England Lions Close in on Victory Against Sri Lanka in Tour Match

England Lions Close in on Victory Against Sri Lanka in Tour Match

England Lions are on the cusp of victory against Sri Lanka in their tour match at New Road, Worcester. The Lions need just 75 more runs to win after bowling out Sri Lanka for 306 in their second innings.

Sri Lanka, trailing by 185 runs on first innings, showed some fightback with half-centuries from Nishan Madushka (77), Angelo Mathews (51), and captain Dhananjaya de Silva (66). However, the Lions’ bowlers, led by offspinner Farhan Ahmed (3-87), kept chipping away at the Sri Lankan batting lineup.

The Lions made a solid start to their chase, with Ben McKinney hitting a quickfire 20 off nine balls. Dhananjaya briefly threatened a comeback with two wickets in two balls, but Rob Yates and Hamza Shaikh steadied the ship for the Lions.

The tour match is Sri Lanka’s only warm-up game before the first of three Tests against England starts in Manchester on Wednesday. This is their first Test tour to England since they lost a three-match series 2-0 in 2016.

The Lions’ victory would be a significant boost to their confidence ahead of the Test series. It would also be a disappointing result for Sri Lanka, who will be looking to improve their performance in the longer format.