Tea New Zealand 103 for 3 (Latham 55*, Nicholls 5*) trail Sri Lanka 244 (De Silva 109, Southee 4-63, Boult 3-75) by 141 runs

After Dhananjaya de Silva made a chancy but classy century to carry Sri Lanka to 244, Lahiru Kumara and the spinners made early inroads into New Zealand's batting line-up as the second Test gathered pace. This, after wet weather had allowed just 66 overs across the first two days.

Both Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor nicked off cheaply, but opener Tom Latham ground his way to an unbeaten half-century, leading New Zealand's resistance at Colombo's P Sara Oval. The visitors were 141 runs behind Sri Lanka at tea on day three.

Dilruwan Perera marked his return to Test cricket with a biting offbreak that bounced sharply to get rid of Jeet Raval for a nine-ball duck to set the ball rolling for Sri Lanka in the field. Williamson, who had been dismissed for single-digit scores in both innings in Galle, looked more assured here until he guided fast bowler Kumara straight into the lap of second slip for 20 off 28 balls.

Latham and Taylor then briefly repaired the early damage with contrasting methods. While Latham defended resolutely and refrained from reaching out for the ball outside off, Taylor engaged in signature slog-sweeps and regular trips down the track. During one such advance down the track, he failed to meet the pitch a turning ball from left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya and tickled an outside edge to slip for 23.

Latham, though, pressed on to bring up his fifty with a flat, hard sweep to the square-leg boundary, moments before tea. Keeping him decent company was Henry Nicholls.

It was de Silva who had owned the third morning. From an overnight score of 32 off 62 balls, he cranked up the tempo and peeled off 77 off 86 balls, reaching his fifth Test hundred in the process.

De Silva had stepped out to bat when Sri Lanka were 93 for 4 and could have been dismissed on 9 had Trent Boult, who has grabbed several blinders over the years, not dropped an absolute sitter off his own bowling. There were streaky inside edges that eluded the leg stump and top edges that cleared the outfielders, but de Silva counterbalanced that with some exquisite strokes.

He collared left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel and struck three successive fours off him, the pick of them an inside-out shot over extra-cover. It provided a throwback to his first runs in Test cricket: a similarly regal inside-out loft off Steve O'Keefe in Pallekele in 2016.

Ajaz, however, found success at the other end when he pinned the other overnight batsman Dilruwan Perera with an arm ball that skidded off the pitch. Tim Southee then went around the wicket and softened Suranga Lakmal with a short-ball barrage, which resulted in the batsman taking his eyes off and fending one behind to BJ Watling. In his next over, Southee removed Embuldeniya to come within one scalp of joining Boult in reaching 250 Test wickets in the same game.

Dhananjaya, though, cut and drove with great authority in addition to taking calculated risks with the tail. He had moved into the 90s with a top-edged six off Boult and then nearly dragged Southee back onto his stumps when he was 99. Two balls later, with No. 11 Kumara for company, he got to the landmark with a carved four over backward point. De Silva celebrated by blowing kisses in the direction of the crowd even as captain Dimuth Karunaratne was seen pumping his fist in the dressing room. There would be more joy for Sri Lanka in the afternoon.