Ian Bell: We let bowlers down

* England facing record run chase after collapse* But Swann gives them ray of hope with four wickets
27 March 2012

Ian Bell admitted England’s batsmen have let down their bowlers with their abject performances this winter as the tourists fight to avoid defeat inside three days here.

Sri Lanka lead by 209 runs with five second-innings wickets still intact and captain Mahela Jayawardene believes that 50 more might be enough to give his team a 1-0 lead in the two-match Test series.

Bearing in mind the highest fourth-innings total in a Test on this ground is the 253 made by Sri Lanka, in a losing cause, against Australia last August, it is clear Andrew Strauss’s side face a daunting task.

England’s bowlers fought hard to take five wickets in the final two sessions but the batsmen’s limp display means their efforts are unlikely to bear fruit.

England were bowled out for 193 in just 46.4 overs today, meaning they have passed 300 only once in seven innings against Pakistan, who whitewashed them 3-0 earlier this year, and Sri Lanka.

Bell returned to form with a fluent 52 but he knows who should take the blame for England’s failures. “The score is not going to lie,” he said. “To get bowled out for under 200 isn’t great on a wicket that is pretty good. We wanted to give our bowlers a good rest, like we did in Australia.

“But we have let them down. It is not through lack of effort but it is disappointing not to back them up with runs for the fourth time this winter. We’re all trying to get better at playing spin in Asia.”

Eight of the 10 England wickets were claimed by spin, with slow left-armer Rangana Herath finishing with figures of six for 74. Graeme Swann suggested he was rediscovering top form with four for 28 from his 12 overs in Sri Lanka’s second innings but it threatens to prove too little, too late.

Jayawardene’s 180 in Sri Lanka’s first innings might yet be the decisive contribution of the match and he is confident his team can take the win.

He said: “Another 50 to 80 runs will be good and anything else will be a bonus. We’ll try to get more on the board and have a crack at them tomorrow.”

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