Vaughan must get his men back on a high

They did it, of course, twice during last summer's Test series with South Africa after he had been thrust into the hot seat by Nasser Hussain's sudden resignation.

The manner of the wins at Trent Bridge and The Oval suggested Vaughan made his presence felt in and around the dressing room once the dust had settled on defeats at Lord's and Headingley.

More relevant to the present situation, though, is the way England responded to adversity during last summer's one-day internationals.

A young team containing most members of the current squad launched Vaughan's reign with a depressing defeat by Pakistan at Old Trafford, only to retaliate with two good victories.

Then, during the NatWest triangular tournament, losses to Zimbabwe and South Africa threatened to burst the new skipper's bubble. Again, though, the response was positive and Vaughan collected a second trophy following an emphatic Lord's victory over South Africa.

England looked hopelessly out of their depth in Dambulla yesterday with no batsman able to counter the Sri Lankans' seam and swing bowling, never mind the spin of Muttiah Muralitharan.

But if these players really do have the potential to become a World Cup challenging force by 2007 then they will get their act together between now and Friday and at least push the hosts hard in the second of this three-match series.

"We must make sure we analyse the Dambulla game and learn from the mistakes we made," said Vaughan. "And we made a helluva lot. With a young team, it's important to talk things through.

"We all realise this squad will be available for 2007 and that's what we are building towards.

"In the summer we won two trophies, but along the way we did have a couple of troughs and bounced back pretty well each time. But to come back from a defeat like this one, on a tour and against a very experienced team will be a real big ask."

Vaughan's captaincy credentials were questioned from the moment he succeeded Hussain.

No-one had wondered whether Hussain could lay down the law. But all the indications from last summer's Test series are that, behind the closed doors of the dressing room, Vaughan made his points too.

So far, the captain has cajoled and coaxed his young one-day unit.

Now it seems they are about to receive some altogether tougher handling. Not the Sir Alex Ferguson hairdryer treatment, of course, but a decent blast none the less. No captain wants to squirm through one humiliating defeat like yesterday's, never mind two on the trot.