New Delhi: With his unbeaten 127 on Monday, Pathum Nissanka not only ended Sri Lanka’s 10-year wait for a Test victory in England but also joined an elite list of away team batters that has the likes of Don Bradman, Gordon Greenidge and Graeme Smith.
Nissanka’s second Test century helped Lanka beat England by eight wickets in the third Test at the Oval. He joined the list of batters who has scored a century in the fourth innings during a successful chase in Tests in England.
The 26-year-old’s hundred was also the first time any Sri Lankan opener hit a ton in 13 years in England, since Tilakaratne Dilshan did in 2011. It also helped Sri Lanka pull off the highest successful chase in a Test in England by an Asian country.
Sri Lanka’s fourth Test win in England
Sri Lanka were set a target of 219 runs and led by Nissanka they reached the target before lunch on the fourth day, losing only two wickets as his unbroken stand of 111 with Angelo Mathews (32 not out) took them home.
They had lost the first Test at Old Trafford and second one at Lord’s to relinquish the three match series. Their win at Oval was only their fourth Test win in England and first since they won by 100 runs at Headingley in 2014.
Having made 64 in the first innings, Nissanka was named the player-of-the-match. “It was a great opportunity to play in England and I enjoyed that innings,” he told Sky Sports after the game.
“I just wanted to play my normal game and I have done that,” the opener added.
For skipper Dhananjaya de Silva, the significance of leading Sri Lanka to only their fourth victory in 21 Tests in England wasn’t lost.
“This is one of the happiest moments in my career and my life. We had a tough time in the last two weeks so to come here and get a win in English conditions against an English team, it is a very good moment for me, my team, and my country as well.”
Pathum Nissanka’s second Test century helped Sri Lanka beat England by eight wickets in the third Test at the Oval. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
