Sri Lanka's De Silva And Kamindu Mendis Defy England In Third Test
Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva and the in-form Kamindu Mendis frustrated England with a unbroken century partnership on the second day of the third Test at the Oval on Saturday.
The tourists collapsed to 93-5 before tea, but had recovered to 211-5 when bad light forced an early close.
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That left Sri Lanka 114 runs adrift of an England first-innings total of 325 built on Ollie Pope's 154 -- his first century as England captain.
De Silva was 64 not out and left-handed batsman Kamindu Mendis, again down the order at number seven, 54 not out in an undefeated stand of 118 as Sri Lanka looked to salvage some pride at 2-0 behind in a three-match series.
It was a fine end to the day for Sri Lanka, who took seven wickets before lunch on Saturday to end England's innings.
For Mendis, currently boasting a staggeringly high Test batting average of over 85, this was the seventh time in six matches at this level the 25-year-old had passed 50 -- a run that also includes three centuries.
De Silva, however, should have been out for 23 but Test debutant Josh Hull dropped a simple catch at mid-on, the ball bursting through the towering fast bowler's giant hands following a miscued drive off spinner Shoaib Bashir.
England, 211-3 overnight, could have batted Sri Lanka out of the game.
But an improved Sri Lanka bowling display, allied to several England batsmen giving their wickets away, helped the tourists fight back.
