Cricket

ENG Vs SL, 3rd Test: Nissanka Becomes First SL Opener To Score Hundred In England Since 2011

Pathum Nissanka became the first Sri Lankan opener to score a Test ton in 13 years in England, after former dynamic opener Tillakaratne Dilshan scored in 2011

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Sri Lanka's Pathum Nissanka celebrates his century on day four of the third Test against England at The Oval. Photo: AP/John Walton
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Pathum Nissanka put on an absolute show under tough conditions at the Oval, scoring a brilliant hundred in the fourth innings of the third Test between England and Sri Lanka. (More Cricket News)

The 26-year-old also became the first Sri Lankan opener to score a Test ton in 13 years in England, after former dynamic opener Tillakaratne Dilshan scored in 2011. 

Nissanka’s solid, sound, and scintillating hundred helped Sri Lanka end a ten-year wait for a Test win in England. 

He also joined an elite group of visiting batters, namely, Don Bradman, Gordon Greenide, and Graeme Smith, by scoring a ton in the fourth innings of a Test triumph in England.

The Nissanka heroics also helped Sri Lanka set a new Asian record for the highest successful chase in a Test, again in England. 

The Galle-born cricketer scored a classic unbeaten 127 to help his side win the match by eight wickets.

Sri Lankan Openers To Score Test Hundreds In England

- S Wettimuny: 1984, Lord's

- Amal Rohitha Silva: 1984, Lord's

- Sanathan Jayasuriya: 1998, The Oval

- Marvan Atapattu: 2002, Lord's

- Russell Arnold: 2002, Old Trafford

- Michael Vandort: 2006, Edgbaston

- Tilakaratne Dilshan: 2011, Lord's

- Pathum Nissanka: 2024, The Oval

In his 11 Test appearances so far, Nissanka has scored 754 runs at an average of 44.35, with six fifties and two hundreds to his name.