South Africa currently trail Sri Lanka by 258 runs at lunch during the third day of the second Test in Colombo.
The South Africans are chasing 421 runs as AB de Villiers and Quinton de Kock were dismissed in quick succession by Sri Lanka.
South Africa managed just 65 runs during the session, 32 of which came in the first five overs.
The Proteas are currently 163-5 with JP Duminy and Hashim Amla at the crease.