Prabath Jayasuriya and Nishan Peiris starred in the field as New Zealand's middle order collapsed, keeping Sri Lanka in control on day three of their second Test. (More Cricket News)

The tourists struggled in the morning and despite a bright start to their second innings later on, they struggled to put Sri Lanka under pressure.

New Zealand resumed at 22-2 in their first innings in the first session, but Jayasuriya (6-42) did not let them find any momentum. Kane Williamson was dismissed for seven runs before the rest of their middle order toppled for 47, leaving them with 88 runs.

Such was Sri Lanka's dominance in their first innings, finishing on 602-5 and leading by 514 runs, New Zealand picked up the bat once again for the second session.

Tom Latham was dismissed for a duck by Peiris (3-91), but Devon Conway (61) and Williamson (46) restored some pride before the wickets started to fall once more.

Tom Blundell (47 not out) and Glenn Phillips (32 not out) steadied the ship before poor light and then heavy rain cut the play short. They will resume at the crease on Sunday at 199-5. 

Data Debrief: A tale of two partnerships

Sri Lanka's batters did most of the heavy lifting, but their bowlers also stepped up as they took 13 wickets on Saturday.

Debutant Peiris took six of those overall, three in each session, while Jayasuriya got seven with his hard work done by lunch.

New Zealand's tally of 88 is their lowest all-out score against Sri Lanka, with Conway and Williamson's partnership stand of 97 bettering the team's first-innings score.