Sri Lankan captain Marvan Atapattu paid tribute to veteran Hashan Tillakaratne after the left-hander became the first Sri Lankan to score a century on South African soil.

Tillakaratne was the cornerstone of Sri Lanka's first innings 326, scoring an unbeaten 104 in just over four hours of hard graft. It was the fourth time that Tillakartne has passed three figures since being recalled in August 2001 after two years in the wilderness.

"Hashan was unfortunate to be left out for two years and he has come back and has proved that it was wrong to leave him out - he has performed above expectations," said Atapattu.

Sri Lanka's chairman of selectors, Guy de Alwis, was so impressed that he is considering drafting the left-hander into the one-squad for the first time since the 1999 World Cup. A request has been sent to the Sports Minister and a final decision is expected on Monday.

Tillakaratne claimed afterwards that he was delighted with his performance against the "mighty" South Africans but claimed to care little about personal landmarks.

"I'm proud to have scored a century but personal milestones are not very important to me," said the 35-year-old. "The wicket was batsmen-friendly and I enjoyed my time in the middle."

He went on to thank his teammates. "I have really enjoyed my run in the side since coming back in 2001 and my teammates have been really supportive."

Tillakaratne was on 91 when the ninth wicket fell but said that he wasn't concerned by the sight of number eleven Muttiah Muralitharan walking to the middle.

"I wasn't nervous when Murali came to the crease as I have batted with him for so many years and know what he can do," he said. "He was so keen for me to get the century and was encouraging me all the time."

Atapattu was disappointed by the performance of the other top order batsman, including himself, who got out after making starts.

"Getting yourself out when you have got yourself well-set is a crime on these pitches where it is very hard to get a start - you have go on and make big contributions," he said.

Despite the performance of Jacques Kallis and Herschelle Gibbs, who have so far added 112 runs for the third wicket, he believes the game is still open.

"The are their most experienced players and we have to get them out quickly tomorrow. However, I think the game is still evenly poised," he said.

"We have to make sure that they don't get a big lead. If we do that we can score some runs and put them under pressure in the last innings."