Australia's hopes fade amid rain and bad light

Match delayed by rain Sri Lanka 174 and 317 for 6 (Mathews 11*, Randiv 4*, Harris 3-54) leadAustralia 411 for 7 by 80 runs
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	Mahela Jayawardene made 51 © AFP Enlarge
Related Links Report : Solid Sangakkara fights for Sri Lanka Matches: Sri Lanka v Australia at Pallekele Teams: Australia | Sri Lanka

Australia's hopes of victory in Pallekele were all but washed away by more wet weather on the final day, where Sri Lanka held an 80-run lead with four wickets in hand at tea. As the gloom set in and the rain approached, the umpires called for the covers during the post-lunch session and an early tea was called, and the chances of further play - let alone enough to bring a result - were slim.

It was a disappointing situation for Michael Clarke and his men, who wanted to wrap up the series before heading to Colombo later this week for the final Test. They outplayed Sri Lanka for most of this match, but a stronger batting performance from the Sri Lankans in the second innings, combined with the weather and bad light, seemed to have saved them from defeat.

At tea, they were 317 for 6, with Angelo Mathews on 11 and Suraj Randiv on 4. Ryan Harris had led a spirited Australian bowling effort and had three wickets, the last one being Prasanna Jayawardene, who edged behind for 13 when Harris found some movement away off the seam. It was the first of two breakthroughs in the middle session for Australia.

Thilan Samaraweera had made a steady 43 when he suffered a lapse in judgment, edging behind when he tried to cut a Shane Watson inswinger that was too close to his body. It left Sri Lanka six down, but Australia really needed to force a collapse to have any hope of victory. They had also collected two wickets before lunch in another session affected by wet weather.

Only 17.2 overs were bowled in the first session, as rain forced the players off the field an hour before the scheduled lunch break. The Australians took the new ball in the second over of the day, and it didn't take long before Harris made use of it, squaring Kumar Sangakkara up with a delivery that straightened in the air and moved away a touch off the seam.

The thick edge was snapped up Michael Clarke at second slip and with Sangakkara gone for 69, Australia's hopes brightened. Things could have been even better for the visitors later in the same over, when Samaraweera edged to slip before he had scored, but Clarke grassed a chance he would usually have taken.

Clarke was in the thick of the action again when Jayawardene, who had made a composed half-century, fell for the second time in the game to a stunning one-handed take in the cordon. On 51, Jayawardene edged Trent Copeland to second slip and Clarke hurled himself to his left to snare the ball just above the turf. However, despite Clarke telling Jayawardene he was "100% certain" he had taken the catch cleanly, the batsman stood his ground until replays confirmed the ball had clearly not touched the ground.

Within four overs, the players were off for the rain, and although the weather cleared up enough for a brief resumption, the umpires called for the covers again after only one ball. The only thing gloomier than the Pallekele sky was the mood in the Australian camp, as their fine work over the past few days looked set to go unrewarded.