8 months ago
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UPDATE 3.13 pm IST (9.43 am GMT) - Manchester, often dubbed the Rainy City, has a reputation for its frequent showers. And once again it is living up to its reputation. The slight drizzle has turned into persistent shower now and by the looks of it, we could have a delayed start here on Day 2, but we still await for any confirmation from the officials. Stay tuned for further updates.
UPDATE 2:57 pm IST (9.27 am GMT) - Uh, oh! It looks like rain gods are not in a good mood. First overnight rain and now it's drizzling in Old Trafford. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope the rain takes a break, as we get closer to the start time.
Milan Rathnayake
Ben Duckett and Daniel Lawrence, recalled in place of the injured Zak Crawley, guided England to 22-0 before bad light ended play for the day
All eyes will be on their top order to see how they handle the Sri Lankan bowlers, especially under potentially helpful morning conditions. A solid start could put England in a commanding position, while early wickets for Sri Lanka could swing the momentum back in their favor. The key for Sri Lankan bowlers will be to exploit any swing or seam movement available, especially with the new ball still relatively fresh. Test cricket is as much a mental battle as it is a physical one. Expect both sides to show patience, with England likely looking to build a solid foundation while Sri Lanka will aim to chip away at the batting order. So, grab your seats, settle in, and get ready for what could be a decisive day in this match. Let’s see how it unfolds!
De Silva's impressive innings ended when he turned a quicker ball from off-spinner Shoaib Bashir straight to Daniel Lawrence at leg slip, with the 20-year-old taking 3-55 in 23 overs
Chris Woakes struck twice in an over on his way to 3-32 in 11 overs
The pair checked England's progress during an eighth-wicket partnership of 63, with no other Sri Lanka batsman making more than Kusal Mendis's 24
Yet Sri Lanka recovered to 236 all out, De Silva top-scoring with 74 and tailender Rathnayake, with only his third first-class fifty, close behind in making 72
Sri Lanka were in dire straits at 6-3 after skipper De Silva won the toss, losing their first three wickets for no runs in 10 balls
Dhananjaya de Silva and debutant fast bowler Milan Rathnayake both made fine fifties as Sri Lanka recovered from a dramatic top-order collapse on the opening day of the first Test against England at Old Trafford
As we head into Day 2, England find themselves at 22 without loss, having safely negotiated the final phase with the bat really well, but it could have been trickier if the seamers were allowed to have a go with the new ball for the visitors. Thats wasn't the case, due to bad light on offer. With plenty of action still to come and both teams eager to make their mark, today promises to be another captivating day of Test cricket.
Welcome back to the second day of this thrilling Test match between England and Sri Lanka! Day 1 was nothing short of a rollercoaster, with England’s bowlers making the most of the early conditions to have Sri Lanka in all sorts of trouble. But credit to the Sri Lankan lower order, who showed grit and determination to push the total to 236, giving their side something to bowl at.
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England on the other hand will be decently pleased with how things eventually played out on Day 1 and they will look to build with the bat on Day 2 and wipe off the pretty meager deficit that they have. However, there is a forecast for rain early on Day 2 which could make things interesting if the Lankan pacers get it right. Day 2 will begin on Thursday, 22 August at 3.30 pm IST (10 am GMT) but you can tune in early to our build-up as well. Cheers!
Rather, skipper Dhananjaya de Silva took the new ball himself given Prabath Jayasuriya was the only proper spinner in the lineup and the two of them bowled just 4 overs before DDS decided that spin wasn't cutting it with the new ball and the umpires were forced to take the players off the field. In short, the visitors took a gamble which didn't pay off and this could negatively impact the pacers at the start of Day 2.
After some late resurgence from the lower order, Sri Lanka managed to go from 6/3 and 113/7 to 236 all out which is something they wouldn't be too unhappy about. However, given the fading light, Sri Lanka weren't able to use their pacers late on Day 1 which is always a sort of a phase that could be tricky for the openers given the overhead conditions.
Right then, it is official now and STUMPS have been called on DAY 1! A total of 26 overs were bowled in that final session with a couple of wickets falling and at the end of it all, England trail by 214 runs with all wickets in hand.
UPDATE 10.23 pm IST (4.53 pm GT) - Uh, oh! What we feared most has happened! PLAY HAS STOPPED DUE TO BAD LIGHT! If the players do not come back out by 10.30 pm IST (5 pm GMT) which is just a few minutes away from now, that will be it for Day 1. So, in all likeliness, this will be it for the first day of play as Dhananjaya de Silva sees not much reward in wasting the spinners with the brand-new ball.
Score after
5
overs
22 - 0
- Dan Lawrence 9 (12)
- Ben Duckett 13 (12)
Prabath Jayasuriya2-0-8-0
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, FOUR! Runs coming thick and fast for England! Full and into the pads from Jayasuriya, Dan Lawrence takes a step down to the pitch of the ball and flicks it beautifully through mid-wicket for a boundary.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Flatter and fuller, on middle and leg, Dan Lawrence takes a step out and tucks it to mid-wicket.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, And again! Floated full, Dan Lawrence offers a solid front foot defence.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Floats it up, on off, Dan Lawrence presses out and blocks it to the on side.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Angling in, on a fuller length and into the stumps, Dan Lawrence opens up and tucks it to mid on.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, From around the wicket, lands it full and on middle and off, Dan Lawrence pushes it back to the bowler.
Score after
4
overs
18 - 0
- Dan Lawrence 5 (6)
- Ben Duckett 13 (12)
Dhananjaya de Silva2-0-14-0
Dhananjaya de Silva to Dan Lawrence, Slants it on a nagging length and into the pads, Dan Lawrence hangs back and tucks it to square leg for a single.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Dan Lawrence, Full and on off, Dan Lawrence watchfully blocks it down the strip.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Floated full, Ben Duckett looks for the sweep but gets a top edge to fine leg region for three handy runs.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, An arm ball, darted straight and full, Ben Duckett eases it back to the bowler.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Nicely followed up by the Sri Lankan skipper! Gets the ball to grip and turn away, from around off beating Ben Duckett on the outside edge.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, FOUR! Nicely played! DDS offers flight on this and lands it full, on middle, Ben Duckett gets low and sweeps it behind square on the leg side for a boundary.
Score after
3
overs
10 - 0
- Dan Lawrence 4 (4)
- Ben Duckett 6 (8)
Prabath Jayasuriya1-0-4-0
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Stright and on the stumps, Dan Lawrence just nudges it to mid-wicket and the batters set off for the run. Angelo Mathews collects the ball and has a shy at the stumps at the bowling end but misses. The overthrow allows the batters to jog back and steal a second run. A chance goes down for Sri Lanka!
Prabath Jayasuriya to Ben Duckett, Fires it quicker and fuller, just outside off, Ben Duckett rocks back and punches it to long on for a single.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Ben Duckett, Fractionally shorter in length and on off, Ben Duckett presses ahead and eases it to covers.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Ben Duckett, Jayasuriya switches to over the wicket for the left-hander and tosses it up on middle and off, Ben Duckett prods out and pushes it back to the bowler.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Shorter this time, on the pads, Dan Lawrence clips it to deep square leg and gets to the other end.
Prabath Jayasuriya to Dan Lawrence, Starts from around the wicket and flights it up, on the stumps, Dan Lawrence defends it with a straight bat.
Prabath Jayasuriya, the main spinner in the side, to operate from the other end.
- Dan Lawrence 1 (1)
- Ben Duckett 5 (5)
Dhananjaya de Silva1-0-6-0
Dhananjaya de Silva to Dan Lawrence, Pushed straight with the arm, full and on the stumps, Dan Lawrence drives it to long on and gets off the mark straight away with that single.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Slides this full and on the pads, Ben Duckett flicks it behind square of the wicket on the leg side for a single.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Quicker this time, full and on off, Ben Duckett punches it to covers.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, FOUR! England and Ben Duckett are underway! Too full from DDS, outside off, Ben Duckett frees his arms and lofts it over covers for a boundary.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Attacks the stumps on a good nagging length, Ben Duckett makes room and punches it to covers.
Dhananjaya de Silva to Ben Duckett, Starts from around the wicket to the left-hander and bowls it full and outside off, Ben Duckett gets a good side in and taps it back to the bowler.
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