At tea, they had recovered to 140-8 following Smith’s third fifty in six Tests since the 24-year-old made his England debut in July
SL’s Vishwa Fernando celebrates the wicket of England’s Harry Brook in London yesterday. Pic/Bipin Patel
Jamie Smith’s dashing 67 revived England after they suffered a dramatic collapse in the third Test against Sri Lanka at the Oval on Sunday. England were in the dire position of 66-4 in their second innings on the third day when the wicketkeeper came in to bat on his Surrey home ground. At tea, they had recovered to 140-8 following Smith’s third fifty in six Tests since the 24-year-old made his England debut in July.
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That left England, already 2-0 up in this three-match series, with an overall lead of 202 and hope of a first home Test clean sweep since 2004 after routing the West Indies 3-0 earlier in the season. Smith, however, fell on the stroke of tea when he chipped Vishwa Fernando to short midwicket to end a superb 50-ball innings featuring 10 fours and a six that was a testament both to his game management and his orthodox stroke-play.
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Left-arm quick Vishwa Fernando, gaining prodigious swing, also captured the prized wicket of Joe Root for just 12 in a return of 3-40. Former England captains Michael Vaughan and Alastair Cook had criticised the hosts for sloppy batting while slumping from 221-3 to 325 all out in their first innings.
England’s Moeen retires from int’l cricket
England’s World Cup-winner Moeen Ali has retired from international cricket, insisting: “I’ve done my part.” The spin-bowling all-rounder said he made the decision after he was overlooked for England’s upcoming white-ball series against arch-rivals Australia. “I’m 37 years old and didn’t get picked for this month’s Australia series,” Ali told Britain’s Daily Mail. “I’ve played a lot of cricket for England. It’s time for the next generation, which was also explained to me. It felt the time was right. I’ve done my part,” he added.
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