England suffered an injury scare on the second day of the opening Test against Sri Lanka when Rory Burns was struck on the base of the neck by a shot from Angelo Mathews.
The incident, which occurred when Mathews played a sweep to Moeen Ali, brought an early end to the afternoon session as the Surrey opener, who had been fielding at short leg, received lengthy treatment on the field.
Burns, who was hit between the shoulder blades near the base of his neck, did not reappear for the start of the final session as England medics continued his treatment.
Kent batsman Joe Denly, denied a Test debut after missing out on selection here, came on as a replacement fielder before Burns returned after a 53-minute absence from the field.
Burns’ brush with danger came just six days after England’s opening warm-up match against a Sri Lanka Board XI in Colombo was disrupted when Pathum Nissanka was struck on the helmet by a Jos Buttler shot.
Nissanka was rushed to hospital and played no further part in the match.
