- England have been pegged again by Sri Lanka on day two of the ultimate Take a look at of summer time
- Woakes was pressured to bowl off-spin on the day due to obvious dangerous mild
- Flintoff, in the meantime, will lead the England Lions aspect following teaching stint
England’s remaining Take a look at match of the summer time continued on Saturday, as they give the impression of being to finish one other clear sweep of victories over their 2024 opponents.
After Ollie Pope’s scintillating century on day one, the Surrey man’s aspect collapsed on day two, posting a complete of 325 all out earlier than taking to the sector with the ball.
It was initally good going for the hosts, who restricted their opponents to 93/5, however an unbeaten partnership of 118 between Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis introduced Sri Lanka again into the sport.
England now face a tough job of constructing certain they keep within the match themselves as soon as once more, with the tie well-balanced going into day three.
Right here, Mail Sport’s DAVID ‘BUMBLE’ LLOYD takes you thru a few of the tales you’ll have missed from day two at Lord’s.
England face a tricky to make sure they keep within the match towards Sri Lanka within the third Take a look at
The sport is well-poised, with England posting 325 earlier than their opponents recovered nicely
Ollie Pope will need to make certain his century proves to be significant after a tricky day two
Unhealthy mild fiasco
That is the leisure enterprise, with individuals paying prime greenback, so it was farcical to see Chris Woakes pressured to bowl sluggish at 2pm due to dangerous mild.
The sunshine wasn’t harmful. We get many days like this in England however as of late the large subject is the concern of litigation. If we feature on like this, we’re killing the sport.
Regardless of the climate
With reference to dangerous mild, you possibly can see the affect of Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits. Finest to go away the sector when… ‘You get a shiver at nighttime, it is raining within the park however meantime – south of the river you cease and also you maintain every part.’
I am satisfied Sultans of Swing was written about dangerous mild on the Oval!
Chris Woakes offered mild leisure as he was pressured to bowl off-spin throughout the day
Freddie Flintoff (proper) has been appointed England Lions coach amid a stint teaching with the senior aspect
He must work intently to Brendan McCullum (centre) – the pair are like peas in a pod
Fan of Freddie
It is terrific to see England give Andrew Flintoff the Lions job. Make no mistake, Freddie is a prime bloke. It is a wonderful transfer to place him in command of the rising expertise and he can have a really shut hyperlink to Brendon McCullum.
The pair are two peas in a pod, with comparable outlooks and values.
The long run is brilliant for Pope
For Ollie Pope, that was a really well timed knock and a reminder of his capability. He has appeared frenetic all sequence however at his residence floor, he performed superbly and at an important tempo.
If something, this ton ought to present Pope that if he focuses on intent, he will not look anyplace close to as shaky as he normally does initially of his innings.
Pope’s innings was a well timed reminder of his expertise, and he ought to deal with intent sooner or later
The boat saga rolls on
The boat saga is just not good. The climate up north is gorgeous however my boat is grounded as a result of the solenoid within the battery has blown — and it could actually’t be repaired till Monday.
Within the meantime, a mate from up the river has simply come again from his holidays in Newark. To be trustworthy, I believed he stated New York!
The larger image
Sure, England collapsed, however I did not thoughts it an excessive amount of as a result of they wished to maneuver the sport on.
Although 325 within the first innings towards Sri Lanka is a good rating, it is not towards the likes of Australia and India. Be cautious as a result of these totals will not be sufficient Down Below. It’s a must to go massive and take management.
