By Lawrence White
LONDON (Reuters) -England reduced a counter-attacking Sri Lanka to 260-7 at Lord’s on Sunday, closing in on a victory that would secure the three-test series with one match to go.
Set a massive 483 to win and resuming on 53-2 overnight, Sri Lanka’s task looked all but impossible. Their approach was to ignore the match situation and attack, ensuring a steady flow of wickets and boundaries over the course of a fourth day that at times resembled a limited-overs contest.
The morning session cost the visitors only nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya (4) and Dimuth Karunaratne (55). Karunaratne made the first half century by an opener in the series, striking Gus Atkinson for three fours in one over before fending a lifter from Olly Stone through to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith.
Angelo Mathews (36) had looked typically assured after the lunch interval before chipping a catch to Chris Woakes at mid on from the bowling of Shoaib Bashir.
England’s new frontline spinner had endured a tricky start to the day, leaking boundaries as Sri Lanka tried to hit him out of the attack.
At the other end of his career, the 35-year-old Chris Woakes was typically metronomic on his favourite hunting ground, sending down seven maiden overs to give England a measure of control.
Dinesh Chandimal (58) appeared to be next out, trapped lbw by Woakes having raced to a half century off just 42 balls, but a review showed the thinnest of edges. He went soon after, caught by Dan Lawrence at short leg as a thick edge from a Gus Atkinson rocket ballooned off the pad.
One strange subplot of the series has been Sri Lanka’s refusal to promote their most effective batsman so far, Kamindu Mendis, up the order.
He came to the crease with little chance of affecting the result at 192-6. A star in the making with an astonishing average of 92 in his four-test career thus far, he for once failed, slashing Atkinson to Ben Duckett in the slips to depart for just four as England broke through to the tail.
Captain Dhananjaya de Silva (45 not out) and Milan Rathnayake (26 not out) then cut and hooked England’s short ball barrage on their way to a punchy unbeaten eighth wicket stand of 60, as England struggled to close out the match before tea.
The home side’s commanding position in the match had been built on back-to-back centuries by Joe Root, who became the country’s all-time top scorer of hundreds in tests with his 34th in the second innings.
(Reporting by Lawrence White; editing by Ken Ferris and Pritha Sarkar)
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