In another customary back to the wall defiance, young lower order batsman Kamindu Mendis loomed Sri Lanka’s main run source by another back to the wall effort of 74 off 120 balls consuming 161 minutes in a top gear assault of 8 boundaries and 3 over the top as Sri Lanka’s specialist batsmen once again badly disappointed in a dramatic 6 for 83 collapse as England finished the second day of the second test on a high leading by 256 on a second innings 25 for the loss of Dan Lawrence’s wicket with England’s No.8 Gus Atkinson having stolen the show at the outset toying with the Lankan bowlers in scoring his maiden test century 118 at almost a run a ball flurry in 174 minutes packed with 14 boundaries and 4 over the top at Lords yesterday.
Seamer Asitha Fernando bent his back for a 5-wicket haul.
From a Sri Lankan point of view, 25-year old Mendis rose to stature of truly the Sri Lankan lower order X’factor typified by the Old Trafford century to go with twin centuries against Bangladesh earlier this year.
On a day Gus Atkinson punched holes in the Lankan attack perfected by watch and play assuredness of solid timing of the ball to converting an overnight 74 to the magical three figure mark to putting England in control of a 427 score, the Lankan innings went into shambles of the top six culminating with Dinesh Chandimal bundled back to the pavilion for just 87 runs in 23.1 overs by the Brits foursome pace battery triggered Chris Woakes who clean bowled Nishan Madushka for 7 as Olly Stone then bowled Dimuth Karunaratne for 12 and 5 balls later had Pathum Nissanka caught by Potts for 12 as Sri Lanka collapsed to 35 for 3 in 10 overs.
Angelo Mathews 22 off 36 with 3 boundaries and Dinesh Chandimal 23 off 33 with a similar number of boundaries took the score to 83 when Mathews was bowled by Potts and 3 balls later skipper Dhananjaya de Silva was sent back by Potts for a third ball duck caught by Brook and when Dinesh Chandimal 15 balls from then became the sixth casualty accounted for by Atkinson holing to Lawrence.
There was Kamindu Mendis walking into another bad case scenario to taking Sri Lanka pst 100 in the company of Milan Rathnayake who scored 19 off 14 tucked with 4 boundaries. Following Rathnayake’s dismissal with Sri Lanka 118 for 7, Mendis added a precious 35 for the eighth-wicket with Prabath Jayasuriya in the next 15 overs with the former making 8 before being bowled by spinner Shoaib Bashir – 153 for 8 after 44 overs.
Mendis was last out scoring 41 of the last 42 runs holing out to Woakes off Atkinson after Lahiru Kumara had run himself out leaving last man Asitha Fernando on 1.
England 427 (Root 143, Atkinson 118, Asitha Fernando 5/102) and 25 for 1 lead Sri Lanka 196 (Kamindu 74) by 256 runs.
(Srilanka Cricket)
English (United States)