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    England Secures 190-Run Victory
England Secures 190-Run Victory
England Players. Source: facebook.com

England Secures 190-Run Victory

England 427 (Root 143, Atkinson 118, Asitha 5-102) and 251 (Root 103, Asitha 3-52) defeated Sri Lanka 196 (Kamindu 74, Potts 2-19) and 292 (Chandimal 58, Karunaratne 55, Dhananjaya 50, Atkinson 5-62) by 190 runs.

In his debut summer as an England Test cricketer, Gus Atkinson delivered a standout performance at Lord’s, claiming a five-wicket haul in the second innings to add to his maiden century, ultimately breaking Sri Lanka’s resistance in the second Test.

Chasing an improbable target of 483 to stay in the series, Sri Lanka mounted a spirited fight in the fourth innings to avoid their first Test defeat at Lord’s since 1991. Half-centuries from Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, and Dhananjaya de Silva, along with a resilient effort from Milan Rathnayake in just his second Test, gave the visitors some hope. However, they eventually succumbed, losing by 190 runs within four days.

The sparse crowd at Lord’s witnessed Sri Lanka's determination, but the highlight of the day was Atkinson’s rising career. He received applause after dismissing Rathnayake, bringing Sri Lanka’s innings to an end. This wicket marked his 19th in just two Test appearances at Lord’s, where he has already secured three five-wicket hauls and a ten-wicket match, along with his first professional century.

Atkinson's remarkable achievements also placed him in elite company, becoming only the third England Men’s player to score a century and take five wickets in a single Test. England started the day needing eight wickets to secure a 2-0 series lead and their fifth consecutive Test win this summer. They faced a determined Sri Lankan side, with Chris Woakes, Olly Stone, and Shoaib Bashir supporting Atkinson in the bowling attack.

Although the target of 483 seemed far out of reach, Sri Lanka had hopes of extending the match into a fifth day. Dhananjaya de Silva shared that the strategy was to "bat simply and bat long," and Karunaratne’s first fifty of the series set the tone in the morning session, with Sri Lanka losing only two wickets, including that of nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya.

Karunaratne showed grit, facing 129 balls for his 55 before falling to a bouncer from Stone. Chandimal then accelerated, reaching a fifty off just 43 balls around the lunch break. Dhananjaya remained calm, forging the highest partnership of the innings with Rathnayake, and also notched his own fifty after tea. However, when he was bowled by Atkinson with the second new ball, Sri Lanka’s hopes began to fade.

Ollie Pope, standing in as England captain, frequently adjusted the bowling attack, though his struggles with the Decision Review System (DRS) continued, with three unsuccessful reviews adding to his tally of eight without overturning an on-field decision.

England experienced a moment of frustration when Chandimal successfully overturned an lbw decision due to the faintest edge detected by UltraEdge. Woakes, caught on replay expressing disbelief, believed there had been no contact with the bat. Nevertheless, Chandimal’s aggressive innings, featuring 11 boundaries, ended with a bat-pad catch at short leg off Atkinson, who struck again in his next over to dismiss Kamindu Mendis.

Dhananjaya and Rathnayake managed to extend the match into a third session, echoing their defiance from the first innings at Old Trafford. Rathnayake showed courage against Stone’s short-pitched bowling and, after being dropped by Joe Root at slip-off Atkinson, seemed poised to score his second fifty in as many Tests. However, he eventually edged a pull shot behind, and Woakes wrapped up the innings by dismissing Lahiru Kumara with a slower ball chipped to mid-on.

The day had begun with Karunaratne surviving a review for lbw off the second ball, as replays showed Woakes’ delivery had just pitched outside leg stump. Karunaratne had another life when he slashed at Atkinson, only for Root to miss a tough, one-handed chance at slip. England lost a second review after they believed Karunaratne had edged the ball behind off the same bowler.

Woakes later dismissed Jayasuriya, who had battled for 41 balls to score just four runs, with a thick edge well-caught by Harry Brook at second slip. The fourth-wicket partnership between Karunaratne and Angelo Mathews provided some resistance, with a run-out looking like England’s best chance of a breakthrough.

Karunaratne, with just one fifty in his previous 13 innings in England, remained mostly cautious but did manage to hit three boundaries off an over from Atkinson. A low edge between slip and gully brought him to 49, and a single to point allowed him to raise his bat for the first time on tour.

Mathews attempted to take on Bashir, who found some turn but wasn’t as threatening as England had hoped. As lunch approached, Pope turned to Stone for a short-ball barrage, which successfully dislodged Karunaratne when he gloved a lifter down the leg side to Smith.

Chandimal seemed determined to counterattack, hitting Woakes for consecutive boundaries at the start of his post-lunch spell and taking three more off Bashir in one over. A wild swing over the slips brought him to fifty, and he dominated the scoring during a 59-run partnership with Mathews.

The partnership was eventually broken when Bashir tempted Mathews to go over the top, only for him to be caught by Woakes at mid-off. Woakes then believed he had removed Chandimal on 55 with a delivery that struck him on the knee roll, but third umpire Chris Gaffaney ruled that there was a faint edge involved, frustrating Woakes. However, the delay was short-lived as England closed in on a series sweep ahead of the final Test of the summer at The Oval next week.

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