Colombo, December 12:

England face the daunting prospect of playing out Muttiah Muralitharan on the final day on Thursday to draw the second Test and keep the three-match series alive.

The tourists, trailing Sri Lanka by 197 runs on the first innings, ended the fourth day’s play at 48-0 in their

second knock today. Alastair Cook was unbeaten on 19

and captain Michael Vaughan was on 28.

England, who lost the first Test in Kandy last week, must bat out the last day to have a chance of forcing a series-levelling win in the final Test at Galle starting from Tuesday.

Earlier, Sri Lanka took their overnight score of 379-4 to 548-9 before captain Mahela Jayawardene, who top-scored with 195, declared the first innings in the final session. The hosts were reduced to 450-8 after lunch before wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardene and Dilhara Fernando put on 98 runs for the ninth wicket.

Prasanna struck a pugnacious 79 before he gloved Steve Harmison to wicket-keeper Matthew Prior and prompted his captain to declare. Fernando remained unbeaten on 36 as the Sri Lankan tail frustrated England’s bowlers, for whom Harmison and Ryan Sidebottom claimed three wickets each. Left-arm spinner Monty Panesar took 2-151.

Mahela Jayawardene, on 167 overnight, fell five runs short of his fourth double hundred. He hit 16 boundaries and a six. Mahela Jayawardene, who came in to bat on Monday afternoon with Sri Lanka struggling on 22-2, was out at the total of 420 after edged a sweep off Panesar to Paul Collingwood.

The skipper is Sri Lanka’s highest Test run-getter with 7,058 racing past the retired Sanath Jayasuriya’s record of 6,973 runs on Tuesday.