Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow came to England's rescue after Sri Lanka again tortured the tourists' openers with spin, leaving the second Test well poised in Galle.
Sri Lanka advanced from their overnight 229-4 to 381 all out, with James Anderson snagging 6-40, before Lasith Embuldeniya reduced England to 5-2 in their first innings.
They recovered to reach the close on 98-2, with captain Root (67 not out) and ally Bairstow (24no) showing cool-headed resilience, although the latter survived a precarious lbw call just before the close.
Root, in his 99th Test, went beyond fellow Yorkshire great Geoff Boycott's career haul of 8,114 runs at this level during his unflappable innings, going sixth on England's all-time list.
By contrast to the third-wicket pair, Dom Sibley and Zak Crawley have found left-arm spinner Embuldeniya almost unplayable in this series.
The 24-year-old removed both openers for single-figure scores in each innings of the first Test and on this occasion he prised out Sibley for a duck and Crawley for just five.
Sibley was back on his stumps, floundering, when Embuldeniya breached his defences to get the lbw verdict, and Crawley was prised out by a delicious delivery that caught the edge and angled into the hands of Lahiru Thirimanne at first slip.
It means Sibley has made just six runs in three innings, Crawley faring little better with only 22 so far on this tour.
Fortunately for England, the Yorkshire pair of Root and Bairstow brought their experience to bear and found a way to exert control, pushing and prodding but mostly sweeping and reverse-sweeping their way to stability.
Anderson had earlier caught the eye once again, the 38-year-old producing figures that statistically rank as the fourth best of his Test career.
Already armed with three wickets from day one, Anderson made a swift impact in the morning by having century maker Angelo Mathews caught by wicketkeeper Jos Buttler for 110 in the second over of the day.
Niroshan Dickwella weighed in with 92 before falling to Anderson as he and Dilruwan Perera (67) put Sri Lanka in a sturdy position.
England caught in a spin
While Anderson was going through his majestic repertoire, Jack Leach and Dom Bess toiled for a combined 0-195 from 64 overs.
They were made to look limited by Sri Lanka's batsmen, who handled the England spin pair far more adeptly than during the first Test, when together they snagged 14 wickets.
This time there was no penetration, but Sri Lanka's premier spinner Embuldeniya immediately found zip, accuracy and effective turn, humiliating England's top two batsmen once again.
Crawley made 267 against Pakistan at Southampton last August, and he has one innings left in Galle to show his true quality.
Kevin Pietersen was moved to post to Twitter a letter he once received from Rahul Dravid on how to play spin, urging England management to pass the guidance to the openers.
Remarkable Root
England's skipper made a double century in the first Test against Sri Lanka, and again he soon got on top of the home side's attack.
He struck seven boundaries in reaching his fifty, never looking in trouble.
Sri Lanka appealed for an lbw when Root offered no shot to a turning ball from Dilruwan Perera, but the ball started out so wide that it was always missing by a long way.
England will want more of the same from Root on Sunday, and should that be forthcoming this could turn into quite some match.
Target: Bairstow
Sri Lanka will want to break up the established partnership as early as possible on day three, with Bairstow looking the more vulnerable batsman.
If Embuldeniya finds his choice line early in the day, he will fancy removing the man who England have surprisingly chosen to rest for their upcoming series with India.
Reggae Boy Morrison convicted of fraud after using dead person’s blue badge
Jamaican International Ravel Morrison has been convicted of fraud after he was caught using a deceased person’s blue badge to park.
According to a report in The Guardian, Morrison, during his interview under caution, claimed he bought the badge from “someone in Old Trafford” for £50. The former Manchester United representative was subsequently charged with one count of fraud.
Morrison, 30, who currently represents DC United in Major League Soccer (MLS) appeared before Manchester magistrates court to plead guilty to the offence on Thursday. He was fined £1,000 and was ordered to pay costs of £508.32 and a victim surcharge of £400.
Manchester city council enforcement officers began their investigation in May into a white Audi S3 parked in Bridgewater Street which was displaying a blue badge.
Blue badge permits are given to people with disabilities or health issues, whose mobility is limited. It entitles those individuals to park free of charge in spaces that are often closer to shops and destinations.
The police discovered that the badge’s holder died in February 2022, and was no longer valid. The vehicle was issued with a penalty charge notice and was removed to the Manchester vehicle pound. Morrison reclaimed his vehicle later the same day.
“This ruling shows that the law is applicable to everyone, with no exceptions. I am grateful for the diligent work of our investigating officers, as well as legal counsel, who were able to successfully prosecute this case,” a spokesperson for Manchester city council said.
“Our officers patrol the streets daily to ensure that blue badges are used legitimately, and we will not hesitate to take action if we discover people trying to circumvent the law,” they added.
Morrison’s topsy-turvy career, playing for 13 clubs around the world after leaving Manchester United in 2012. He has so far made 18 appearances for Jamaica with three goals to his credit.
We never lost trust – Sarina Wiegman confident England would fight back for win
England boss Sarina Wiegman maintained full faith in her side to stage the stunning second-half comeback that lifted the Lionesses to a 3-2 win over the Netherlands in their penultimate Women’s Nations League group-stage clash at Wembley.
Needing a victory to remain in contention to finish top in group A1 and advance in the tournament, which serves as a qualifier for next summer’s Olympics in Paris, England quickly dug themselves a hole after Lineth Beerensteyn netted twice before the break.
But the Lionesses battled back after the restart on a frigid night in London, Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hemp stoking the crowd back into a frenzy by the hour mark before substitute Ella Toone sealed a dramatic victory in stoppage time.
Wiegman said: “I was actually pretty calm. I was very disappointed they scored the second goal because I didn’t think we played bad. The second goal we were a little bit unlucky, it was an unnecessary goal. We didn’t play bad but we needed some more. We truly believed we could turn it around. We never lost trust.
“At half-time we said the game was absolutely not over and that if we score a goal they can become a bit shaky.
“They were struggling with the defence with how we played in attack. We also did a tactical thing we needed to do better in defence. We said everyone needed to step up and bring something extra. You could tell the players gave everything because they were really tired.”
It leaves England in second place in the group, level on points with the Netherlands and one in front of Belgium, ahead of concluding their group matches by playing Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Belgium drew 1-1 with Scotland in Friday’s other Group A1 contest.
England and the Dutch are level in terms of head-to-head record, with the latter – who face Belgium at home next week – having a goal difference superior by three, while England will finish their group stage away at relegated Scotland on Tuesday.
Despite the victory, England’s keeper Mary Earps was left in tears as she spoke post-match about the two goals the Lionesses conceded, the second of which saw her get her glove to the ball only to see it slip past her and trickle in – something that left the Manchester United stopper beating the turf in frustration.
Knowing England needed to win by two goals to take over at the top of the group, Earps told ITV: “I thought the girls were unbelievable to come back into the game. I thought they were unbelievable, the subs that come on impacted the game.
“I am just sorry that my performance has cost the team tonight.
“That [second goal] will haunt me for a long time today, I am really gutted because it could have been a really special night.
“The team were unbelievable, don’t get me wrong, the goals are unbelievable, the way that they played and moved it around showed great patience at times, real tenacity, real intensity to the play.
“I am a competitor but when it is not good enough, it is not good enough and I can only apologise to my team-mates and to the fans, I take that fully with my whole chest.”
The apology was utterly unnecessary for Wiegman, who said: “I spoke to her very shortly and I don’t want her to talk like that.
“We win as a team and lose as a team. That is part of the game. Of course she didn’t like the team down, everyone does her best. You only let the team down when you don’t put effort into the game and we never don’t put effort in.
“Everyone stepped up. We needed to step up as a team. I think everyone did that.”
England keep Olympic hopes alive with dramatic comeback win over Netherlands
England kept their bid to secure Olympics qualification for Great Britain alive in dramatic fashion as Ella Toone’s stoppage-time goal completed a fightback from two goals down to beat the Netherlands 3-2 at Wembley.
Needing a win to remain in contention to finish top in Nations League Group A1, the final position required for them to have a chance of obtaining a place for GB at next summer’s Games in Paris, the Lionesses were on course for a third defeat in the pool as Lineth Beerensteyn notched a first-half brace for the Dutch.
But Sarina Wiegman’s side battled back with two goals in quick succession from Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hemp just prior to the hour mark, before substitute Toone capped the turnaround in the first minute of time added on to bring a huge roar from the 71,632 crowd in attendance.
It leaves England in second place, level on points with the Netherlands and one ahead of Belgium, ahead of concluding their group matches by playing Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Belgium drew 1-1 with Scotland in Friday’s other Group A1 contest.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
