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Joe Root Hits Century, Gus Atkinson Blasts Sixes: England Dominates Day 1 of 2nd Test Against Sri Lanka

29 August, 2024 - 4:35PM
Joe Root Hits Century, Gus Atkinson Blasts Sixes: England Dominates Day 1 of 2nd Test Against Sri Lanka
Credit: tosshub.com

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test Live Streaming: Sri Lanka will take a lot of heart from their valiant performance in the first Test, as they gear up for the second Test against hosts England, this time at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground. After the injury to captain Ben Stokes, England have been forced to bid goodbye to Mark Wood as well, meaning that Olly Stone is set to make a Test appearance after three years. The present Sri Lanka side is a vibrant mix of youth and experience, and could look to shock England at Lord's.

England and Sri Lanka will face each other in the 2nd Test match at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground on August 29, Thursday. The 1st Test of the 3-match series offered an exciting contest with England winning by 5 wickets on Day 4 at the Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester. The two teams will aim to keep up with the competitive spirit as shown in the first Test match. Both the teams have announced their playing XIs for the 2nd Test match.

Sri Lanka should also take confidence from their history at the iconic venue. The island nation never lost in over 20 years at Lord's with all five encounters resulting in draws. They will also be happy with England pacer Mark Wood's absence in the 2nd Test match, because he suffered an injury. Olly Stone has been announced as Wood's replacement in what could be a great opportunity for him, having made his last Test appearance three years ago. With youngsters like Rathnayake and Kamindu Mendis making a great impact in the first Test, it will be crucial for the senior players to step up in order for Sri Lanka to register their first-ever win in whites at Lord's.

Sri Lanka (Playing XI): Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Pathum Nissanka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva(c), Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Priyanath Rathnayake

England (Playing XI): Ben Duckett, Daniel Lawrence, Ollie Pope(c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith(w), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Olly Stone, Shoaib Bashir

When will England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match take place?

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match will take place on August 29, Thursday to September 2, Monday.

Where will England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match take place?

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match will take place at the Lord's Cricket Ground in London

What time will England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match start?

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match will start at 3:30 PM (IST)

Where will England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match be broadcast?

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match will be telecast on the Sony Sports Network channel.

Where to watch the live-streaming of England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match?

England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test match will be streamed live on the SonyLiv app and website alongside FanCode app and website.

England National Cricket Team vs Sri Lanka National Cricket Team LIVE:

Hello and welcome to our coverage of Day 1 of the 2nd Test between England and Sri Lanka taking place at the Lord’s Cricket Ground in London.

With one game in the bag, England will look to continue their dominance at home and hope to get a massive win to claim the series. Sri Lanka on the other hand will bank on the fact that their changes will prove to be the right combination to get their batting in check.

The English fast-bowler Olly Stone is set to make his return after years. He comes in place of Mark Wood into the side as their only change for this match. For Sri Lanka, they have made two changes. The likes of Kusal Mendis and Vishwa Fernando make way for Pathum Nissanka and Lahiru Kumara.

Nissanka has been Sri Lanka’s best batter as of late and the side will hope that he can adapt to the English conditions quickly and score some big runs for the side.

The visitors, Sri Lanka have won the toss and will opt to bowl first at the iconic venue.

England Playing XI: Ben Duckett, Daniel Lawrence, Ollie Pope(c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith(w), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Olly Stone, Shoaib Bashir

Sri Lanka Playing XI: Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Nishan Madushka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva(c), Kusal Mendis(w), Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Priyanath Rathnayake

The first session saw England get off to a solid start, with openers Ben Duckett and Daniel Lawrence putting on a 50-run partnership. However, Sri Lanka fought back, taking wickets in quick succession to leave England reeling at 100-4.

But then, Joe Root came to the rescue. The England veteran, known for his elegant batting style, showcased his class once again. He hit a magnificent century, reaching the milestone with a stylish boundary. Root's innings were a masterclass in batting, as he played with great patience and precision. Root's century is all the more significant, as it equaled Alastair Cook's record for most centuries scored by an England batsman. The two-time World Cup winner is in good form at the moment, and is likely to play a key role in England’s success in this series.

Root's century helped England reach a respectable total of 200. However, the Sri Lankan bowlers were able to take the remaining wickets quickly, limiting England to a score of 250. Root's innings were a masterclass in batting, as he played with great patience and precision. His century was the highlight of the day for England, as the rest of the batting order struggled against the Sri Lankan attack.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers did a good job of keeping a lid on the England run-rate for the most part but they did struggle to bowl consistently at the England batsmen. Their bowling seemed to lack the venom that was evident in the first test match. They need to step up their game for the rest of this series if they want to have a chance of winning this series.

However, England's innings was not without its share of excitement. Gus Atkinson, playing his first Test since 2021, impressed everyone with his power hitting. Atkinson blasted a couple of sixes over the long-on boundary, showing his ability to clear the boundary with ease. He finished the day on 40 not out, proving to be a valuable asset to England's batting order.

England will be confident going into the second day of the match. With Root in form and Atkinson showing his potential, England will be hoping to build on their first-day performance. However, Sri Lanka will be hoping to come back stronger and make a comeback in the match. The second day promises to be an exciting one, as both teams will be looking to gain the upper hand.

England vs Sri Lanka Live Score: England Gus Atkinson 40 (39) Joe Root 137 (191) Sri Lanka Milan Rathnayake 1/70 (18)

74th over: England 297-6 (Atkinson 40, Root 137) Gus Atkinson really loves Lord’s, doesn’t he? Twelve wickets against the West Indies last month and now another six, pulling Kamindu over deep midwicket. It was another poor ball from the part-time spinner; Sri Lanka probably need to change things up at the Nursery End, with six overs left to the second new ball.

73rd over: England 287-6 (Atkinson 31, Root 137)

Rathnayake is pulled away by Root for four, evading the man close in at mid-on/midwicket.

“If Surrey play an attack of Will Jacks, Sam Curran, Jordan Clark, Jamie Overton and Atkinson, Gus is in at 11,” writes Gary Naylor. “Yet here he is, justifying his selection at 8 for England. Funny what confidence and freedom from the fear of failure can do.”

A Surrey first-choice XI would cause most Test sides a lot of bother.

72nd over: England 283-6 (Root 133, Atkinson 31) Kamindu bowls another drag-down, Root easily pulling it away from four. Sri Lanka are obviously trying to get themselves to that second new ball but they still need to keep a bit of discipline here; Kamindu bowling a loose one every over ain’t that.

71st over: England 278-6 (Atkinson 31, Root 128) Atkinson tries to leave a ball well outside off, but still gets a bit of bat on it. It doesn’t cause the batter any bother, the ball bouncing before reaching the keeper’s gloves. Time for drinks.

70th over: England 277-6 (Atkinson 31, Root 127) The ambidextrous Kamindu Mendis enters the attack; he decides to bowl some right-arm offies. He’s too short to Root, allowing the right-hander to easily cut for four. A reverse-sweep follows to give Root two. And then another, this time for four. As cool as it is to bowl with both arms, batting remains Kamindu’s primary skill.

69th over: England 264-6 (Atkinson 29, Root 116) Asitha, who impressed me at Old Trafford last week, sees Atkinson strum a cover drive, the England No 8 dominating this very tidy stand with Root.

68th over: England 258-6 (Atkinson 24, Root 115) Milan Rathnayake re-enters the attack, running in from the Nursery End. Root is batting well outside his crease and ends the over by leaning into a wide hit-me ball, driving through cover for four.

67th over: England 253-6 (Atkinson 23, Root 111) Asitha goes short to Atkinson, who rides it by pulling for one. Lord’s seems rather quiet at the moment – not that it gets raucous over there – perhaps entering a late-afternoon lull.

66th over: England 247-6 (Atkinson 21, Root 107) Atkinson looks comfortable out there, capable of supporting Root without needing to be shepherded. Once again he laces Jayasuriya for six, stepping out to drive over extra cover. That forces mid-off to drop closer to the boundary.

65th over: England 238-6 (Atkinson 13, Root 106) Atkinson is smashing with control, driving Asitha Fernando behind point for four to move to 13.

64th over: England 233-6 (Atkinson 9, Root 105) Gus Atkinson defies his status as a No 8 with a shot of a No 4, skipping down the pitch to loft Jayasuriya with a straight bat over long-off for six. A lovely stroke.

63rd over: England 226-6 (Atkinson 3, Root 104) Root gets his focus back on the job, which remains a big one: England are still short of a decent total.

Again, Atkinson gets himself off strike quickly, pulling Lahiru Kumara for one. Root plays out a dot before guiding the ball to the third-man rope for four. He’s delighted, too, that boundary taking him level with Alastair Cook on 33 Test hundreds. No Englishman has hit more. He is a quite extraordinary cricketer.

62nd over: England 220-6 (Atkinson 2, Root 99) Atkinson gets a single first ball but Root can’t get away the probing Jayasuriya for that much-desired single. The wait continues.

Will hand over now to Taha Hashim, who will take you through the next little bit.

61st over: England 219-5 (Root 99, Atkinson 1): Root so nearly drags on! There is definitely some tension here. A couple of times Root threatens to nick the single run that would take him to three figures, only for Atkinson to send him back. Some superb fielding from Kumara, off his own bowling, again denies England’s talisman. It’s a maiden, Atkinson will face next.

60th over: England 219-6 (Root 99, Atkinson 1): Root is just one away now. A tense mood hangs over Lord’s.

59th over: England 216-5 (Root 98: Root edged nearer, not literally. He had added one more to his total before Woakes’s dismissal.

Great bowling from Kumara! He expertly pitches a short delivery at Woakes’ bonce, Woakes slogs wildly and at the second attempt, Fernando takes an easy catch down at fine leg! He initially dropped it, but the ball popped up, and he grabbed it gratefully with a knowing smile.

58th over: England 215-5 (Root 96, Woakes 6): Another loose, short ball from Jayasuriya and once again it gets the treatment from Root, who goes low this time on his way to another four. At 95, Root is now one stroke from equalling Alastair Cook’s record (33) of centuries for England. One more run from the over. Root needs four for his ton.

“Sorry to be a pedant with your previous correspondents, emails Christian Miners, “but Padel is not the same as the short/paddle tennis we played in school playgrounds. Padel is played in a partially enclosed court - to the extent that bouncing the ball hard off the back wall is a key tactic. What John Gray (below) describes is closer to pickleball - the mortal enemy of tennis, because it requires much less skill to play, and takes much less room.”

57th over: England 210-5 (Root 91, Woakes 6): A shake of the head from Root, as he falls for the bait, wildly flashing well outside off at a Kumara length delivery. Root is lucky not to nick through to the keeper, and he knows it. Complete silence from the Sky commentary team, presumably out of embarrassment for the shot. Root gathers himself, ducks under a bouncer and nicks a single. Woakes will face one delivery, which he negotiates nicely.

“With the England top order looking fragile, it is worth nothing that one of the best main characters on OBO over the years, Young Jonny Bairstow, has worked his way to 38 not out for Yorkshire this afternoon”, emails Peter Salmon. “Potentially the best comeback since Harold Bishop?”

56th over: England 209-5 (Root 90, Woakes 6): A four to start, nearly a six! Jayasuriya is wayyyy too short with his opening ball, Root is onto it in a flash and gives it a good old heave-ho to square leg for four. Root nurdles a couple more balls to the on side and is now into the nineties!

55th over: England 202-5 (Root 83, Woakes 6): Play and a miss from Root! From that wide angle I was talking about, Kumara nips one back and flashes one past the inside edge. Root keeps the strike, swiping one to deep backward point for a single run.

54th over: England 201-5 (Root 82, Woakes 6): A gentle start, as Jayasuriya gets Root playing forward with a few forward defensives. We don’t want too much excitement when people are still re-taking their seats, thank you very much.

We’re back. Root and Woakes out in the middle. The sun is out at Lord’s. There is a murmur. Champagne corks are popping. Glorious.

Catching up with some other emails. This one, from John Gray, is nice.

“I too remember padel tennis (Hamish Kuzminski @ 14.34 in today’s OBO) at King Edward’s Five Ways School in Birmingham. Though I knew it as padder tennis. It was a great way to spend the summer lunchtimes - courts were painted on to the tarmac playground, and the nets provided, all we needed to were our own racquets (heavy, solid-plastic bats were the best) and tennis balls. PE staff Mr Watson and Mr Stansfield would drop by occasionally to show us how they thought it should be done, and any victories against them were very sweet!”

You’d probably say that, so far at least, it’s Sri Lanka’s day. Duckett, Brook and Smith got starts, but were quickly removed after that. But ominously, Root looks in sensational nick, and – BREAKING NEWS – his is the golden wicket for Sri Lanka. How many times have we said that?

“Afternoon Michael, lovely day for it,” emails Felix Wood. “I can’t help but feel the selectors have made a bit of a mess of this. Lawrence might be the next cab off the rank but his form has been pretty average for Surrey this season, and he’s not an opener. And Pope’s low 30s should make him vulnerable to being dropped, not given the captaincy. This side has a long tail and a fragile head, and are going to get found out fairly quickly.”

53rd over: England 200-5 (Root 81, Woakes 6): Woakes stabs outside off and despite it being little more than a defensive shot, the timing is excellent and it beats cover to bring up the 200 for England. Kumara has got a nice angle of attack, from wide on the crease but Woakes fends him off. That’s tea!

52nd over: England 197-5 (Root 80, Woakes 4): Woakes shows his intent! The Warwickshire player comes down the ground and clobbers Jayasuriya over his head. The ball bounces just shy of the rope but bounces softly and only just makes it to the line. Four runs. A quieter rest of the over ensues, with Woakes doing particularly well to dig out a yorker.

51st over: England 193-5 (Root 80, Woakes 0): A maiden, with Rathnayake probing nicely with full-length balls to Root.

50th over: England 193-5 (Root 80, Woakes 0): Root pokes one off the opening delivery of Jayasuriya’s over to move into the eighties, leaving Woakes to face five balls. He survives the opening barrage, without any further runs.

49th over: England 192-5 (Root 78): A shame for England, as Smith had looked good (if a little streaky), crashing a shot through mid-on for a four earlier in the over. In comes Chris Woakes.

Edged, and gone! That’s a big wicket for Sri Lanka, with Smith getting into his groove in the middle, although he had swung and missed earlier in the over. It was a good length delivery, just outside off, and Smith obliged with a thin edge through to the wicketkeeper.

48th over: England 187-4 (Root 78, Smith 17): Root finishes the over with a flourish, leaning back into his crease and crashing a shot through the covers for four.

47th over: England 182-4 (Root 73, Smith 17): Root plays a straight drive straight down the ground. The ball clips the bowler, Rathnayake, on the boot but keeps going to the boundary. Dhananjaya de Silva gives chase but stumbles as he retrieves the ball. His slide was ill-judged, with De Silva’s left knee digging into the turf, a la Simon Jones in 2002. De Silva gets up and saves the boundary but you can see that hurt. Sri Lanka’s captain is grimacing. The last

46th over: England 177-4 (Root 71, Smith 14): A maiden passes without note.

An email from Adrian Goldman: “It seems to me that this is the corollary of the rule that you can’t be caught out off your pads: a deflection that comes off your body isn’t out unless it hit your bat first. This creates a pleasing symmetry in the rules”

45th over: England 177-4 (Root 71, Smith 14) Root nicks off the last ball of the over through gulley! A thick outside edge that just evades two catchers.

Joe Root Hits Century, Gus Atkinson Blasts Sixes: England Dominates Day 1 of 2nd Test Against Sri Lanka
Credit: 365dm.com
Tags:
England vs Sri Lanka England vs Sri Lanka 2nd Test Joe Root Gus Atkinson Lord's
Nneka Okoro
Nneka Okoro

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