- Overshooting 1.5C risks 'irreversible' climate impact: study
- Time running out in Florida to flee Hurricane Milton
- Demis Hassabis, from chess prodigy to Nobel-winning AI pioneer
- The long walk for water in the parched Colombian Amazon
- Biden-Netanyahu to talk as Hezbollah, Israeli forces clash
- France vows to step up drugs fight after police vehicles torched
- Air France says jet flew over Iraq during Iran attack on Israel
- Activists target Picasso work to protest Israel arms sales
- Let 'Emily in Paris' remain in Paris, Macron says
- Global stocks diverge as Chinese shares tumble
- Time runs out in Florida to flee Hurricane Milton
- Chad issues warning ahead of more devastating floods
- Record-breaking Root helps England dominate Pakistan in first Test
- German govt sees economy shrinking again in 2024
- Ex-UK soldier denies passing secrets to Iran intelligence
- Creator's death no bar to new 'Dragon Ball' products
- Three Kosovo Serbs on trial over 'secession plot' attack
- Van Gogh museum to launch Impressionism show
- French minister ups ante in Eiffel Tower Olympic rings row
- Japan PM calls snap election to 'create a new Japan'
- German police shut pro-Palestinian camp over Thunberg invite
- Chinese stocks tumble on lack of fresh stimulus
- Trio wins chemistry Nobel for protein design, prediction
- SE Asian summit urges end to Myanmar violence but struggles for solutions
- Wimbledon replaces line judges with electronic system
- Record-breaking Root hits hundred as England power to 351-3
- Record-breaking Root hits hundred as England's power to 351-3
- Sabalenka relishes 'much-needed' tennis rivalry with Swiatek
- Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson set for six weeks out
- Taylor Swift got police escort to London gigs after Austria terror plot
- Cook tips Root to break Tendulkar's all-time runs record
- British skull auction sparks Indian demand for return
- Joe Root: England's elegant Test record-breaker
- Braving war: Lebanon's 'badass' airline defies odds
- Klopp to return as head of Red Bull football operations
- Hezbollah strikes Israel, says it foiled Israeli incursions
- Jurgen Klopp to return as head of Red Bull football operations
- Sinner to face Medvedev in Shanghai Masters quarter-finals
- US weighs Google breakup in landmark trial
- Record-breaking Root guides England to 232-2 in reply to Pakistan's 556
- Japan PM dissolves parliament for 'honeymoon' snap election
- Chinese stocks tumble on stimulus upset, Asia tracks Wall St higher
- 7-Eleven owner confirms new takeover offer from Couche-Tard
- Goodbye Tito? Tomb at risk as Serbs argue over Yugoslav legacy
- Restoration experts piece together silent Sherlock Holmes mystery
- Sinner avoids Shanghai deja vu with assured Shelton win
- Pyongyang to 'permanently' shut border with South Korea
- Trumpet star Marsalis says jazz creates 'balance' in divided world
- No children left on Greece's famed but emptying island
- Nepali becomes youngest to climb world's 8,000m peaks
RIO | -0.68% | 66.21 | $ | |
CMSC | 0.28% | 24.64 | $ | |
NGG | -0.34% | 65.675 | $ | |
BTI | 0.55% | 35.415 | $ | |
GSK | 0.45% | 38.19 | $ | |
SCS | 2.44% | 13.1 | $ | |
BCE | -0.15% | 33.46 | $ | |
BP | -0.41% | 31.9 | $ | |
BCC | 0.45% | 142.665 | $ | |
RYCEF | -1.01% | 6.9 | $ | |
JRI | 0.3% | 13.2 | $ | |
CMSD | -0.11% | 24.8248 | $ | |
RBGPF | -2.48% | 59.33 | $ | |
RELX | -0.09% | 46.6 | $ | |
AZN | 0.12% | 76.965 | $ | |
VOD | 0.46% | 9.705 | $ |
Sri Lanka captain De Silva eyes Test Championship points against England
Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva hopes his side can climb up the World Test Championship (WTC) table as they go in search of a maiden win in the five-day format at Lord's this week.
The tourists pushed England hard before losing last week's first Test at Old Trafford by five wickets.
That defeat has left them needing to win at Lord's, where they have drawn six and lost two of their previous eight Tests, if they are to level this three-match series at 1-1 and turn next month's finale across London at the Oval into a decider.
De Silva is also conscious of Sri Lanka's position in the WTC table, where his side are currently fifth -- one place below England.
"It is all about getting a Test win," he told a pre-match press conference at Lord's on Wednesday. "It will mean a lot for the country. But more importantly we need to get points in the World Test Championship.
"We are more confident heading into this game. We were confident at Old Trafford as well but we failed to deliver. We have to be clear with our plans and execute them well."
- Nissanka and Kumara recalled -
Sri Lanka have made two changes to their side.
Pathum Nissanka, who has enjoyed one-day international success this year but last played a Test match in 2022, replaces Kusal Mendis in the top order and paceman Lahiru Kumara comes in for left-armer Vishwa Fernando.
"Overall, Pathum is the best batter in the country at the moment," said De Silva. "He has a good mindset and he has a good technique."
Dinesh Chandimal, who made an impressive second-innings 79 at Old Trafford has been included despite suffering a painful blow to the thumb while batting against express quick Mark Wood, but he may not keep wicket with Nishan Madushka on standby to take over behind the stumps.
England will be without the injured Wood at Lord's, but De Silva said new-ball spearhead Chris Woakes was proving tougher to face for Sri Lanka's batsmen.
"I am not concerned about the speed," the 32-year-old middle-order batsman explained. "Speed is not troubling us. It is the line and length that's troubling us. Chris Woakes is able to bowl 20 to 30 balls at one area and that's what is troubling us."
But one Sri Lanka batsman who arrives at Lord's very much in form is Kamindu Mendis.
The left-hander scored his third hundred in just four Tests with an excellent 113 at Old Trafford to leave him with a supremely high average of 92.16 ahead of fulfilling a childhood ambition by playing at Lord's.
"It was a dream to play at Lord's when I was a boy," said the 25-year-old Mendis. "I'm excited to play here."
Sri Lanka team for second Test: Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka (wkt), Pathum Nissanka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya De Silva (capt), Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Milan Rathnayake
D.Kaufman--AMWN