England Miss Chance to Win Second Test Against Sri Lanka

As the second Test between England and Sri Lanka at Lord's came to a close, it was clear that the momentum was with the visitors. Although England's bowlers managed to get off to a good start, with the early wicket of Kumar Sangakkara, they were unable to capitalize on their advantage and the match ended in a draw. The result means that the series is still alive, with the final Test scheduled to take place at the Rose Bowl next week.

Key Takeaways:

• England's bowlers struggled to maintain consistency and intensity throughout the match, failing to capitalize on their early wicket of Kumar Sangakkara.
• The pitch, although slower than the previous day, offered enough to give hope to the bowlers, but Andrew Strauss appeared to lose heart, not using his main bowlers effectively.
• The absence of James Anderson, who missed the match with an injury, was felt as England's bowling lacked the threat needed to bowl out a side, even one as flaky as Sri Lanka.
• Alastair Cook's failure to accelerate his scoring rate in the morning session, despite being on his way to a hundred, hindered England's chances of declaring and bowling out Sri Lanka.
• One obvious area of improvement for England was to score quicker and leave their bowlers longer to bowl Sri Lanka out, which would have given them a better chance of winning the match.
• England's run-scoring dependant on individual concentration, with Alastair Cook requiring massive levels of concentration to score his three hundreds in as many Tests.

Statistics:

• Alastair Cook scored 106 runs in 231 balls, taking 3 hours and 51 minutes to reach his hundred.
• England's bowlers took 58 overs to get two wickets, taking a draw with Sri Lanka.
• Kumar Sangakkara made 66 runs off 324 balls before being dismissed.
• Kevin Pietersen scored 72 runs off 96 balls, his 14th Test half-century.

Sources:

• [Byline: Derek Pringle, Cricket Correspondent, The Telegraph, 28 July 2009]
• [MCC Members and Guests]