During the first day of the second test match between England and Sri Lanka at Lord’s, Joe Root struck his 33rd century in a test match, which was a notable record. This allowed England to take control of the match. After entering the game when England fought to maintain their position at 42-2, Root stabilized the innings with a score of 143, which became his sixth hundred in a test match at this great stadium.
Even though other top-order batters, such as Ben Duckett, who made forty runs, did not make a substantial contribution, fast bowler Gus Atkinson contributed heavily. When Atkinson batted at number eight, he scored 74 runs without being out, his first fifty in a test match. This was just his sixth match overall. By the conclusion of the day, England had reached 358-7 thanks to his partnership with Root, which produced an additional 92 runs.
The day began with a shaky start for England, with stand-in captain Ollie Pope continuing his dismal form by being dismissed for a low score for the third game in a row that he was denied. The fact that Sri Lanka grabbed three wickets before midday raises doubts about their choice to play first, even though they elected to bowl first, even though the weather was sunny.
On the other hand, Root stayed consistent despite early challenges, such as a close lbw appeal overturned on review. Even though other batters, including Chris Woakes, were dismissed for a low score, he could form critical partnerships with Harry Brook (33) and Jamie Smith (21).
Root’s century, which he completed after a nervous moment on 99, was his sixth at Lord’s and equaled him with the record of 33 Test hundreds held by Alastair Cook, where he had previously served as the captain of England. With this accomplishment, Root joined the ranks of cricket superstars such as Sachin Tendulkar, among the top 10 all-time century-makers in Test matches. Root is the only active participant in this prestigious category, which is a remarkable fact.
Atkinson continued to shine throughout the day, hitting some powerful smashes, including sixes off the new ball, to finish the day on a solid note for England. Root’s innings ended with an unconventional shot when Atkinson continued to impress.
SCOREBOARD
ENGLAND (1st Innings):
- B. Duckett c Kumara b Jayasuriya 40
- D. Lawrence c Madushka b Kumara 9
- O. Pope c De Silva b A. Fernando 1
- J. Root c Nissanka b Rathnayake 143
- H. Brook lbw b A. Fernando 33
- J. Smith c Madushka b Rathnayake 21
- C. Woakes c A. Fernando b Kumara 6
- G. Atkinson not out 74
- M. Potts not out 20
EXTRAS (B-8, LB-3) 11
TOTAL (for seven wickets, 88 overs) 358
STILL TO BAT: O. Stone, S. Bashir
FALL OF WICKETS: 1-39 (Lawrence), 2-42 (Pope), 3-82 (Duckett), 4-130 (Brook), 5-192 (Smith), 6-216 (Woakes), 7-308 (Root)
BOWLING: A. Fernando 19-1-84-2, Rathnayake 21-2-80-2, Kumara 20-2-75-2, Jayasuriya 25-2-81-1, K.M. Mendis 3-0-27-0
SRI LANKA: D. Karunaratne, N. Madushka, P. Nissanka, A. Mathews, D. Chandimal, D. de Silva, K.M. Mendis, P. Jayasuriya, A. Fernando, L. Kumara, M. Rathnayake
