Sri Lanka are 104-5 at tea on day two of the first Test at St George’s Park.

The visitors are in trouble. After bowling beautifully in the first session on day two to reduce South Africa to 286 all out, they have lost five first-innings wickets and still trail the Proteas by 182 runs.

The Proteas bowlers received significant assistance from the pitch during the morning session and picked up three important Sri Lankan wickets. The hosts were made to toil, however, for the next two. They may have had a sixth victim if Quinton de Kock had held a catch off Kagiso Rabada’s bowling just 15 minutes before the tea break.

That said, the Proteas are in a strong position. Vernon Philander trapped Kaushal Silva lbw to break a promising partnership. And just when it appeared as if Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal were settling, the Sri Lankan captain drove at a wide delivery by Rabada and lost his wicket.

Chandimal had two let-offs in the second session. The Proteas wasted both their reviews, and so were not able to request a second look at one bat-pad incident. Television replays showed that a Kyle Abbott delivery had struck Chandimal on the pad before it went on to hit the bat. Later, De Kock dropped Chandimal off the bowling of Rabada.