Gus Atkinson’s Jaw-Dropping Performance Clinches Test Series for England Against Sri Lanka By 2-0 .
ENGLAND VS SRI LANKA, 2ND TEST, 2024. LORD’S , LONDON
Gus Atkinson continued his impressive form at Lord’s, taking five wickets as England defeated Sri Lanka by 190 runs in the second Test on Sunday. This victory clinched a decisive 2-0 lead in the three-match series. Sri Lanka, tasked with a record-breaking fourth-innings target of 483, were bowled out for 292 after tea on the fourth day. Noteworthy contributions came from Dinesh Chandimal (58), Dimuth Karunaratne (55), and captain Dhananjaya de Silva (50).
Fast bowler Atkinson, who scored his maiden first-class century in England’s first innings total of 427, spearheaded the bowling attack with figures of 5-62. His performance secured him the Player-of-the-Match title and marked his fifth appearance on the Lord’s dressing room honors board in just his second Test match here. This follows his outstanding debut against the West Indies in July, where he took 12 wickets.
Toss:
Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bowl first.
Teams Line Up:
England XI:
Dan Lawrence, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook (vice-captain), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Olly Stone, Shoaib Bashir.
Sri Lanka XI:
Dhananjaya De Silva (captain), Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Pathum Nissanka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Rathnayake.
Day 1:
Starting from a precarious position at 42-2 when Root came to bat, England reached stumps at 358-7. Root led with an impressive 143 – marking his sixth Test century at Lord’s. While other top-order batsmen struggled apart from Ben Duckett’s 40 runs contribution. Fast bowler Gus Atkinson remained unbeaten on 74 at the end of play – achieving his maiden Test fifty in just five matches. His partnership with Root added a vital seventh-wicket stand of 92 runs over 19 overs.
Ollie Pope was dismissed cheaply for his third consecutive innings as stand-in captain for England after Sri Lanka won the toss and took three early wickets before lunch.
Root stood firm following a crucial unbeaten 62 run innings that sealed victory at Old Trafford previously. By lunch on Day One at Lord’s however England faltered slightly finding themselves at97-3 oversight…which stabilised through key partnerships including those with Harry Brook (33) and Jamie Smith (21).
Root’s fashioning stylish shots completed yet another hundred totaling six tons within Tests played/spent here; surpassing tenauteur benchmarks set likewise by Alastair Cook during centuries equaling such feats across marginal fewer games .
Day -2
Kicking off from an unbeaten 74, Atkinson reached his first Test century with an elegant drive past mid-on just before lunch. His innings eventually wrapped up at 118, featuring 14 fours & four sixes. Asitha Fernando, who was exceptional throughout, dismissed Atkinson and later claimed Olly Stone’s wicket, bringing England’s total to 427 all out.
Sri Lanka, hoping for a strong start, quickly found themselves struggling against England’s impressive bowling attack. Chris Woakes and Stone took out Dimuth Karunaratne & Pathum Nissanka within five balls of each other, leaving Sri Lanka at a shaky 35-3 by the end of the 10th over. Little assistance came from their middle order.
In the 21st over, Matthew Potts delivered a decisive blow by bowling out both Angelo Matthews & Dhananjaya de Silva. Woakes, Stone, and Atkinson also contributed further wickets as Sri Lanka faltered.
Kamindu Mendis managed a determined inning of 74 off 120 balls offering some resistance for Sri Lanka. However, he was caught by Woakes off Atkinson’s delivery for the final wicket. His effort fell short of repeating his century from the first Test at Old Trafford on what turned out to be a very tough day for the visitors.
England faced their own hiccup early on as Dan Lawrence was dismissed in the 6th over by Lahiru Kumara. They finished at 25-1 before stumps.
Day -3
Starting the day with a lead of 256 runs & nine wickets hand, England had firm control. Root, the key player in England’s batting order, gave the crowd at Lord’s a real show. His score of 103 runs, made quickly, was full of big moments. It was his seventh Test century at Lord’s, making him the top run-scorer there, overtaking Graham Gooch. Now, he’s close to beating Alastair Cook’s record for most runs by an English player—just under 100 runs away from the top spot.
Root’s century came off just 111 balls. It was his fastest in Test cricket. He hit a stylish shot off Lahiru Kumara’s bouncer to reach this milestone, sending the ball past deep point and making the crowd go wild. Only Harry Brook scored close with 37 runs among his teammates.
Facing a huge target of 483, Sri Lanka had it tough. Root continued to excel in the field too; he took two crucial catches at first slip to dismiss Nishan Madushka and Pathum Nissanka. These catches brought Root’s tally to 200 in Test cricket. Now he’s only the fourth player to achieve this feat—just behind Rahul Dravid who has 210 catches.
By day’s end Sri Lanka had lost two wickets but bad light closed play early. The massive target seemed very hard for them considering their recent batting form, although captain Dimuth Karunaratne survived an early lbw call.
Day 4
Woakes got rid of Jayasuriya after a stubborn innings of just 4 from 41 balls; Harry Brook caught it low at second slip. But then Karunaratne and Angelo Mathews built a solid fourth-wicket stand that kept England frustrated—run-outs seemed like their best chance for a breakthrough.
Karunaratne held on for 129 balls scoring 55 before Stone bounced him out; then Chandimal sped up with a blistering fifty from just 43 balls around lunch time. Dhananjaya was cool as usual & created the highest partnership alongside Rathnayake after tea; but playing on against Atkinson with the second new ball spelled trouble for Sri Lanka.
Dhananjaya & Rathnayake put up another fight like they did in Old Trafford’s first innings stretching play into a third session. Rathnayake bravely faced Stone’s short-balls & looked ready to add another fifty until he nicked a pull behind after being dropped by Joe Root earlier at slip off Atkinson; Woakes’ slower ball finally ended things as Lahiru Kumara chipped it to mid-on.
Set an unlikely target of 483 to save themselves from their first Test defeat at Lord’s since 1991, Sri Lanka showed gutsy efforts in their fourth-innings chase trying hard not to lose this game early on Day Four itself—they managed strong half-centuries from Dimuth Karunaratne , Dinesh Chandimal , and Dhananjaya de Silva—not forgetting some brave lower-order resistance by Milan Rathnayake though ultimately losing by190 runs inside four days .