Sri Lanka vs England, 1st Test: Dom Bess 5-Wicket Haul, Joe Root Fifty Put England On Top On Day 1 | Cricket News
Off-spinner Dom Bess claimed five wickets to help bowl out Sri Lanka for 135 and give England the advantage on day one of a Test that took 10 months to start on Thursday. Bess, who returned figures of 5-30, combined with paceman Stuart Broad, who took three wickets, as Sri Lanka were all out in two sessions as the two-Test series resumed in Galle after the original tour was aborted over the coronavirus in March. England lost their openers early but skipper Joe Root, on 66, and Jonny Bairstow, on 47, steered the tourists to 127 for two at close of play. They still trail Sri Lanka by eight runs.
The batting duo put on an unbeaten partnership of 110 after Dom Sibley, for four, and Zak Crawley, for nine, fell to Lasith Embuldeniya’s left-arm spin.
Root, who successfully reviewed an lbw call in his favour after being given out by the on-field umpire on 20, reached his 50th fifty in 98 Tests. He has 17 centuries.
Bess though remained the hero of the day with his second five-wicket haul in his 11th Test as the venue witnessed its lowest first-innings score, well below Sri Lanka’s 181 against Pakistan in 2000.
