Twitter Reactions: Sri Lanka on the verge of morale-boosting consolation victory over England

With nine wickets remaining, Sri Lanka needed just 125 runs to win the third Test match at Kennington Oval in London. They concluded the third day of play in a dominant position. Following a superb bowling performance in England’s second innings, it appears that the Lankan Lions may be able to recover some pride before the tour comes to a conclusion.

After Kamindu Mendis and captain Dhananjaya de Silva combined for 118 runs the day before, the visitors began Day 3 at 211/5. That being said, the two left early on Day 3 for 64 and 69, respectively. Lower-order batsmen were unable to make much of an impact, and England eventually seized a 62-run advantage in the first innings. Josh Hull, making his debut, and Olly Stone each claimed three wickets for the home team.

England lost their first seven wickets in their second innings, scoring just 82 runs, as Sri Lankan seamers caused mayhem. England’s lead surpassed 200 runs thanks to a superb counterattacking performance of 67 off just 50 deliveries from Jamie Smith. But once he was out, the foreigners wasted little time in finishing the innings. The best bowler was Lahiru Kumara, who finished with 4/21 in seven overs. Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando, meanwhile, claimed two and three wickets, respectively. Milan Rathnayake contributed one wicket as well.

On Day 3, at Stumps, Sri Lanka reached 94/1 in 15 overs thanks to a 55-run partnership between the two right-handed batsmen, with Nissanka remaining undefeated at 53 off 44 balls.

With just 219 runs needed to complete the three-match series with a 1-2 scoreline, the Three Lions folded for 156. While Pathum Nissanka toyed with the England bowlers, hitting boundaries at whim, the seasoned Dimuth Karunaratne went cheaply. In the Test match, the gifted right-hand batsman needed just 42 balls to get his second half-century.

Kusal Mendis, meanwhile, was also playing his shots as he hit six boundaries in an undefeated batting performance of 30 off 25 balls.

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Day 4’s morning session will require England to put forth their best effort and take early wickets in order to put the cat among the birds. The run-chase might then become a piece of cake if the overnight batters can weather the storm in the opening half hour.

Here’s how ‘X’ users reacted to the action on Day 3:

🇱🇰 SRILANKA – 94/1 AT THE END OF DAY 3 AT THE OVAL .

JUST 125 RUNS AWAY FROM A HISTORIC VICTORY…!!!! 🌟

EXCITING DAY 4 AHEAD 😆 .#ENGVSSL #TestCricket #Cricket #IPL2025 pic.twitter.com/i2ijmvZurr

— Pratyush Halder (@pratyush_no7) September 8, 2024

03 Days.
69.1+34 (🇬🇧) & 61.2+15* (🇱🇰)=179.3 overs in total. A total of 92.3 overs lost to Bad Light & Rain. #ENGvsSL

— Sanjeewa K. (@SanjeewaKUK) September 8, 2024

Sri Lankan Bowlers are on fire in 2nd innings vs England :

Lahiru Kumara (4/21), Vishwa Fernando (3/40), Asitha Fernando (2/49), and Milan Rathnayake (1/43) excelled.#ENGvsSL #SriLanka #Cricket pic.twitter.com/HkRgTQeUzI

— CricGlobe (@thecricglobe) September 8, 2024

SL finally made it to right path… 125 more and will be a match to remember for long🙌🏻 #EngvsSL

— Atish (@atishj7) September 8, 2024

Sri Lanka have given England a feel of Bazball here – wow, what hitting !! 💥💥

Need just 125 more to win !!

Pathum Nissanka: 53* (44)
Kusal Mendis: 30* (25)#KLRahul #RishabhPant #ShubmanGill #DuleepTrophy #RohitSharma #RuturajGaikwad #ENGvsSL #ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/9F0PdfbZzx

— Cricketism (@MidnightMusinng) September 8, 2024

ollie pop as a captain, 10 reviews 10 unsuccessful. 🤦#ENGvsSL pic.twitter.com/hunnmrT5La

— Ahmad Amin Khan (@AhmadAminKhan) September 8, 2024

Surprising turn of events especially the aggressive play from SL batters have them needing 125 tomorrow with 9 wkts in hand..collapses against moving ball under overcast conditions are real though. #EngvSl #EngvsSL

— movieman (@movieman777) September 8, 2024

It’s high time now @englandcricket start picking a top 3 who can grind 250 balls in Australia and convert Hundreds into Daddy Hundreds rather than a top 3 which scores quick 30’S, 40’S, 50’S 60’S.#ENGvSL #ENGvsSL #EnglandCricket

— Nishan Sapkota (@NishanSapkota_7) September 8, 2024