Buttler Colombo performance inspired by Michael Clarke

England's Jos Buttler revealed an adaptation to his batting approach that fuelled a revival on day three of the third Test with Sri Lanka was inspired by watching Michael Clarke.

Buttler came to the crease with England 39-4 in the second innings but spearheaded a turnaround that saw them bowled out for 230 and build a lead of 326, with Sri Lanka slumping to 53-4 in their run chase.

He took to attacking Sri Lanka's spin and using his feet more to score 64 off 79 balls before paying the price for his aggression as he was stumped.

However, Buttler said he was at ease with his dismissal as he adopted an approach straight from the Clarke school of batting.

"We were trying to wrestle back momentum," Buttler told Sky Sports. "The new ball seems to be a tricky place to bat against spin – some were skidding on, some were spinning.

"We've talked about trying to play in a brave way and looking to score. It felt like being busy and getting them off their lengths was the best way to go, and trying to get a partnership going, which we managed with me and Ben [Stokes].

A vital innings from @josbuttler!Scorecard: https://t.co/jD0HVIc2ZW #SLvENG pic.twitter.com/xKFwAGeLgk
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) 25 November 2018

"In Kandy, we were watching one of those cricket classics and Michael Clarke was batting, and Jimmy [Anderson] said: 'God, he was using his feet nearly every ball and Swanny couldn't bowl at him'. I thought that seems like a good way to go, I'll try a bit of that.

"Sometimes you feel confident with a certain way of playing and actually using my feet felt like the way to go, especially with the offspin and the angles from around the wicket. Sweeping had a risk of lbw and I tried to take that out of the game by getting as far out as I could.

"It's a little bit about the mantra that's being preached [in the dressing room]. 'Positive' is a word that's been used a lot, but It doesn't just mean fours and sixes and aggressive shots, it can mean positive footwork, positive running, singles and that sort of stuff.

"For myself I look to play that way. Making peace with the way that I can get out makes it a lot clearer for me. It makes me commit to a gameplan more, rather than second-guessing 'shall I run or shall I not?'

"I might get out, but you could get out any ball doing anything. If I stick to my gameplan and get out, I'm more at ease with that than if I veered away from it."