Sri Lanka crushed in Cardiff

By Rob Lancaster

Image: Tremlett celebrates one of his four wickets on the final day

England skittled Sri Lanka for just 82 on the fifth day to win a dramatic first Test in Cardiff by an innings and 14 runs.

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Tremlett, Swann share eight wickets before Broad finishes the job

England pulled off a stunning Test win over Sri Lanka as they bowled out their opponents for 82 on a dramatic last day to the series opener in Cardiff. With rain wiping out the morning session, a scenario that had become all-too familiar during a rain-hit match, a draw looked the only outcome. When play did finally resume at 3pm Ian Bell quickly completed his 13th Test century before the hosts immediately declared their first innings on 496-5 - giving them a useful lead of 96. Incredibly, that proved more than enough as Sri Lanka were blown away at the SWALEC Stadium in 24.4 overs to lose by an innings and 14 runs.

Hapless

The hapless tourists collapsed in a little under two hours to record their joint-fourth lowest score in Test history; Chris Tremlett and Graeme Swann each claimed four wickets apiece before Stuart Broad mopped up the tail. England's achievement was even more impressive considering not only the amount of time lost to bad weather during the game but also the absence of James Anderson - their premier seamer in the longest form of the game - due to a side strain suffered in the first innings. But a three-man attack was all that was needed to see off a flimsy Sri Lankan side that lost six wickets for 19 runs straight after the tea break. They had hardly found life easy going before then, though, with Tremlett in particular causing them trouble. Able to get steepling bounce from a length, the paceman immediately sowed seeds of doubt into the visiting dressing room by having Tharanga Paranavitana caught at first slip by Andrew Strauss. Tillakaratne Dilshan soon followed his opening partner back to the pavilion when a combination of glove and bat gave Tremlett with a return catch. Still, with big guns Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene surviving through until tea, a positive result in England's favour was still only a slight possibility, rather than a complete probability. That all changed from the moment Jayawardene edged the fifth ball of the final session, bowled by Tremlett, to the safe hands of England skipper Strauss. Swann went on to rip out the middle order with three wickets in the space of eight deliveries, Thilan Samaraweera the first of them when he chopped on his ninth delivery before he had managed to trouble the scorers.
Key wicket
The key wicket, however, was that of Sangakkara. Scratchy after his spell in the Indian Premier League, he departed for 14 when he nicked Swann, who finished with 4-16 from seven overs, to Strauss at slip. Farveez Maharoof then provided wicketkeeper Matt Prior with a catch three deliveries later and the procession continued in the next over as Prasanna Jayawardene was adjudged to have got a glove on a bouncer from Tremlett. Rangana Herath was leg before having a horrible swipe at Swann but Thishara Perera did counter-attack more successfully, hitting Tremlett (4-40) out of the attack with three boundaries in one over. Strauss responded by turning to Broad, a move that paid dividends when Perera, clearly uncomfortable against anything short, was brilliantly caught at short leg by Bell for 20. Suranga Lakmal also failed to deal with a bouncer, looping a catch to Alastair Cook to two balls later to end an extraordinary match. The rapid conclusion meant England wouldn't live to regret their decision to bat on in their first innings, allowing Bell to get the two runs he needed after being stranded on 98 not overnight. The only concern for the hosts now is who will replace Anderson for the second Test of the series at Lord's, which gets underway on Friday, with Steven Finn the most likely option after being 12th man in Wales.
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