Tillakaratne pays tribute to Fleming after marathon innings

Hashan Tillakaratne, Sri Lanka's new Test captain, paid tribute to his counterpart, Stephen Fleming, who scored an unbeaten 274 out of New Zealand's massive 515 for seven declared on day two of this Colombo Test.

Fleming batted for nearly 11 hours in hot and humid conditions at the P. Saravanamuttu Stadium, posting the second highest score by a New Zealander in Test history.

"It was a bad day for us but I must give credit to Stephen (Fleming) for the way that he batted today," said Tillakaratne. "We must a leaf out of how he batted - how he played the spinners and how he batted with his partners. It was a good example for us to follow."

Sri Lanka now face a long fight to save the Test - a match they cannot lose with this being a two-Test series - especially after the first over loss of Marvan Atapattu.

"Marvan (Atapattu) is our banker. To lose him was a big lose. We are now going to have to work hard to save this test match. Our first target is avoiding the follow on," he added.

Duleep Mendis, Sri Lanka's stand-in coach, criticised his side's fielding as eight clear chances were missed in the innings, including four by Mahela Jayawardene.

"The bowlers did alright but the sad part was the fielding, especially the catching. We dropped about ten catches and it is very difficult to come back on a wicket like this when you do that," said Mendis.

"It seemed to be a lack of concentration which relates to the fitness levels. After the World Cup the fitness levels were down and there has not been a chance to increase them again with the tournament in Sharjah."

Stephen Fleming was exhausted and delighted in equal measure: "It's great - it has set-up the Test, which I am pleased about more than anything. The personal side of things will sink in later tonight but at the moment I'm delighted I was able to play a hand."