of those drives with little follow through to mid-on. The fielder manages to get his hand on the ball, but it still has enough wheels to reach the boundary. My colleague Oliver Brett informed me the TV boys on Sky are suggesting the Malinga is releasing the ball from umpire Rudi Koertzen's goatee, which, like the ball, is white. Looks like Shah is seeing it alright judging by that drive.

22nd over - Eng 74-4
Dilshan and his off-tweakery get an outing and the all-rounder thinks he has Colly leg before, doing one of those strange grunting-type appeals where he shouts a Neanderthal cry rather than actually say howzat. Strangely enough his appeal is turned down, although there is turn for him on his track. Not a bad over, just two runs from it.

"To Paul in Russia, where are you drinking ? I will join you!!!"
David in Russia

21st over - Eng 72-4
Malinga's front-foot back heel oversteps the line and it's the first free hit of the series, under the ICC's new regulations. But Shah strangely decides to duck under a short ball rather than attempt to muller the ball to all parts. Shah looks to umpire Koertzen as if to say 'I can't hit that' but the South African official ignores his silent pleas. Strange, and slightly anti-climatic.

Woah - exclusive time:
"The dog on the pitch is not the same as either of the dogs who invaded the pitch in the second ODI (Dog #1 and Dog #2). This one's coat is much darker than Dog #1's, but lighter than Dog #2's."
BBC Sport's Mark Mitchener, who was on live text/dog-watching duty on Thursday

20th over - Eng 69-4
Collingwood takes advantage of a rare loose delivery from Maharoof and smashes it through cover for four, a very welcome boundary. Shah fails to capitalise on another loose effort, hitting the ball into the ground and the ball limps to Dilshan at cover. That's Maharoof's 10 overs, a very tidy spell of 3-34.

19th over - Eng 64-4
Lasith Malinga comes on for his first foray in the innings. It looks as if he's had a little top-up with the blonde streaks. And here comes a dog! I cannot confirm whether it was the dog from the last one-dayer, but he had a good amble round and decides not to leave a present for the Sri Lankan fielders, although no-one wants to see him/her take a wild slash outside off stump. Sangakkara chases it off and play continues. Malinga has a more than useful lbw appeal turned down, replays suggest he was a little unlucky. Maiden over.

18th over - Eng 64-4 Colly is clearly not enjoying this. He looks clunky and out of sorts, lacking the fluency we usually associate with the England captain. However - and more importantly - he's still there, although Maharoof is doing his darndest to ensure that won't be the case. Another top over, just two runs conceded.

"15th over...Drinks time....Since yesterday's wonderful win mate, all day has been drinks time.
Paul in Russia

17th over - Eng 62-4
More tight lines from Vaas, who strays just once onto Shah's pads and the batsman collects two very well run runs.

"Why is Cook in the one-day side? He is a very good Test batsman but simply can't score quickly enough in ODI's. Bring in Mascharenhas and let Bell open with Mustard."
jackh131 on 606

16th over - Eng 60-4
The Sri Lankans go up on mass as Maharoof goes past Owais Shah's edge. The batsman is unmoved and so is umpire Asoka de Silva more importantly. Replays - and Snicko - vindicate the umpire's decision. Shah hits a lovely off drive into the covers which is brilliantly fielded by Jehan Mubarak, but the Middlesex man runs through for the single.

"I can't help but laugh, 165 sounded like a dead meat and yet it is turning out to be one on Sri Lanka's favour."
addicted_7 on 606

15th over - Eng 59-4
Vaas is back on again and beats Paul Collingwood with a belter of an off-cutter, which Kumar Sangakkara cannot hang on to. Vaas looks annoyed, as if he thought the England captain had got a nick on that. The ball is moving appreciably under the lights - and the Sri Lankan bowlers aren't in the mood to give away free runs. Drinks time. England need 105 from 33 overs.

14th over - Eng 57-4
Collingwood collects two runs with a glance down to fine leg off Maharoof. Dilshan is once again in the game, this time with yet more sharp fielding at point, which saves at least two runs. It's hardly edge of your seats stuff but there's plenty of tension out there.

13th over - Eng 54-4
The England 50 comes courtesy of a bye and Owais Shah adds four more to the total when he guides a ball outside off stump to the third man boundary for four.

"'Belly is looking in top nick.' I blame you, Pranners, for Bell's wicket. Hang your head in shame."
Carol, Portugal

12th over - Eng 47-4 WICKET! Bell ct Dilshan b Maharoof 16
Bell attempts to force Maharoof off the back foot, but finds Tilkeratne Dilshan, who takes a fine low catch at point. The Sri Lankans are loving this, the English are not. Owais Shah, the hero of the last match, is the new man at the crease. Eng 49-4

11th over - Eng 47-3
Maiden over from Fernando.

"I have only just tuned into the commentary (apologises) and after a quick scroll down the page was disappointed to see no photos of either dog #1 or the elusive dog #2 from the previous matches - is there any update on the animal situation?"
Annabel Mason

I'm slightly concerned about the welfare of both canines, who undoubtedly would have been enjoying a spell on the sidelines at the Rangiri Stadium. However I fear Dambulla's dog-catchers might have paid a visit to their kennels late yesterday evening to ensure they didn't make another special guest appearance today.

10th over - Eng 44-3 WICKET! Pietersen lbw Maharoof 8
Pietersen tries to drive a delivery from Maharoof which jags back into him, hitting him in front of off stump. The Sri Lankans go up - as does Asoka de Silva's finger. KP's not happy with that decision. Paul Collingwood is the new man and he opens his account with two runs nudging Maharoof's slower ball to third man. Eng 47-3

9th over - Eng 44-2
Bell unfurls another beautiful shot, this time a back-foot square drive for four off new bowler Dilhara Fernando. He plays a similar shot two balls later, this time through cover, for two more runs. Belly is looking in top nick.

"Cook is at the moment the worst batsman in our top 7 (possibly top 8?), so he was never likely to get too many."
GenesisTub on 606

8th over - Eng 37-2
Bell eases into a text-book cover drive off Maharoof which races away for four. It's the kind of shot that makes you go weak at the knees.

Cheers to Graham in Barcelona for 1) helping me with my Spanish vocab and 2) Spotting the wrong score after the sixth over.

7th over - Eng 32-2
More leg side flickery from KP, who picks up two runs off a straight ball from Vaas befrore launching into a short ball for four to the deep square leg boundary. Looked slightly ungainly, but who cares when you hit it for four?

6th over - Eng 23-2 WICKET! Mustard bowled Maharoof 14
Mustard attempts to pull a short Maharoof delivery, but gets a underside edge onto his pads before hitting the stumps. The wicket-keeper cannot believe it, he stands there for a good four seconds trying to work out what happened. Kevin Pietersen is the new man and he plays an absolutely gorgeous shot through mid-wicket for three. Ok he hasn't set the series on fire, but a shot like that just shows you what an extraordinary player he is. Eng 26-2

5th over - Eng 23-1
Shot of the day from Musters, a beautiful straight as a die drive off Vaas races to the boundary.

4th over - Eng 17-1
Mustard absolutely leathers a long hop from Maharoof to the cover boundary. Good job the advertising hoardings stopped that, the ball would've taken out a family of four like a ten-pin bowling strike. Interesting tactical field placing from Jayawardene, who has two strategically placed mid-wickets for Bell.

Rare rugby interruption but Fiji have just scored! I nearly fell off me chair! Back to the cricket...

3rd over - Eng 5-1 WICKET! Cook ct Sangakkara b Vaas 0 Oh dear, you've seen it before - Cooky snicks a good ball outside off stump and Sangers snaffles the catch like it was a flying piece of chocolate. Ian Bell is the new man at the crease and the Warwickshire man eases a flick off his hips for four with Swiss timing. Eng 11-1

2nd over - Eng 5-0
Farveez Maharoof opens the bowling and gets flayed through the covers by Phil Mustard, a very Gilchristesque shot.

"HG, you've been published now but I think I speak for all of us when I say I want proof. Pictures!"
Sarah, Bucks I'm doing a massive Jose Mourinho finger-wagging from the touchline here HG...

"Richard, you mean there's another Young-gook (it'll mean something to him) reading this at 11pm+ on a Sunday night in South Korea?? And there was me thinking I was the only one..."
Ian, Busan

1st over - Eng 0-0
Chaminda Vaas gets first go with the new ball, probing Ally Cook with six balls on or around off stump. Maiden to start up, but it's not as if England are in a rush here, is it?

"If it was Mills' utilitarianism we applied, only dull and dreary batsman (a la Boycott or Chauhan {not too sure who the boring Chauhan is - PS} would walk), KP, Afridi, Gilchrist and Yuvraj should simply refuse to leave till dragged off by security - clearly this would provide the greatest happiness to the greatest number."
Tito in Florida

1508: Phil Mustard and Alastair Cook stroll out to the middle as the floodlights beat down on the Rangiri Stadium. A lone spectator sparks up a firecracker, great scenes. Just imagine doing that at Lord's.

"Without wishing to detract from what I'm sure is a captivating game of cricket, can I just ask a simple question? If, and it's an if so no requests for a pic, I was to wear a frock and call myself 'Sarah from nnnnnnnn' (substitute 'nnnnnnnn' with an interesting place name) would I be:

A) Arrested
B) Published on the TMS live text page, or
C) Both/neither

HG, Bristol (stockings in hand)

1455: The target England need to chase is 164 NOT 165. The change is because the match has been shortened because of the earlier rain breaks. Don't quite see how that works mathematically, but I think Bernoulli numbers will deliver a pizza to my front doorstep.

"Sarah in Canterbury, I'm so sorry - how rude of me (and John in Yorks, I think you'll acknowlege, was getting quite philosopically noisy). We'll try and keep it down a bit. Would you be ok with a quiet bit of Bertrand Russell or someone. Perhaps Al in Oxford could quote some Kant for a bit - he was a very reasonable and quiet bloke on a Sunday. We'll lock Nietzche out, he's always so loud.
Paul in Lancs

"Michael Vaughan was the last English spinner to take a four-fer in an ODI!? Who did he get out? Laurel, Hardy and the Chuckle Brothers?"
Pete Hayman

"To me, to you."

Talking of the Chuckle Brothers, anyone see the homage to Barry and Paul celebrating their 20 years of entertainment on our screens?

The door routine has me in stitches every time.

"We should be able to get 165 without too much drama ... right?"
Sarah, Bucks

"Re Paul in Lancs (36th over), it's Sunday, mate. Most of us are feeling a tad delicate after the excesses of Friday/Saturday night and the brain is functioning a little less slowly than usual - can you just stick to monosyllables please?! Marvellous!"
Sarah, Canterbury

"The motivation behind the science of Hawkeye and Snicko may not be neutral - we chose to develop technology to help with borderline umpiring decisions rather than to help with ascertaining the colour of the umpire's underwear - but thankfully this doesn't affect the objectivity of the decisions they give. Anyway, if cricketers had listened to Kant, there'd be no need for the Snickometer, as all batsmen would walk (in accordance with the Categorical Imperative)."
Al, Oxford

"Fantastic, thought-provoking stuff about the valour of walking. Its so hard to find stimulating, well-balanced arguments halfway around the world. Keep it coming. Meanwhile, on the Premiership live text, we have: 'Caroline is dumb, she chooses dumb comments to publish.'"
Richard, South Korea

One thing I can definitely confirm is Caroline is not dumb, she's sharper than a Kiwi hangover. You can read her fine clockwatches in between innings here:

Or you can tuck into a bit of rugger action courtesy Phil "The Power" Harlow. I've seen this man DJ, he knows the platters that matter (and he's seen the Go! Team live on 46 different occasions):

41.1 overs - Sri Lanka 164 all out WICKET! Fernando ct Collingwood b Sidebottom 11
Fernando gets the old red mist and attempts to smash the returning Ryan Sidebottom into space, but manages to get a huge top edge which lands into the reliable hands of Paul Collingwood. It's all over, Sri Lanka are all out for 164. Fittingly Graeme Swann leads England off to pleasant applause. Also interesting to note that all nine wickets (bar the run out) fell to Nottinghamshire players. And before you get all pedantic on my backside, Stu Broad is counted as a Notts player.

41st over - Sri Lanka 164-9 WICKET! Dilshan ct Collingwood b Swann 70
Fernando's resistance is finally ended when he guides a tame dab to Paul Collingwood at short mid-wicket, who takes the easiest catch of his career. A top innings considering his team's situation when he came to the crease. The tremendously coiffeured Lasith Malinga is the new man at the crease, who plays out the rest of Swann's over. Swanny has been sensational, who becomes the first spinner to take four wickets in an ODI since Michael Vaughan's 4-22 against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford in 2002.

40th over - Sri Lanka 164-8
Fernando flails a slower ball from Collingwood to third man for two, before chipping over Ryan Sidebottom's head at mid-off for three more very valuable runs. The England riposte is wobbling, even more so when Dilshan biffs another explosive cover drive for four. This ninth-wicket partnership has fashioned 46 runs off 47 balls.

"Paul (36th over), yes, but this brings us back to which socialisation is taking place here. Within the overall context of world cricket, is it the Western tradition, which is struggling between self-knowledge and cultural manners (sportsmanship), the Eastern tradition, which reflects karma (or the Tao, if you wish, balanced between yin and yang), or the Australian tradition, which doesn't give a stuff so long as Australians win?"
John Starbuck, Yorkshire

39th over - Sri Lanka 152-8
The Dilshmeister hits Sri Lanka's eighth four of the day with a spanking cover drive off Graham Swann, bringing up Sri Lanka's 150 in the process. A few words of advice to Fernando (something along the lines of "just don't get out" maybe) has its desired effect as the big paceman survives the end of the over.

38th over - Sri Lanka 146-8
Intelligent batting from Dilshan, who's making the most of a not very good situation. Lots of good running turns ones into twos from that Collingwood over.

"I do wish MM (live text) wouldn't keep saying 'Swanny'. It prompts me to warble 'How I love ya, how I love ya' across the Plain of La Mancha.
FleetJackHobbs on 606

It's PS Fleet, but I'll let you off.

37th over - Sri Lanka 140-8
Swanny launches into his eighth over and once again keeps it tight, just four singles from that over.

36th over - Sri Lanka 136-8
Good over from Colly, squanders a run with a wide but is on the button like a two-year-old child playing with a calculator. It helps that Dilhara Fernando's at the crease, a man who looks like he learned to bat off the back of a cereal packet.

"John (32nd over), on whether Wittgenstein and his mates would have benefited from the snickometer, it is certainly a useful insight into the debate. I would however point out that science is never neutral, even if seen from a critical realist epistemological standpoint, and less so if you get all Foucauldian and anti-foundationalist. The classic analysis of this is Thomas Kuhn's 'The Structure of Scientific Revolutions' (1970) in which he sets out very lucidly his account of how scientific discovery is always set in a specific cultural and economic context, and where the 'powers that be' influence 'what is discovered. I would suggest the snicko is overly bowler-biased by its very origin, and proves my point, especially when you consider Kuhn is American and doesn't play cricket."
Paul in Lancs

35th over - Sri Lanka 134-8
Change of ball under the ICC new regulations for Graeme Swann. Dilshan soon collects a couple to take him to a well-deserved 50, a landmark appreciated by his compatriots in the stadium. Good innings, especially considering Dilshers was the man most likely to make way for the dazzlingly named Kaushal Lokuarachchi before the game.

34th over - Sri Lanka 130-8
Dilshan nicks a very strange four attempting to withdraw his bat from an Anderson delivery outside off stump, but somehow manages to nurdle it past Phil Mustard. A stray leg-side delivery is neatly tucked away for another for another boundary, much to Jimmy A's frustrations. Dilshan moves to 49.

33rd over - Sri Lanka 117-8 WICKET! Vaas run out (Bopara) 4
Dilshan guides the ball to deep point, where Ravi Bopara swoops down on the ball and fires in an accurate throw to Graeme Swann, who whips off the bails (with his wrists) with Vaas making a desperate full-body stretch to gain his ground. Unnfortunately for Chaminda he's a couple of inches short and the third umpire gives him his marching orders. Dilshan is probably the quickest runner in the Sri Lankan team, Vaas' pace between the wickets is probably not what it used to be, so it's probably fair to say Dilsher's has misjudged that call. New man is Dilhara Fernando. Sri Lanka 121-8

32nd over - Sri Lanka 117-7
Broady keeps it tight, Dougie Brown has suggested the pitch has gained a bit of pace.

"Paul in Lancs (28th over), all very well, but you omit the First Cause: did the ball touch the bat or not? This is a question about absolute knowledge, but how much can we really know for certain? Socrates, Hume and Wittgenstein would have benefited from having Hawkeye and Snicko available.
John Starbuck, Yorkshire

31st over - Sri Lanka 115-7
Vaas opens the blade and guides a nice late cut for three off Graeme Swann.

30th over - Sri Lanka 111-7
The stadium is pretty much packed now and Dilshan gets them cheering with a spanking cover drive for four off Stu Broad, moving to 37. Dilshers has one one-day ton, along with nine half-centuries, to his name. The brass band are giving it the full guns, although I'm not up on my Sinahlese cinema so I'm unsure whether they are playing the Sri Lankan Great Escape theme tune.

29th over - Sri Lanka 106-7 WICKET! Maharoof ct and bowled Swann 7
Shah can breathe a little easier as Maharoof drills a return catch to Swanny, who has to hug the ball to ensure he doesn't drop it. Maharoof reluctantly departs back to the pavilion. Chaminda Vaas is the new man at the crease and we've got a short mid-off for the veteran, who is no bunny wielding willow. Wicket maiden for Swann.

28th over - Sri Lanka 106-6
Stuey Broad is back on and he has Maharoof dropped at slip by Owais Shah, the sort of chance you would expect a slip fielder to pouch. Another ball falls just short of Shah, but he can't stop the run, much to Broad's chagrin.

"It seems to me that the dispute between Steve Atkins and Hasan Haq on whether or not to walk may have its roots in a fundamentally different philosophical foundation of, on the one hand, Western materialism, espoused, say in Mill's utilitarianism and at in a more cultural context the rise of Protestantism in 17th Century Europe, and on the other hand the greater 'spirituality. you could argue is inherent in one or more of the Eastern philosophic traditions, espoused (as Hasan notes) in the notion of Karma but also in Islam (and the literal meaning of the term along the lines of submission to the Almighty's will).

"It's nice to see the live text today bring forth this sort of debate, and suggests BBC TMS text is an organic successor to Radio 4 as the upholder of the BBC's public service and education values."
Paul in Lancs

Couldn't put it better myself Paul...

27th over - Sri Lanka 103-6
Swann is floating the ball up, giving it plenty of flight and he's getting some useful drift, which is always good to see. Nothing of note from the over, just three singles to oil the wheels of the scoreboard.

"All this talk of walking or not has made me feel very virtuous as yesterday I walked in the first game of the season for my university."
Sam, Scotland

Cricket? In October? In Scotland? Walking? University? Question mark?

26th over - Sri Lanka 100-6
Jimmy A smashes the timber with a direct hit from mid-on, but Dilshan, who is looking in useful form, is home after nicking a quick single off Colly. Maharoof gets off the mark and brings up the Sri Lankan ton.

25th over - Sri Lanka 93-6 WICKET! Mubarak ct and bowled Swann 6
Mubarak makes room for himself on the leg-side and launches Graeme Swann into the stands over deep mid-off with a stroke so beautiful I want to go to bed with it. However it's as ugly as it gets two balls later when he returns the simplest of catches to the bowler. It's all about England at the moment. Farveez Maharoof is the new man at the crease.

"Walking is not silly. Professionals who don't walk should be fined to set an example. After 25 years of playing club cricket, I've been trying to give it up. It is too confrontational these days."
Nigel Dobson from Somerset

24th over - Sri Lanka 86-5
Good stuff from Colly, who pins down new man Mubarak for five balls after Dilshan nicks a single from his first ball. All very good from the England captain.

23rd over - Sri Lanka 85-5 WICKET! Silva ct Mustard b Swann 11
Hardly Nostrodamus, but on comes Graeme Swann as predicted by me in the last over. The Notts man floats up a lovely delivery first up, beating Dilshan and keeper. However Chamara Silva is on his way after attempting to sweep Swann, but gets a thick bottom edge onto his boot, which is neatly taken one-handed by Phil Mustard behind the stumps. It's the classic Andrew Strauss dismissal, the one he got out to Warney a few times during the 2005 Ashes series. Only Silva's right-handed. And plays for Sri Lanka. Jehan Mubarak is the new man at the crease.

22nd over - Sri Lanka 83-4
Dilshan is batting like Sargent Sensible, he's nurdling the ball around, picking up ones and twos to give the scoring rate a much-needed boost. Both Dilshan and Silva are like Thompson's Gazelles between the wickets too. Reckon it's Swann time.

21st over - Sri Lanka 75-4
A bit of sloppy fielding from Ryan Sidebottom at fine leg sees Dilshan double his single after swatting a full-toss on leg stump to the Nottinghamshire man. Dilshan picks up another leg-side run.

"In reply to Steve Atkins (19th over) - I think it's great he walked. If he walks, and life is made easier for everyone else in the process, then why not? Karma will come back to haunt you anyway, so why not just be honest in the first place. Sportsmanship is rare in this day and age so if anyone is being sportsman, why are we complaining? Isn't this what we want to see? Hats off to Sangakkara."
Hasan Haq in the TMS inbox

20th over - Sri Lanka 72-4
Nice-looking square drive from Dilshan nets the all-rounder three runs off new bowler Paul Collingwood. It's not easy for the Sri Lankans and Colly isn't feeling in a generous freebie mood.

"I can only ever remember Mike Brearley walking... in and out. I have no memory of him actually at the crease."
Paul in the TMS inbox

19th over - Sri Lanka 69-4
Play is momentarily halted because the sole of one of Stuart Broad's boots has broken. On comes Monty Panesar with the beverages, much to the delight of the valiant army of England fans dotted around at the Rangiri Stadium. Another good over, just two from it and that's the end of the powerplays (because of the rain interruptions).

"Walking is just silly, because it totally destroys the whole 'swings and roundabouts' theory. You will get decisions go against you too, so it makes sense to take the ones that go for you. The only way walking would make sense in my opinion is if batsmen should be allowed to refuse to go off if they get a bad decision against them. That would only be fair, after all. If you disagree with this idea, then the umpire's decision should absolutely final either way, and walking undermines that."
Steve Atkins

18th over - Sri Lanka 67-4
Nice cut from Silva off Anderson sees the Sri Lankan pick up a couple of runs. The athletic Sri Lankan pair pick up an all-run four after Chamara Silva digs out a yorker-length delivery towards the long leg-side boundary.

17th over - Sri Lanka 59-4
More runs, four of them, as Dilshan rocks onto the back foot and dispatches a short ball from Stu Broad to the mid-wicket boundary. But Broady pulls it back with a mix of good deliveries and slower balls.

"Re the beer (7th over) - Alister can choose from Lion Lager, Three Coins and locally brewed Carlsberg either on or off the ground. Also read that the lunch interval may be shortened. Never heard of lunch in Sri Lanka at 5.30 pm in the evening! Let's hope it keeps raining and we (I am a Sri Lankan) have another shot tomorrow. Can't lose two matches in four days after not having lost a single in 25 years!
Omar, Madrid

16th over - Sri Lanka 55-4
Tillakaratne Dilshan is the new man at the crease and he's off the mark with a tidy flick off his hips from a rare off-radar Sidebottom delivery. However Siders regains his laser precision with a beauty which leaves Dilshan at the very last moment. And Siders has a useful lbw appeal turned down by snow-face Rudi a ball later. However Dilshers swats a juicy delivery on leg stump to the boundary for a much-needed Sri Lankan four. He picks up another boundary - this time in unorthodox fashion - when Alastair Cook's throw as the batsman run a tight single is missed by both Luke Wright and Kevin Pietersen and the ball rolls over for four overthrows.

15th over - Sri Lanka 42-4
Stu Broad continues from where he left off before the clouds squeezed out their aerial offerings, squaring Chamara Silva up with a belter of a delivery. The ball is zipping about, all good for England.

1224: The players are out but the game will be shortened to 48 overs and the last powerplay will be reduced to four overs. And the interval between innings will be truncated to 45 minutes.

"Bravo Sangakkarra, it's great to see there are still gentlemen in the sport. The only other walkers I know are Gilchrist and Cook. Who else walks in international cricket?"
Handledball on 606

"Went to the BBC Football page and the first thing I saw? "Ashton doubtful for England". After yesterday, I think he's safe for a little longer!
Eoin Smith

"A quick tip to taunt Oz or NZ friends. Send them a gloating email now so they will read it first thing Monday morning! BTW as well as (name of well-known search engine removed) Susan Raven you can (name of well-known search engine removed) Russ King to read about my fab new novel that has nothing to do with cricket whatsoever. Cheers (and keep up the good work)
Russ

1208: Apparently no overs will be lost, but surely another interruption will encroach into over-shortening territory. There is a reserve day for this game tomorrow.

1201: Ah the dulcet tones of the shipping forecast, friend (and foe) of every radio cricket fan and sea-farer across the globe. I would like that lady to read me a bed-time story.

1158: Interesting to see Sangakkara walking there, Broady and Mustardy half-heartedly stuck their arms in the air only when our Kumar turned his back to walk towards the pavilion, must be something about the wicket-keepers' union about walking. Adam Gilchrist does it, our Kumar does it, even your trusty correspondent - a gazelle with the gauntlets in hand behind the sticks - walks, ergo all stumpers are walkers.

15th over - Sri Lanka 42-4 WICKET! Sangakkara ct Mustard b Broad 9
Sangakkara flails at a Broad delivery and snicks the ball to Phil Mustard behind the sticks. The Sri Lankan left-hander turns his back and walks towards the pavilion, much to the puzzlement of Stu Broad and Mustard, neither of whom appealed for the catch. Lordy, here comes the rain. Sorry folks, RAIN STOPS PLAY.

14th over - Sri Lanka 42-3
More quality bowling from Ryan Sidebottom, who has been tighter than Jockey Wilson's jock strap. Maiden over.

"Concerning your best man quandary - I would suggest asking Duckworth-Lewis. If the marriage ends early, he would be able to tell us who had won."
Alan Heavens

13th over - Sri Lanka 37-3 WICKET! Jayawardene ct Collingwood b Broad 2
Stuart Broad bowls the most sumputous half-tracker outside off stump you'll ever see first up and Jayawardene tucks in, only to see his aerial cut land in the superglue hands of Paul Collingwood at point. England are all over the home side right now. Nothing special from the rest of the over, Sangakkara fashions four runs while new man Chamara Silva gets off the mark. Sri Lanka 42-3

"Sat in the office on a Sunday proudly wearing an England rugby shirt. I am in a huge dilemma whether to sack it off at 12 when our next door neighbour, a branch of a popular chain of Australian theme bars, opens. Could both catch the rest of Sri Lanka's innings and kill two birds with one stone by doing a bit of gloating as well. What do your reader's think?"
Jonathan Hornby, London

"As a Scot I have mixed feelings about England's rugby success but since we're rubbish at cricket I am pleased to see England do so well. Maybe if we invent a sport we'll have a 1 in 2 chance of winning."
Thomas, Germany

12th over - Sri Lanka 37-2
Sidey is on top miserly form, just the one single from another tight over. The man is on fire - wonder whether the flame-haired left-armer will bowl out his overs.

"Ian Bell will get a century."
I_R_Bell on 606

11th over - Sri Lanka 36-2
And we're back - just a light shower. Jimmy A has a not too shabby request for leg before turned down and Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene gets off the mark with an outside edge to third man. Sangakkara is thoroughly fortunate not to have played onto his stumps, he looks as comfortable as a man attempting to translate Sun Tzu's Art of War into Albanian armed only with a Estonian dictionary.

"Come on Pranav, keep it together, the score cannot go from 22-1 in the 6th over to 28-0 in the 7th! To much talk about dogs, booze and rain has ruined your typing and addled your brain! Perhaps you should listen to some of my music to help to re-focus your mind on the task at hand."
Susan Raven

Flagrant self-promotion from Susan as she has also included a link to her website which the impartial BBC could never provide a link to the masses, although if you type in Susan's name in a well-known search engine you'll be fine. Apologies for the lapse in concentration, the cricket best man quandary has really got me thinking.

11th over - Sri Lanka 33-2
Powerplay time - and quite right too. It's crazy weather in Dambulla at the moment, it's raining in bright sunshine. And the rain is pelting it down now. And there's a rainbow, crazy tropical weather scenes. Just as the covers are being brought on, the rain stops. A few of the England boys are still out on the field having a little peep at what the groundstaff are up to.

10th over - Sri Lanka 33-2 WICKET! Jayasuriya ct Swann b Sidebottom 11
Top thinking from Siders, who digs a short ball in to Jayasuriya, who top-edges a pull and Graeme Swann takes an excellent catching running in from the deep square leg boundary. Earlier in the over SJ attempted to smash Sidebottom to the Maldives advancing down the pitch, but completely mishit his mow.

9th over - Sri Lanka 33-1
The ball seems to be zipping about a bit off the pitch, which is good news for James Anderson, who bowls a much better over than his previous effort. Three runs from that over, all gleaned through singles.

8th over - Sri Lanka 30-1
The groundstaff are poised by the covers, so we could be in for another interruption. Siders plunders another tight over, nothing to excite the batsman. Dougie Brown has also revealed Darren Gough will be Kevin Pietersen's best man when the Hampshire man gets married to Liberty X belle Jessica Taylor in December. Hmmm, gets me thinking, if I could have a cricketer as my best man, I would definitely go for someone of the ilk of Tuffers, plenty of 'Cat' chat for the best man's speech for sure. Anyone else got any other cricketers who would have the wedding guests in stitches with tales of carnage?

7th over - Sri Lanka 28-1
Not the greatest from Jimmy A, who drops short and Jayasuriya rocks onto the back foot and lashes the ball through mid-wicket for four. Jimmy has a stifled appeal for leg before turned down, replays show the ball strikes SJ above the pad. I'm also (sort of) pleased to say there have been no dog interruptions.

"Pranav - we're coming over from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for the two Colombo games. Never mind the weather - more importantly can you get a beer in the ground?"
Alister Winter, Riyadh, KSA

I would love to say I'm nestled in the middle of a jungle with a monkey on my back and a snake keeping my toes warm in Dambulla, but I'm stuck in an office in Shepherd's Bush, so no beer-buying issues for me. Any readers care to enlighten Alister?

6th over - Sri Lanka 22-1 WICKET! Tharanga bowled Sidebottom 15
Tharanga guides a nice cut down to third man, where James Anderson does well to save a boundary. Siders gets the first genuine play and miss of the day when Tharanga plays down the wrong line to a ball outside off stump. And he manages to beat the bat and knock the off stump out of the ground two balls later. Once again Tharanga plays down the wrong line, only this time it's a straighter ball. More left-handed antics as Kumar Sangakkara strolls to the crease.

5th over - Sri Lanka 20-0
England's fielding has been a touch sloppy today, another tight single from Jayasuriya is turned into an easy jog when SJ dabs the ball to Paul Collingwood, who uncharacteristically doesn't gather cleanly. Three singles from the over.

"I nearly went into early labour at the final whistle of the England match yesterday afternoon (we're due on the 18th our second)as I was so excited. I was straight on my mobile to text my Aussie cousins who were watching the match at one of the Aussie pubs asking if we could play them every week! Strangely, we didn't get much of a reply... Watching the Kiwis get knocked out was the icing on the cake, well played France and 2-0 Northern Hemisphere!"
Catherine, Letchworth Garden City

4th over - Sri Lanka 17-0
Siders bowls his fourth ball as, amazingly, sunshine beats down on the Rangiri Stadium, an utterly alien phenomenon for us in Blighty after a rain shower. He's on the money and doesn't concede a run.

1058: And they're out again, Upul Tharanga and Sanath Jayasuriya make their way out to the middle, along with England's boys in (lighter) blue.

1056: For those pining for the heady days of Fordyce and Dirs on the cricket, the pair have been going absolutely ballastic in Marseille - you can read about their latest adventure here:

1049: Play will start in 10 minutes. Happy days.

"A handy guide to working out which team is which (ref third over) given that they are both in blue. Sri Lanka are the team with willow bats and are running up and down the wicket. England are the other team."
Steve Palmer

1046: The umpires are currently looking at the pitch but more interestingly on TMS Russel Arnold is attempting to justify Australia played the better rugby against England and should have gone through to the last four because they scored the only try of the game. He is suitably scoffed at by everyone - including Scot Dougie Brown.

"The only 'guy' who seems disappointed in the satisfaction you took from seeing a weeping wee Kiwi fan just happens to have the name Bruce - there'll be a few touchy people about in the sports world today called Bruce I reckon!"
Matt Blakely, Newcastle

1035: The covers are coming off, great scenes. Hopefully play should resume shortly, umpires Rudi Koertzen and Asoka De Silva will be inspecting the strip soon.

"Looking at the picture of Dougie Brown, I can't help but think that he must be the love child of Fenella the Wicked Welsh Kettle Witch from Chorlton and the Wheelies."
Jamie Macdonald

1027: Apparently the chat on TMS is that the rain normally comes down in droves on 15 October, it's that precise. However slightly odd as the reason the ground was built in Dambulla was to escape the coastal rains of Colombo and Galle. Word is the two one-dayers in Colombo will definitely be rain-effected, but it begs the question - why bother scheduling a one-day series when you know it's going to lash it down for most of the time? Odd.

"Re comment at 0939 - describing a scene of a distraught Kiwi girl after the rugby as the 'finest moment of the evening'.... hardly the most gracious and gentlemanly thing to say?"
Bruce, Manchester

You're making me feel tres guilty now Bruce, but I was slightly addled by Guinness milkshakes and was utterly overjoyed to see England play France as opposed to the All Blacks machine, so I might have been overcome by the emotion of the game. Next week I shall be taking candy from a crying baby.

4th over - Sri Lanka 17-0
Just when you were getting into the swing of things, the heavens open and the covers are on. Bad news senors y senoritas, rain has stopped play. Earlier in the over Siders has not an unreasonable shout for leg before turned down by the newly goateed Rudi Koertzen. His goatee is slightly strange as it's entirely white and covers his entire chin, making him look like he has eaten a huge chunk of snow.

3rd over - Sri Lanka 14-0
I'm a bit put out by both teams wearing blue shirts - do cricket teams have away strips? I'm going to start a campaign. Maybe Kate Moss can design them, although I don't really want to see James Anderson bowling at 85mph wearing hot pants and a revealing vest top. The Burnley Express is a little off kilter this morning, Tharanga dismisses a ball on leg stump to fine leg for the first boundary of the day. More good running from the openers sees the pair ticking the scoreboard along very nicely.

2nd over - Sri Lanka 7-0
Dodgy fielding from Stuart Broad means a very tight single from Sanath Jayasuriya turns into a jog in the park for the 38-year-old. If Broady had gathered cleanly, SJ would've been more out than a Wallaby in France. Tharanga guides a ball on his pads from Ryan Sidebottom through mid-wicket for a couple.

"With regards to your moment of joy in the pub last night... I had to work a night shift last night, I'm an air traffic controller. Imagine my joy when the pilot of the Qantas flight from Heathrow to Singapore called on frequency at about 23.30. His callsign, which caused much merriment to myself, my colleagues and some of the pilots also around at that time, was Qantas 10. He was a thoroughly good sport, took a bit of a ribbing, and was equally delighted to see the New Zealanders get knocked out!!!"
Mike Hornby

1st over - Sri Lanka 3-0
James Anderson's first up with the new ball and there's hardly any carry through to wicket-keeper Phil Mustard. Upul Tharanga nudges a ball off his hip for two runs, but nothing of real note from that over.

0959: The teams are out - it's a bit like the Scotland v New Zealand rugby game last week when both teams seemed to be wearing the same strip. England's shirts are a slightly lighter blue than Sri Lanka's.

"Male occupant of this house out for day chasing small ball around 18 little holes, have promised to do some gardening but the cricket is on - what shall I do?"
Chrissy, North Notts

A dilemma indeed Chrissy, however, my advice is always sport first, house duties later. Drink Pimms, stick yer feet up on the sofa and employ a 13-year-old to mow the lawn. Job done.

0946: Senors y senoritas, random thoughts on the cricket, rugby, raisins in savoury dishes most welcome. Get involved via the 606 website or email in to the TMS inbox.

"The pitch looks like it's going to be slow and very low. We have big cracks and inside these cracks are thousands of little cracks. I think Monty Panesar would have been very useful on this surface."
Dougie Brown on TMS

0939: OK, who's still in a bit of a fug after watching Saturday's crackerjack double header of rugger? I had the honour of watching the New Zealand v France match in a pub full of Kiwis, the finest moment of the evening was seeing an inconsolable girl regaled in black leaving the pub a minute after the final whistle streaming in tears. Anyone else had any wonderfully schadenfreudic moments from the weekend?

0936: News from the middle - Sri Lanka have won the toss and will bat first in Dambulla. Oh oh, it's batting under the lights time again. Both sides named unchanged teams from Thursday's match.