Sri Lanka all out on 180; SA 23-0

Sri Lanka recovered from captain Tillakaratne Dilshan's early rush of blood to battle to 76 for three at lunch on the first day of the first test against South Africa on Thursday.
Sri Lanka were sent in to bat by South Africa in cloudy conditions providing plenty of assistance to the bowlers on a well-grassed pitch.
Dilshan controlled himself for his first half-dozen deliveries before rashly trying to on-drive a swinging delivery from Dale Steyn and looping a catch to Vernon Philander at wide mid-on.
Dilshan was out for six, bringing former captain Kumar Sangakkara to the crease but he lasted just three balls, scoring a single before Philander got a delivery to rear up at him and he edged the ball to second slip where Jacques Kallis took a well-judged catch lunging to his left.
Sri Lanka were teetering on 12 for two but Tharanga Paranavitana and the experienced Mahela Jayawardene batted with great concentration in a sensible third-wicket stand of 54.
The session looked in danger of ending disappointingly for South Africa, but a hushed crowd burst to life four overs before lunch when Philander made a delivery hold its line to the left-handed Paranavitana and bowled him through the gate for 32.
Jayawardene went to lunch on 23 not out with Thilan Samaraweera on six.
Philander was the best of the South African bowlers with figures of two for 30 from nine overs.
Steyn took one for 13 in six overs but the world's number one ranked bowler only occasionally produced his full pace.
Steyn's wicket was, however, his 250th in tests, the 28-year-old reaching the landmark in his 49th match.
Only Dennis Lillee has taken 250 wickets in fewer tests, the Australian fast bowler reaching the milestone in his 48th match.

Pitch Report: Sri Lanka Vs South Africa 1st test, centurion

Sri Lanka could face difficulty when they take on the South Africa in the first Test at SuperSport Park in Centurion on December 15, if statistics are anything to go by.
South Africa has lost one, won 12 and drawn three Tests out of the16 Test matches played at the venue.
Sri Lanka has also lost all three past Test matches in SuperSport Park, Centurion
South Africa won their last Test match at the ground by an inning and 25 runs against India.
The groundsman, Hilbert Smit, said the pitch would help the home team.
"You just have to try and advance the South African strong points without taking it too far. I believe there should be enough grass on, while the surface should be hard.
It's also all about timing. You don't want the pitch to be ready two days before the Test but on the morning of the Test itself," The Sport 24 quoted Smit, as saying.
Smit said he always tries to make the pitch slightly helpful for the bowlers on the first morning of the Test match.
He strives for a pitch that keeps captains of both teams guessing before the toss

There is no another Muralitharan: Sangakkara

Any effort by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to find another Muttiah Muralitharan would prove futile as cricket will never see a bowler like the legendary off-spinner, wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara has said.
"You get one Murali and that's about it really. Again it's important for us to come to terms with that. We're not looking for the next Murali, we're looking for the next best spinner to come and win games for us," Sport24 quoted Sangakkara, as saying.
"He might not take 800 wickets, but I think the guys we have on tour are good enough to do that job for us. Murali was probably one of the slowest bowlers to 200 Test wickets, they're not born overnight. It comes from years and years of hard work," he added.
Averaging over six wickets per Test, Muralitharan was one of the most successful bowlers in the game.
He is the highest wicket-taker in both Test cricket and in ODIs.
Muralitharan announced his retirement from Test cricket after the first Test against India at Galle in July 2010. During that match he became the first to reach the milestone of taking 800 Test wickets by dismissing Pragyan Ojha.

Dilshan confident about the finance obligations

Sri Lanka captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said on Wednesday he was confident his board would honour their obligations and pay the team's outstanding salaries before the first test against South Africa starting on December 15 in Centurion.
Sri Lanka's players have not been paid since the World Cup ended in April but Sports Minister Mahindanda Altuthgamage promised on Tuesday they would be paid 65 percent of the outstanding amount within three days and the rest by January.
Dilshan told reporters on Wednesday he accepted Altuthgamage's word.
"I think they will try and sort it out within the next week. That's the news I've got from the cricket board. They are going to sort out all the payments," he said,
"We have had discussions, myself and the cricket association, the last few weeks and they promised they will sort it out next week. They are definitely going to sort it out before the first test. As a captain, I have to focus on cricket and not worry about the payments."
Sri Lanka are chasing their first series win in South Africa after losing in 1997/98, 2000/01 and 2002/03 and Dilshan said it was crucial they adapted to the conditions as quickly as possible.
"We haven't played a test match here for a while, but we have played one-day series on-and-off in South Africa. Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara have played a lot of cricket in South Africa and if we can get ready for these conditions, I can say it will be a good series," the opening batsman said.
Dilshan was appointed as Sri Lanka's captain after the World Cup since when they have lost test series to England, Australia and Pakistan. He said the team still relied heavily on his two predecessors, Sangakkara and Jayawardena.
"We know the last few series our batting didn't click. That's the main goal for us, to see that our batting unit can put some runs on the board," he said.
"We are carrying a few young players. It's not easy coming to South Africa, especially as they have been playing good cricket. We can't do any mistakes here, they are a good team."
The Centurion test is the first of three with the others scheduled for Durban from December 26 and Cape Town from January 3.

Graham Smith backs SL players

South African cricketers have added their voices to the call to Sri Lanka Cricket(SLC) to settle the outstanding amounts due to the Sri Lankan players.
"We want to show our support for Tillakaratne Dilshan and our fellow professional cricketers from Sri Lanka on this issue," Sport24 quoted South African captain Graeme Smith, as saying.
"It is far from ideal that the Sri Lankan team is about to start a tough Test series and ODI series here in South Africa without having been paid any of their remuneration for the last eight months," he added.

According to reports, SLC has not paid the country's cricketers since March 2011 and a total amount of approximately six million pounds is owed to the players.

'South Africa going to be bigger challenge mentally,' says Jayawardene

Sri Lanka had a disappointing outing against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates, but the team needs to put the series behind and look ahead to South Africa, batsman Mahela Jayawardene has said.
"The UAE tour was frustrating because we had our opportunities, but didn't convert them - especially in the fourth and fifth ODIs. In the fifth match we didn't hold onto our chances, while Pakistan had a couple of good partnerships and finished it off. We needed to be consistent with the momentum," Jayawardene wrote in an article for the Daily Times.

"South Africa is going to be a bigger challenge mentally. We have to put this Pakistan series behind us. We cannot ride on what happened in the Middle East, take that extra baggage on board and think everything will turn around in South Africa. We need to play to our strengths and take positives from the Pakistan series," he added.
Pakistan had won the three-Test series 1-0 and secured the five-match ODI series with a 4-1 win. (ANI)