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Craig Hill2nd Test England v Sri Lanka: Muralitharan demolis
June 6th 2006 14:20
England have failed to clinch their three-test series against Sri Lanka with a defeat yesterday to the visitors at Trent Bridge. The man who was responsible for the failure was the magician they call 'Murali'. With a thrilling finish set up due to some respectable batting displays by both sides, Murali stole the game and the test series away from the home side with a rampaging 8-70, in the second innings.
The test began as a tight tussle, with the pitch seeming to favour the bowlers after Sri Lanka was bowled out for a fairly ordinary total of 231, with the last three batsmen Vaas (38*), Malinga (21) and Murali himself (33) chipping in 92 runs in order help their side post a somewhat defendable total.
Flintoff and Lewis starred with the ball, both snaring 3 wickets a piece to place the home side in a commanding position at the change of play. However, England failed to capitalise on their first innings advantage after being bundled out for measly 229, courtesy to some consistent bowling by the Sri Lankans, with spinners Murali (3/62 from 31 overs) and Jayasuriya (2/19 from 11 overs) both contributing with wickets and also economical figures. Collingwood (48) and Pieterson (41) looked to get things going after a slow start, however both batsmen failed to convert their 40s into anything sizeable.
With a lead of only 2 runs, the Sri Lankans knew a strong batting effort had to be produced in order to stay alive in the match. Scoring a solid 322 proved to be sufficient, as the visitors' batted consistently, with six batsmen contributing runs of 30 and above, with batsmen Sangakarra (66) and Kapugedera (50) managing to surpass the half century mark.
Despite this, English spinner Monty Panesar managed to silence a few of his critics with a hard-earned 5/78 from 37.1 overs. Needing 325 for victory, the Poms started off solidly with Trescothick (31) and Strauss (55) putting together 84 before the fall of the first wicket. However, both openers' hard-work went straight down the kitchen sink as the home side slumped badly due to some Murali magic which saw them lose 9/106, with Murali responsible for 8 of the dismissals.
The series ends at 1-1, with Murali contributing in almost every facet of his last game on English soil, scoring a crucial 33 and bagging another 10 wicket haul. Surely, one he will never forget.
The test began as a tight tussle, with the pitch seeming to favour the bowlers after Sri Lanka was bowled out for a fairly ordinary total of 231, with the last three batsmen Vaas (38*), Malinga (21) and Murali himself (33) chipping in 92 runs in order help their side post a somewhat defendable total.
Is there anything Murali can't do? Image from Getty Images
With a lead of only 2 runs, the Sri Lankans knew a strong batting effort had to be produced in order to stay alive in the match. Scoring a solid 322 proved to be sufficient, as the visitors' batted consistently, with six batsmen contributing runs of 30 and above, with batsmen Sangakarra (66) and Kapugedera (50) managing to surpass the half century mark.
Murali traps Pieterson in front for another wicket. Image from Getty Images
Despite this, English spinner Monty Panesar managed to silence a few of his critics with a hard-earned 5/78 from 37.1 overs. Needing 325 for victory, the Poms started off solidly with Trescothick (31) and Strauss (55) putting together 84 before the fall of the first wicket. However, both openers' hard-work went straight down the kitchen sink as the home side slumped badly due to some Murali magic which saw them lose 9/106, with Murali responsible for 8 of the dismissals.
The series ends at 1-1, with Murali contributing in almost every facet of his last game on English soil, scoring a crucial 33 and bagging another 10 wicket haul. Surely, one he will never forget.
Image from Daily Mail
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