Sri Lanka v England - day four live! Hope's incarnation. Photograph: Lakruwan Wanniarachchi/AFP/Getty Images 43rd over: England 118-3 (target 340; Trott 46, Bell 0) England were frazzled throughout that Randiv over. Trott survived consecutive appeals for bat-pad catches and then top-edged a sweep just short of fine leg. You could feel the temperature rising throughout. "Several of the barmen in my local in Dubai are Sri Lankan," said Neil McLean about five minutes ago. I hope Trott and Pietersen fully understand the cost implications if they don't put a good innings together. Well there that goes. England 118-3 (Pietersen c b Randiv 30) Pietersen has gone! He came down the track to Randiv, didn't quite get to the pitch and screwed a drive to short midwicket, where Jayawardene took a lovely sharp catch. That is a massive early strike for Sri Lanka and a lovely piece of bowling from Randiv. 42nd over: England 117-2 (target 340; Trott 45, Pietersen 30) It's Suranga Lakmal from the other end, which is perhaps a slight surprise. He almost strikes with his last delivery, however; Pietersen hits a drive back towards Lakmal, who dives to his left in his follow through but can't get down quickly enough to lay a hand on the ball. "I'll see your roller-blader and raise you a hair-raising tuk-tuk ride on a dark jungle 'road' last night, a journey that a slight dizziness suggests my brain is having trouble forgetting," says Gary Naylor. " Anyway, the line I like to take on a chase is to consider every batsmen batting their averages (I know this is a second innings and I know it's the sub-continent, but bear with me). If they do and Samit chips in with thirty or so, we'll be into squeaky-bum time for both sides around tea. And anything can happen then. I know what you mean about averages, but it's often hard to get your eye in during a fourth-innings run-chase, so I think you're better looking for one or two big innings. 41st over: England 117-2 (target 340; Trott 45, Pietersen 30) Sri Lanka start with spin, as you'd expect. It's Suraj Randiv to Jonathan Trott, with men at short leg, silly point and leg slip. The fourth ball is a half volley that Trott drives crisply through the covers for four. He pushes the next ball off the pads and through the legs of short leg. Sometimes they stick, but it would have been the dumbest luck for Trott. It's so important that these two survive the first half hour. "Very difficult to watch this test series from Toronto, seeing as it starts just after midnight and finishes early in the morning," says Bob Parry. Has there ever been a less convenient time for a cricket match? What's the best and worst time to watch cricket? From an OBO point of view, the best is probably West Indies hours, with play starting around 3pm. If you plan it really well, you can have a lie-in and a couple of naps before going to work. The worst are probably Asian Tests; Australasia isn't too bad because you just tip your day upside down, whereas with Tests on the subcontinent you never know when to sleep. That might just be the most fascinating paragraph in the history of the internet. Preamble Morning! How are you going to define your life? Sure, you've thrown a kettle over a pub. And you completed the Rubik's Cube at the age of eight, even though you had the flu and one of your folks was shouting PUT THAT BLOODY THING DOWN AND EAT YOUR GREENS!; and you totally made eye contact with that Baldwin during Fresher's Week, even though, as time goes on, you're starting to doubt whether it actually happened. But those things aren't exactly tombstone-friendly, are they? If you're an international sportsman, your life is defined - as far as the public are concerned, at least - by your work. Today, England's batsmen have the chance to play a career-defining innings and script a sensational victory. Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen are the overnight batsmen; and, while their Ashes-winning hundreds at The Oval will always be The Ones, a matchwinning century here would probably go straight in at No2. Despite this slightly giddy introduction (the adrenaline has been flowing from the moment I was almost hit by a roller-blader on the way into work. Roller-blading in King's Cross at 4.30am on a Thursday morning; I ask you), we must remember that Sri Lanka are strong favourites. England resume on 111 for two, chasing an England-record 340 to win. It's possible for them to get the runs with a few 40s and 50s, but the likelihood is that they will need someone to make a hundred. There have been 16 successful chases of 325 or more in Test cricket; 15 have contained at least one centurion. The list of hundreds includes classics from, among others, Gavaskar, Bradman, Tendulkar, Ponting, Greenidge, Morris, Harvey and Gilchrist. Let's hope we're adding the name Pietersen, Trott or Panesar to the list by this evening.